Big Improvements on Networking Performance
The Raspberry Pi 3 B+ is now available at RaspberryPi.org. Despite only having a slight difference in name to the Raspberry Pi 3 B, it actually features significant performance improvements. Specifically, it now features roughly 3x the wired and wireless throughput over 3 B. It has dual-band 802.11ac wireless LAN and Bluetooth 4.2, plus faster Gigabit Ethernet over USB 2.0.
Previous Raspberry Pi devices have used the LAN951x family of chips, which combine a USB hub and 10/100 Ethernet controller. The 3 B+ on the other hand, upgrades to the LAN7515 for Gigabit over USB 2.0 connectivity. Although the USB 2.0 connection to the application processor limits the available bandwidth, it is still significantly faster than the Pi 3 Rev B.
According to the company, internal iPerf benchmarcks show Tx/Rx bandwidth of the 3 Rev B+ at 315/315 Mb/s compared to the 3 Rev B at 94.1/95.5 Mb/s.
What Else Is New on the Raspberry Pi 3 B+?
The new model still has the same size of course, so it fits existing enclosures. It is powered by a Broadcom BCM2837B0, which an updated version of the 64-bit Broadcom application processor used in Raspberry Pi 3 Rev B. This CPU runs 200MHz faster at 1.46GHz, and incorporates power integrity optimizations as well as a heat spreader cover. This is what allows the processor to run faster while having better thermals than 3 Rev B version.
Furthermore, the B+ features Power-over-Ethernet support (with separate PoE HAT), as well as PXE network and USB mass-storage booting improvements.
How Much is the Raspberry Pi 3 B+?
The latest model is on sale now for $35 USD. Previous models are still available for $25.
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