The newly launched Banana Pi BPI-R4 Lite is a networking-focused single-board computer that can be an alternative to the Raspberry Pi 5. It is built around the MediaTek MT7987A system-on-chip, integrates four Arm Cortex-A53 cores and features 2 GB of DDR4 memory and 8 GB of eMMC flash storage. Connectivity-wise the BPI-R4 Lite is focusing on high-speed capabilities with a wide range of ports. The primary networking interface includes one 2.5 Gigabit SFP port and one 2.5 Gigabit RJ45 WAN port, with the latter supporting Power over Ethernet when equipped with the appropriate module. Four additional Gigabit Ethernet LAN ports provide support for router applications. Storage expansion utilizes multiple flash memory configurations. It uses 256 MB SPI-NAND flash and 32 MB SPI-NOR flash along with the main eMMC storage.

Speaking of expansion, users can expand the device in several ways. There's one mini-PCIe slot that works with a PCIe 3.0 dual-lane interface. This slot is suitable for use with Wi-Fi 7 network cards. An M.2 Key-B slot with USB 3.0 interface provides support for a 5G cellular module. Another mini-PCIe slot gives USB 2.0 connectivity while the single USB 3.0 port shares resources with one HSGMII/SGMII interface; however, it requires selection between these options during operation. Dual 8-pin MikroBUS headers provide expansion capabilities for various applications such as UART, I2C, SPI, and PWM functionality. Power delivery utilizes a traditional barrel connector configuration, and system debugging access is provided through a USB Type-C console interface. Looking at the specifications, Banana Pi BPI-R4 Lite seems to be a neat alternative for the Raspberry Pi 5 as it has what is needed to be used as a platform for a Wi-Fi 7 router or a NAS. Regarding pricing, the Banana Pi BPI-R4 Lite costs around $86, a bit more than the $66 for the Raspberry Pi 5.