RPi vs. Mobile!

A question for those who are using Raspberry Pi:

With the down to earth Chinese Android mobiles and the more functions and capabilities, what advantage can one
get by using RP and not a mobile as mController or dedicated computer?

Thanks for your explanation.

Well, I suppose it depends on what you want to do...

For mController use, with RPi you have direct access to GPIOs, and with a mobile you would have to expand them through USB.

As per processing power, I agree that some cheap mobiles perhaps can be more powerful, but RPi is also quite cheap. So it depends on where you feel more comfortable and on wether the OS doesn't limit what you want to do.

In addition to what JordiCP said, the RasPi 2 has 4 full-size USB ports. If you need that, you'll be hard-pressed to find an Android phone that has it. Furthermore, it is generally simpler and easier to program for desktop Java (using B4J) than it is to program for Android (using B4A). There are no Activities, Services and corresponding life-cycle management issues with which to deal. And, finally, if you want to run an HTTP server, the B4J jServer library is much more powerful than the B4A HttpServer library.

There are some downsides, though. JavaFX support is pretty spotty on the RasPi. Many users will be less familiar with desktop Linux than they will be with Android. And the inverse problem, as well: a knowledgeable user can gain superuser privileges on a RasPi with little effort if you haven't password-protected it whereas, on Android, it is much more difficult. Of course, whether this matters to you will depend on the details of your project.

One point I forgot to mention is that Oracle's HotSpot JVM is incredibly efficient, much more so than Android's DVM or ART. If you have an Android phone with similar specs to the RasPi 2 (quad core 1 GHz ARM with 1 GB of RAM), the same B4X code will probably run a lot faster on the RasPi 2 than on the Android phone.

Beja said:

A question for those who are using Raspberry Pi:

With the down to earth Chinese Android mobiles and the more functions and capabilities, what advantage can one
get by using RP and not a mobile as mController or dedicated computer?

Thanks for your explanation.

Click to expand...

Raspberry Pi can run Linux (based on Debian) and Windows 10 IOT Core.

Yes susu they may run anything..
But what do you want to achieve from a microcontroller at the end of the day.. connectivity? net services? I/O addressing? Processing?... etc.
they are all in B4A/Android phones. moreover they have built-in touch screens, BT, GPS, WiFi...etc. and you can find them for 75 bucks with 1GB RAM
and 4GB storage.

and if there is a short power failure it keeps running without the need to buy extra battery packs.

The question is too general. It really depends on your requirements.

Android is a consumer oriented operating system. For example I wouldn't use an Android device as a server (unless I have to like with the UI Cloud). The OS is much more "in control" compared to standard Linux.

The PI's goal is it's hw connectivity Pins, Serial communication, sensors (which a phone/tablet hasn't).

KMatle said:

The PI's goal is it's hw connectivity Pins, Serial communication, sensors (which a phone/tablet hasn't).

Click to expand...

It depends on the project complexity level.. if the project requires extensive programming and has powerful functionality, then I
would go with phone/tab solution and add a BTtoSerial module that I would connect to the external sensor.. the BTtoSerial modules
like HC-6 has RS485 that can be used.. almost all of today's sensors have built-in serial ports that can directly be connected to the
Bluetooth module without the need for interfacing electronics. When I order a new sensor I ask the operator if it has RS485 port and
99% of the answer is yes they have some models that have hem.