⚖ Comparison : Raspberry Pi Compute Module 1 (CM1) vs Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3 (CM3 / CM3L)
Comparison of declared technical characteristics : Raspberry Pi Compute Module 1 (CM1) et Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3 (CM3 / CM3L) (12 characteristics). See the full board sheet : Raspberry Pi Compute Module 1 (CM1) · Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3 (CM3 / CM3L).
| Characteristics | Raspberry Pi Compute Module 1 (CM1) | Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3 (CM3 / CM3L) |
|---|---|---|
soc | Broadcom BCM2835 — single-core ARM1176JZF-S (ARMv6, ARM11 family) at 700 MHz, with VideoCore IV GPU (documentation mirror, compute-module introduction; RP-008161-DS datasheet, retrieved 2026-10-13). The datasheet confirms CM1 uses the same BCM2835 as the original Raspberry Pi Model B/B+ and lists the software ISA as ARMv6. | Broadcom BCM2837 — quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 (ARMv8-A 64-bit ISA, run with 32-bit userland by default), up to 1.2 GHz, dedicated 512 KB L2 cache; the BCM2837 is an evolution of the BCM2835 (same peripherals, more addressable RAM, quad-core CPU) (datasheet RP-008161-DS §1; official docs compute-module.html). |
ram | 512 MB LPDDR2, shared between CPU and GPU (GPU/CPU split configured via gpu_mem in config.txt) (RP-008161-DS, retrieved 2026-10-13). | 1 GB LPDDR2 (fixed; the only RAM option) (datasheet §1). |
storage | 4 GB eMMC soldered on-module, wired directly to the BCM2835's primary SD/eMMC interface (not broken out to the connector); eMMC I/O voltage is fixed at 1.8 V (RP-008161-DS, retrieved 2026-10-13). | 4 GB eMMC soldered on CM3 (I/O fixed at 1.8 V, not accessible on module pins); CM3L has none and exposes the SDX pins (datasheet §1, §8). |
connectivity | No Wi-Fi, no Bluetooth, no Ethernet on the module. One USB 2.0 host/OTG port (shared: the module has a single USB interface), HDMI 1.3a (via TMDS pins + CEC/DDC), composite video out (TVDAC pin), HDMI CEC. The CMIO v1/v3 IO Boards expose HDMI, one USB 2.0 Type-A, camera/display FPC connectors — still no Ethernet (RP-008161-DS; compute-module introduction, retrieved 2026-10-13). | No Wi-Fi, no Bluetooth, no Ethernet on the module. The peripheral list is: 1× USB 2.0 host/OTG, 1× HDMI 1.3a, composite TV-out, 2× CSI (1 four-lane + 1 two-lane, up to 1 Gbps/lane), 2× DSI (1 four-lane + 1 two-lane), 2× I2C, 2× SPI, 2× UART, 2× SD/SDIO, DPI (24-bit parallel RGB display), SMI (NAND/Intel-mode-80 bus), JTAG (datasheet §2.2, §9). Networking must come from the carrier board (e.g., a USB Ethernet chip such as the LAN9514 spotted on NEC's mezzanine board — community observation in launch-blog comments, not official). |
gpio_peripherals_from_the_datasheet_s_peripheral_list | 48× GPIO lines total (BCM283x has 54 GPIOs in 3 voltage banks; bank 2 is used internally for the eMMC, GPIO0–27 = bank 0, GPIO28–45 = bank 1, GPIO46/47 are 1.8 V special functions HDMI_HPD_N / EMMC_EN_N); 2× I2C, 2× SPI, 2× UART, PCM/I2S, 2× hardware PWM (PWM0/1), 3× GPCLK, 2× SD/SDIO, JTAG, DPI (24-bit parallel RGB display), SMI (NAND/SRAM "Secondary Memory Interface"), 4-lane + 2-lane MIPI CSI camera and 4-lane + 2-lane MIPI DSI display interfaces (each up to 1 Gbps/lane) (RP-008161-DS, retrieved 2026-10-13). No ADC; the only analog output is the composite TV DAC. GPIO bank supply (VDD_IO) is externally selectable at 1.8 V / 2.7 V / 3.3 V per bank; per-GPIO drive up to 16 mA, ≤50 mA aggregate per bank. | — |
form_factor | DDR2-SODIMM mechanically-compatible System-on-Module, 200-pin connector, JEDEC MO-224 (1.8 V SODIMM outline), 30 mm module height, ~68×30 mm board area as reported at announcement; electrically NOT compatible with DDR2 SODIMM sockets (RP-008161-DS; Wired UK, retrieved 2026-10-13). | — |
power | Powered from the carrier at 3.3 V rails (unlike CM4/CM5 which take 5 V): minimum recommended supplies are VBAT ≥ 2000 mW, 3V3 ≥ 250 mA, 1V8 ≥ 250 mA, VDAC ≥ 25 mA (clean 2.5–2.8 V, LDO from 3V3 recommended for composite out); supplies must ramp in descending voltage order (or simultaneously) to avoid latch-up (RP-008161-DS §7, retrieved 2026-10-13). The official IO Board accepts 5 V via GPIO header or micro USB and generates the 3.3 V rails (compute-module introduction). | six supplies, all mandatory: VBAT (core SMPS input, 2.5–5.0 V, recommended minimum 3500 mW for CM3), 3V3 (≥250 mA), 1V8 (≥250 mA), VDAC (2.5–3.3 V; clean 2.5–2.8 V only if TV-out used, else tie to 3V3), GPIO0-27 VREF and GPIO28-45 VREF (1.8–3.3 V, ≥50 mA), plus SDX VREF on CM3L. Supplies must ramp highest-voltage-first (or simultaneously without crossing) to avoid forward-biasing on-chip diodes / latch-up (datasheet §7, Tables 7–8). |
temperature | The narrowest-rated components (eMMC, LPDDR2) are rated −25 °C to +80 °C; the datasheet states this as the nominal module range for CM3/CM3L built from the same memory/eMMC classes. Treat −25…+80 °C as the practical CM1 envelope, with thermal design headroom required (RP-008161-DS §10, retrieved 2026-10-13). | nominal operating range −25 °C to +80 °C (limited by eMMC and LPDDR2 parts); DVFS thermal throttling engages when the on-die sensor exceeds 85 °C (datasheet §10). Note: CNX lists −20 to +70 °C for the later CM3+ datasheet — do not mix the two figures. |
gpu | — | Broadcom VideoCore IV (raspberrypi.com/documentation/computers/compute-module.html model table). |
gpio | — | 48 usable GPIO lines (GPIO0–45) in two independently powered banks: bank0 = GPIO0–27, bank1 = GPIO28–45. Each bank's VREF supply sets its I/O level anywhere from 1.8 V to 3.3 V; both banks must be powered even if unused. Weak internal pulls (50–65 kΩ) on all but GPIO28/29/44/45; default drive 8 mA, max 16 mA per pin, aggregate ≤ 50 mA per bank. PWM0/PWM1, GPCLK0–2, PCM (I2S) are GPIO alternate functions; no ADC and no DAC on the SoC (datasheet §6, §7, §9.1, Tables 9–10). |
mechanical | — | 200-pin DDR2-SODIMM form factor (JEDEC MO-224 outline), 67.6 × 31 mm — 1 mm taller than CM1 (datasheet §4; CNX launch article). |
typical_consumption | — |
Raspberry Pi Compute Module 1 (CM1) Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3 (CM3 / CM3L)