RPI4 substitute running astroberry

[k4kv]

Hello,

Been running astroberry for a while on an RPI4.  Have not seen where the supply of RPI4 boards has gotten any better in the last year.  I wanted a spare, just in case.

So, is anyone running an RPI4 substitute board with astroberry?

I have seen some that should work, but not heard that someone was actually doing it.  After running the RPI4, one of it's poor features is the lack of an external antenna jack

for WiFi.  I added one to mine, but it takes almost a microscope.

Glen

Moultrie, GA
 

[Dr_Ju_ju]

You pre-order Pi's from Farnell, i.e. https://uk.farnell.com/raspberry-pi/rpi4-modbp-8gb/raspberry-pi-4-model-b-cortex/dp/3369503?CMP=e-email-sys-orderack-GLB I have a couple on order, not necessarily for Astro work....

I have also used Pine64 and Odroid boards:  https://www.pine64.org/devices/single-board-computers/rock64/ https://www.pine64.org/rockpro64/ https://www.odroid.co.uk/odroid-xu4  

All work well but I've not used them with Astroberry just Kstars etc. also they can be a frig to set up, so I highly recommend using Armbian for initial software install.... 

[wimvb]

Astroberry is a single installation package, where all the dependencies for Kstars are provided. Also, the hardware is stable. I have used Rock64 sbc's with Ekos/Kstars, but sooner or later I have always had some issues. For example, with a Rock64 I need to connect my ZWO camera through a powered usb-hub, despite having a Meanwell 75 W power supply. There have been intermittent problems with character sets in the software, etc. RPi is just more mature and stable, imo. What drew me to other sbc's was, at that time, that they provided a usb3 port, and usb was not shared with wifi. The emmc memory is also more stable and faster than a sd card.

[powerlord]

Keep yer eye on ebay. Though most sellers are trying for silly prices, some are not. I got a 4gb pi4 for 85 quid a month ago off there.

Stu

[AusAlmond]

I had a problem when my Pi 3 failed unexpectedly and took Polemaster (on Ubuntu Mate) with it. I wanted to upgrade to Rpi 4 but couldn't get either a 3 or a 4. However the Rpi 400 is in low demand at least here in Australia and came in 24 hours. Quite a convenient unit with decent keyboard. As it has more power than the 3, I am now also running Kstars/Ekos with Eqmod with plenty of speed as well. The Pi is great for long battery life on cold night. Just a thought. Andrew

[callump]

Not sure where I heard, but there should be plenty of stocks of RPi4s in June.

/callump

[JonCarleton]

Vilros has Pi4's in stock now.  They are packaging them with a lot of junk (eg: case, power supply, fan, etc.) to justify a higher price, but they are new and ship immediately (at the moment).

[callump]

Pi hut had stock of 4gb pi4’s last night

omly one per order or customer 

not sure if they have any left now /callump

[callump]

Pi 4's now seem to be out of stock on PiHut now - but starter kits available if you need the extras.

Callum

[pipnina]

At this point, I would suggest maybe getting a mini PC that's X86 based?

For example: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/114733154309

Select the core i3, 4GB of RAM and the 120GB SSD. it costs less than many RPI boards and kits with the same memory, probably has a faster CPU and also includes storage, and a fair bit of it which is going to be faster than the SD card on a PI. And as a bonus it's still quite small!

I am tempted to give this a go myself!

Simply use the provided windows install on a lot like these (for N.I.N.A users) although for that it might be worth getting them config'd with 8GB ram and enjoy!

Myself, I'd be putting something like Ubuntu MATE or similar on them, and configuring X11VNC to open at boot. This would let me control it remotely as I do with my RPI and use Kstars + PHD2.

Given the stock issues with the RPI it might be worth a go!

[Dark Raven]

On 04/05/2023 at 13:11, k4kv said:

So, is anyone running an RPI4 substitute board with astroberry?

I have seen some that should work, but not heard that someone was actually doing it.  After running the RPI4, one of it's poor features is the lack of an external antenna jack

for WiFi. 

This below might be an idea. RPI CM4 with 8GB of RAM and 32 GB of eMMC storage on a carrier board with 4xUSB 3.0 and an external antenna. All off the shelf parts. "Just" plug and flush astroberry / stellarmate. 

Have a look and let me know what do you think...

More details in the post below

 

Edited May 13, 2023 by Dark Raven

[Mognet]

Ebon Upton is saying that the Raspberry Pi will be available again soon https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2023/05/raspberry-pi-ceo-supply-should-be-unconstrained-in-second-half-of-2023/

[AstroMuni]

While we seem to have a glimmer of light for RPi being more readily available soon(?) there is no clear future for astroberry. Whilst there is stellarmate OS, there is no prebuilt like for like equivalent for astroberry in the 64bit space. There are many scripts available to compile your own version of Kstars and PHD2, but the rest of the useful tools that astroberry provided are not in the mix. 😞 Just my rant...

[Avocette]

I am also keeping my fingers crossed that @RadekK will find the time in his present busyness to port Astroberry onto the Raspberry Pi 64-bit OS. As it happens I’m still running successfully two Astroberry installations but then I don’t suffer the issues others have been experiencing with new cameras and mounts which require Indi updates. 
A new installation 64-bit package I been experimenting with is called AstroArch and has been put together by another enthusiast, @mattia on the Indilib.org forum, who hopefully may have a little more ‘spare’ time to dedicate to continuing support.

Edited May 25, 2023 by Avocette

[AstroMuni]

As long as Astroberry relies solely on one person to take it to the next stage then we have a potential problem. IMO it should be a collaborative effort. So lets hope there are others out there who can help push Astroberry onto the 64bit space.