Want to buy a Raspberry Pi? The only thing I can say is "good luck," because its market situation remains disastrous. Even worse is the availability of the Raspberry Pi 4 B with 8 GB of RAM. Its scarcity is so severe that many enthusiasts have decided to replace the platform with cheaper mini PCs. However, there is another alternative: Buy a Raspberry Pi 4 B with 1 GB of RAM, and install the 8 GB ourselves…
If we have to talk about "great technological victims" during the pandemic, it's impossible not to think of the Raspberry Pi. The latest information suggests that its availability will normalize "in the second half of 2023", first with the Zero and Zero W models, followed by products like the Raspberry Pi 3A+, and finally the Raspberry Pi 4.
A quick visit to the RPILocator portal confirms that the Raspberry Pi 4 B with 8 GB is in a very delicate position. The last shipment dates back to mid-February, and with an average price (very optimistic) of 90 dollars, users need alternatives. One of the most extreme appeared on the brand-new MadEDoctor channel, and focuses on manually upgrading the RAM of a Raspberry Pi 4.
The delicate process of upgrading the RAM on a Raspberry Pi 4
The video explains it clearly: In some regions, it is cheaper to buy a Raspberry Pi 4 with 1 GB and the memory separately. Removing the 1 GB module requires the same process we have seen in graphics card repair, that is, protect nearby components, apply flux, use a hot air station at 400 degrees Celsius, remove the chip, clean the contacts with desoldering braid and isopropyl alcohol, apply flux again, and carefully position the new chip.
Obviously, the work is not suitable for beginners, and requires certain special elements. One of the most frequent suggestions when performing a "BGA solder" like this is to preheat the board to reduce stress and eliminate the potential for moisture in the PCB (the last thing we need is the appearance of "bubbles" under the surface)
The final phase is a test of the module using two rounds of MemTest, which takes about an hour on the Raspberry Pi 4. The task manager clearly indicates 7898 MB available, so the mod works perfectly. What's next? Trying a 16 GB chip, but they are as hard to obtain as the Raspberry...
