Part 1: Headless Server: Raspberry Pi VS MK802 - Initial Impressions

A bit of background. I bought a Raspberry Pi to use as a cheap, low power mini Linux server to control home automation, alarms, to put in a car with a GPS for both tracking and remote control and surveillance, tasks that the Raspberry Pi looks ideally suited for. A month or so after receiving my Pi, a friend recommended I check out the MK802 which on first glance looked like a TV top box, not really a competitor to the Raspberry Pi. I got one despite this and was pleasantly surprised by what it had to offer in the same kind of headless server Linux environment.

This series is my experience and personal opinions of the 2 devices especially when used in a headless server environment.

A lot of people took offence to me "slamming" the Raspberry Pi. I appreciate it's designed for education use and has the great community of enthusiasts and hardware hackers, this is why I bought one originally, however some people may find the MK802 more pleasant to use considering it is much smaller, provides significantly better performance at equivalent power consumption, can power a 2.5" external hard drive directly (the Pi needs a powered hub) and comes in a case with a power supply at a price point only a little bit higher than the Pi.

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLH0IS...

• Category

  Howto & Style

[Buster Näslund]

This comparison is a good example of epic point missing and lack of doing your homework.

[rgaufman]

Make a video response :)

[Håkan Rohdin]

While I understand your reason for making the video, I believe it's off the mark. The Pi was designed from the ground up as a tool for development and learning. And in that it excels. I have done more with the Pi than any Android stick could do just because of the GPIO. And built-in Ethernet is a major pro when demanding stability.

Oh, and a second reason was all the noises you made, heavy breathing etc. Great video quality although, no noise and always in focus.

[mattgorzka]

Dude thanks to the tone of your voice I nearly fell a sleep half way. Could you possibly make your speach more exiting for other people to listen to? Thanks in advance

[Charlie Zollo]

raspberry pi is a obese mk802

[CookJunkie]

First and foremost thank you for doing the comparison as I'm looking around for a low power consumption VPN server alternative. That being said I welcome the suggestion, though I'm not sure what everyone is up in arms about this comparison video. I see it in other forums, article, etc. The same mindset that "Oh they are talking bad about the rPi, I must pick up my pitchfork" Get a grip people. Yes the rPi can do wonders, so can other products to. Jeez.

[Jamie Wilson]

Fu pi was made for mini and kid developers not CCTV crap

[IlluminatedWhiteGuy]

All security cameras should stream their video to off site storage. That way when they pull false flag attacks the FBI can't run around and steal the video evidence like they did when the Pentagon got smacked with a "Plane". I'm still waiting to see what punched an 18 foot hole through 3 rings of reinforced concrete. How 74 videos are still classified top secrete for reasons of national security 12 years later if it was just a plane makes one wonder...

[MrMinecrafter84]

Jesse, whats up with your breathing? lol.

[Thenoorandali]

Mk802 III is the worse products I ever bought.

[Asim Ali]

Excellent review. I've been wondering about MK802 for a while and this really put things in perspective for me.