Yuzuki Chameleon – A Raspberry Pi Model A shaped SBC with Allwinner H616 CPU

Yuzuki Chameleon is an open-source hardware single board computer powered by an Allwinner H616 quad-core Cortex-A53 processor that somewhat follows the shape of Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+ SBC with a different port layout which should still retain mechanical and electrical compatibility with some Raspberry Pi HATs.

The card supports up to 2 GB of RAM, up to 128 GB of eMMC flash, has a MicroSD card slot, a 4K compatible HDMI 2.0 port, an audio jack, four USB ports Type-C to keep the design as slim as possible, plus a wireless module for WiFi and Bluetooth and a connector to optionally add Fast Ethernet via an external module.

Yuzuki Chameleon Specifications:

• SoC – Allwinner H616 @ Quad Core Cortex-A53 CPU with Arm Mali G31 GPU, 6Kp30/4Kp60 Video Decoder
• System Memory – Up to 2GB RAM
• Storage – Up to 128GB eMMC flash storage, MicroSD card slot
• Video output – HDMI 2.0 up to 4Kp60
• Audio – 3.5mm audio jack, digital audio output via HDMI port
• Wireless connectivity
  • 2.4 GHz WIFI 4 and Bluetooth 4.2 via Allwinner XR829 chip and u.FL antenna
  • Connector for external RJ45 10/100M Ethernet module
• USB – 4x USB Type-C ports (3x Host, 1x OTG)
• Extension – 40-pin GPIO header with SPI, I2C, Gigabit Ethernet, audio signals, CAN bus, etc. (so it may not be 100% compatible with Raspberry Pi GPIO header)
• Miscellaneous – Heatsink mounting holes, fan connector, buttons
• Power – 5V via USB Type-C OTG port, AXP313A PMIC
• Dimensions – 65 x 56mm (Raspberry Pi Model A size)

The Allwinner H616 SBC was designed with EasyEDA and is open source hardware with design files and datasheets on Github under the “CERN Open Hardware License Version 2 – Strongly Reciprocal” (CERN-OHL-S). You’ll also find the Tina Linux source code there, but the developer (YukuziHD) also plans to release Ubuntu 20.04, Armbian, Android TV 10, Android TV 12, and Android Auto images for the map.

The Yuzuki Chameleon SBC can be seen running an Ubuntu Focal image apparently designed for an Orange Pi board, likely the Orange Pi Zero2 since it’s powered by Allwinner H616 SoC. The Chameleon board is also not the first Allwinner H616 single board computer based on the Raspberry Pi form factor with the recently launched MangoPi MQ Quad with the smaller Raspberry Pi Zero form factor, which bodes well for software support. Mainline Linux also seems to be moving forward with a few more things being added to the upcoming Linux 6.0 kernel.

YuzukiHD doesn’t seem to be selling the board (yet), but I can see a price of 172 CNY (about $25) on OSHWHub where you will find additional photos and links to order the PCB and components to build yourself. The caveat is that you will need to read Chinese and possibly be based in China to order from these links. Mandarins may also be interested in a video where the developer seems to be going through the schematics and design of the 6-layer PCB layout.

Going through GLGH_ on Twitter.

Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 on a part-time basis, before stepping down as director of software engineering and starting writing daily news and reviews full-time later in 2011.