Raspberry Pi has raised prices on many Pi 4, Pi 5, and Compute Module models as memory costs surge in 2026, undermining its once-low-cost SBC positioning.
I don’t know what people would need a Pi 5 16gb for other than using it as a low-powered PC alternative. I’ve got a bunch of 4’s and 3’s doing utilitarian tasks, from running an older 3D printer to PiHole. One I’m using as a budget PC in the garage to listen to music and look up how-to videos if I get stumped on something.
A $200+ 5 seems outside the needs of the users who have viewed Pi’s as relatively inexpensive hobbyist devices, but below the needs of people needing to do the work of desktop PCs.
I’m sure there’s niche uses for them, but is there actual demand for them?
There is a whole lot of demand from industrial equipment manufacturers. When you attach a computer to your twenty thousand bucks robot arm or CNC drill, you need it small, reliable, readily-available, and brand-new, so you slightly overpay for Pi 5 for $200 and an SSD drive for another $200 to not rely on faulty SD cards, and if it breaks you can buy and replace it in 15 minutes, and future Raspberry Pi 6 will most probably boot from the same SSD and work with zero modifications, even contacts placement will be the same. Does it need 16 GB? Probably not.
Also, drone manifacturers. 16 GB RAM is just enough to run a computer vision AI model, and you won’t haul a used HP laptop on a drone.
Do you have any evidence that industrial manufacturers are sourcing Pi 5’s as controllers of choice? I think most manufacturers would use proprietary or purpose built controllers meeting required durability needs.
This is the best case I’ve seen for the 16 gb model to exist. Pretty cool idea of turning it into a budget laptop, however not so budget now unfortunately.
I find that if you don’t need it to be small but just cheap you can often find used boards or even cheap new boards in the ATX, micro ATX or mini ITX form factors that have more ports and such. I think sometimes people get hung up on using a Pi “because they are cheap” not realizing that if they AREN’T cheap they can switch to a “normal” computer.
You can get old laptops for under $100 all day long. Pretty capable old laptops. Once size isn’t a real limiting factor, suddenly there is incredible choice.
I don’t know what people would need a Pi 5 16gb for other than using it as a low-powered PC alternative. I’ve got a bunch of 4’s and 3’s doing utilitarian tasks, from running an older 3D printer to PiHole. One I’m using as a budget PC in the garage to listen to music and look up how-to videos if I get stumped on something.
A $200+ 5 seems outside the needs of the users who have viewed Pi’s as relatively inexpensive hobbyist devices, but below the needs of people needing to do the work of desktop PCs.
I’m sure there’s niche uses for them, but is there actual demand for them?
There is a whole lot of demand from industrial equipment manufacturers. When you attach a computer to your twenty thousand bucks robot arm or CNC drill, you need it small, reliable, readily-available, and brand-new, so you slightly overpay for Pi 5 for $200 and an SSD drive for another $200 to not rely on faulty SD cards, and if it breaks you can buy and replace it in 15 minutes, and future Raspberry Pi 6 will most probably boot from the same SSD and work with zero modifications, even contacts placement will be the same. Does it need 16 GB? Probably not.
Also, drone manifacturers. 16 GB RAM is just enough to run a computer vision AI model, and you won’t haul a used HP laptop on a drone.
Do you have any evidence that industrial manufacturers are sourcing Pi 5’s as controllers of choice? I think most manufacturers would use proprietary or purpose built controllers meeting required durability needs.
https://youtu.be/Ef70x0izkFU
This is the best case I’ve seen for the 16 gb model to exist. Pretty cool idea of turning it into a budget laptop, however not so budget now unfortunately.
I find that if you don’t need it to be small but just cheap you can often find used boards or even cheap new boards in the ATX, micro ATX or mini ITX form factors that have more ports and such. I think sometimes people get hung up on using a Pi “because they are cheap” not realizing that if they AREN’T cheap they can switch to a “normal” computer.
You can get old laptops for under $100 all day long. Pretty capable old laptops. Once size isn’t a real limiting factor, suddenly there is incredible choice.