PocketBeagle 2: Setting Up a Tiny Linux Single Board Computer with Debian

PocketBeagle 2 is a tiny and affordable open-source single-board computer designed for hobbyists, developers, and students, which builds upon the original PocketBeagle released years ago. The device arrives in a small plastic box, includes a multilingual quick-start guide, and is manufactured by Seeed Studio in Vietnam. Pocket BO2 features a Texas Instruments AM6254 system-on-chip with a quad-core 64-bit ARM Cortex-A53 CPU running at up to 1.4GHz, integrated GPU, and 512MB DDR4 RAM, along with a separate Cortex M0+ microcontroller. The board includes essential connectors such as USB-C, a microSD card slot for booting Linux, cape headers, and UART debug connectors, and maintains the same 55x35mm dimensions as its predecessor while upgrading from micro USB to USB-C and adding pre-soldered female headers using SMT. Please pay attention to an improvement from the earlier PocketBeagle 2 revision A0 which was with a dual-core without GPU. The video is about A1 revision with quad-core Arm CPU. Although the RAM is limited, it is sufficient for headless Linux projects, especially given the board's low cost: around €25 or $30 via distributors like Mouser and Digi-Key. The setup process involves flashing a Debian 12 image using the open-source BeagleBoard Imaging Utility and booting via a USB-C cable while accessing the system through a USB-to-UART debug dongle. Upon successful boot, the user logs in via CLI, changes the default password, and confirms basic system specs and network connectivity, including SSH over USB. As of 2025, Pocket Beagle 2 is probably the most affordable modern Linux-capable open-source single board computer (SBC) for makers, developers and students.

📚 Useful Links
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- PocketBeagle 2
https://www.beagleboard.org/boards/pocketbeagle-2
- BeagleBoard Imaging Utility
https://www.beagleboard.org/bb-imager

🎥 Related Videos
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BeagleBoard PocketBeagle Low Cost Linux Computer with Debian
https://youtu.be/2pct-voB44s?si=LzF3fxSrWnl0W-4X

Видео PocketBeagle 2: Setting Up a Tiny Linux Single Board Computer with Debian канала Leon Anavi