The Raspberry Pi Foundation has just released a new model called the Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W, and it comes with a quad-core processor and an affordable $15 price tag.
The highlight of the new Raspberry Pi is the 1.0GHz quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor, which is a substantial upgrade over the 1GHz single-core processor that was included with the Zero W. Adding the extra cores will provide the mini-computer with a lot more flexibility when compared to the first computer in this line.
In fact, the new Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W uses the Raspberry Pi RP3A0 system-in-package with the BCM2710A1 die that can bring substantial performance gains. Like its predecessor, it comes with 512MB LPDDR2 SDRAM, which should be enough to do what this type of computer needs to do.
It comes with 802.11n WiFi connectivity and Bluetooth 4.2 with Bluetooth Low Energy. As for the ports, there's a mini HDMI port, a micro-USB power socket, a micro-SD slot, and a USB 2.0 OTG port. There's also a 40-pin GPIO header that can be used for all sorts of DIY projects.
The Raspberry Pi Foundation says this board will remain in production until 2028, so you can rely on it being around for the long haul.
The new Pi is available for $15 in the United Kingdom, the European Union, the United States, Canada, and Hong Kong, with additional countries to receive it in the future. Because of the chip shortage, the Raspberry Pi Foundation will ship 200k units this calendar year, with a further 250k to follow in the first half of 2022, so they will be somewhat limited.