Element14 Releases: Growing Demand for Low-Cost Single Board Computers for Industrial and IoT Applications

New research from element14 shows growing demand for low-cost single-board computers in industrial and IoT applications

Farnell Global Research Shows Low-Cost Single Board Computers Are Widely Used for Everything from Proof of Concept, Prototyping to Test Equipment

and various stages of mass production, covering the entire process

Shanghai, China, September 6, 2021 – Farnell element14, a global distributor of electronic components and solutions under Avnet, released the latest market research. The survey results show that low-cost single-board computers (SBCs) have become an important building block in all stages of new product development and the entire production process, and industrial and IoT are the main application areas of SBCs. About 50% of the professional engineers surveyed use SBCs for industrial and IoT application development.

Raspberry Pi is the most popular single-board computer, with 44% of the professionals surveyed choosing it. Arduino is second (28%), and Beagleboard is third (6%). These market-leading single-board computers can simplify the new product development process and speed up the time to market, which will help original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) respond to market trends more quickly. The survey also found that compared with other single-board computer users, Raspberry Pi users have the highest user stickiness and are least likely to switch to other single-board computers.

The survey also shows that single-board computers have been widely used in various stages of product development and production processes. 23% of respondents use single-board computers for concept verification, 35% for prototype design, 22% for low-cost single-board computers in product production, and about 20% of them produce at least 5,000 units per year, and another 20% for test equipment development and testing.

The global survey was conducted from March to May 2021, with a total of 1,500 single-board computer solution users participating, including professional engineers, designers and makers. Among them, three-quarters of the respondents (75%) are professionals, and only a quarter of the respondents are hobbyists or makers (25%). The survey aims to gain a deeper understanding of the application of popular single-board computers from many leading manufacturers in the development of professional products and projects.

Other key findings include:

• Raspberry Pi and Arduino are used by about the same number of makers, indicating that engineers prefer to use familiar development boards both for personal development projects and at work.

• About 24% of professionals use SBCs with development boards they built themselves, proving that a standard computer platform with custom I/O interface devices can provide performance advantages for many application developments.

• Shortening time to market is one of the main goals of professionals, and ease of use and familiarity are the most important considerations when choosing a single board computer.

• Only 20% of engineers use artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning in their single-board computer application development.

• Higher performance AI and more memory are the most common requests for improvements to single-board computers.

• Touch screens are by far the most popular accessory, but cameras and kits to boost battery or solar panel power are also popular.

• Professionals are more likely to use custom boards than makers.

Romain Soreau, Head of Single Board Computing at Farnell and element14, said: “This survey clearly demonstrates the widespread adoption of single board computers in commercial, IoT and industrial environments. The high performance, versatility, rich features and accessories, low cost and large and active user base of Raspberry Pi and Arduino make them an ideal platform for engineers to quickly develop and deploy a wide range of applications. Using single board computers in prototyping will help engineers significantly reduce computing costs and get new products to market faster.”

As a global distributor, element14 can quickly provide customers with a variety of easy-to-use products for professional applications, including major single-board computer platforms and toolkits from world-leading brands, such as: Raspberry Pi, Ardunio (Potenta H7), Intel (NUC series), Industrial Shields, etc. In addition, customers can also get 5 days a week, 8 hours a day technical support service, and free access to the element14 website and engineering and maker community element14 community on the practical online resources.

element14 is the Raspberry Pi Foundation's longest-standing distributor partner, with over 15 million Raspberry Pi development boards sold. element14 now stocks a full range of Raspberry Pi single-board computers, including the latest Raspberry Pi Pico, to support users in building devices for home, professional, educational or commercial applications. element14 also offers a diverse ecosystem of accessories, including enclosures, power supplies, micro-HDMI cables and Raspberry Pi high-resolution cameras.

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