[Arm-dev] Gigabyte MP30-AR0

[Gordan Bobic]

On 2016-03-11 13:09, Jeffrey Walton wrote:
> On Fri, Feb 19, 2016 at 4:59 AM, Gordan Bobic <gordan at redsleeve.org> 
> wrote:
>> These appear to finally be available in UK now:
>> https://www.xcase.co.uk/gigabyte-server-boards/gigabyte-mp30-ar0-with-appliedmicror-x-gene1r-processor.html
>> 
>> Unfortunately, things don't work right out of the box:
>> https://www.mail-archive.com/users@lists.redsleeve.org/msg01274.html
>> 
>> Has anyone got CentOS installer working with this board? £600 is an
>> awful lot to spend on a paper weight.
>> 
> 
> Related, the Lemaker Hikey dev board is a nice alternative for
> AMRv8/AARCH64. Its less than 1/4 of the price at $128 USD.
> http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01CNZ9GIQ.
> 
> 2GB RAM and 8GB eMMC makes it very amicable to development. I use it
> for testing OpenSSL and Crypto++ on real hardware.

Having an ARMv8 with 2GB of RAM strikes me a bit like putting
rocket engines on a bicycle. What's the use-case for using
aarch64 with such tiny RAM where a 32-bit ARM will not do
every bit as well? The key selling point of the Gigabyte
board is that it'll take 128GB of standard ECC DIMMs. It is
the first (and thus far only AFAICT) mass available
standards-conforming ARM board that breaks out of the
toy-server category.

Gordan