BPI-R2 Mini : new design with Mediatek MT7981B for Wifi6 Router, Base on Openwrt one hardware . are you like this design.
what’s the size of the PCB design? how much is RAM, ddr3 or ddr4? prefer m.2 key-b instead of key-m, actually ssd slot is useless, with m.2 key-b it would be a perfect development board for cpe.
I’m a bit surprised, because earlier you mentioned an R4 Mini based on the MT7987 with Wi-Fi 7:
4 Ă— RJ-45 is a strong choice:
- The main reason I didn’t buy the OpenWrt One was the limited number of RJ-45 ports. The BPI-R2 Mini provides four RJ-45 ports in total (presumably 1× WAN and 3× LAN).
- I’m not aware of any GL.iNet travel router that offers this—unfortunately, most models have gone back to just 2× RJ-45.
- The only comparable device in this category that I know of is the Linkstar H68K: H68K has a CPU-on-module design and a replaceable Wi-Fi module (MT7916 possible).
- But as a pure network router, the R2 Mini wins in this area!
General:
- It’s good to place the M.2 Key-M on the underside again
(I found it a very bad decision on the R4 Lite to place PCIe modules above the CPU 
) - USB-C (power) & USB-C debug → well done, as usual
My wishlist (you may already know):
- Replaceable eMMC
- MMCX antenna connectors instead of IPEX
- “Almost unbrickable” storage like the OpenWrt One
- SFP, because fiber internet connections are becoming more and more common
- Could you comment on whether an external power amplifier (ePA) is necessary for the MediaTek Wi-Fi chip on this board? (From what I can see, there isn’t one…)
- Shielding & cooling: you’re already building a good cooling solution—very close to what I want! If you want to avoid cans, use a full-metal shield with foam:
I do not want an integrated Wi-Fi module!
- I want to choose a Wi-Fi module by myself (“wireless freedom”). It should have proper shielding and cooling…
…and I don’t want to build that part myself. Please add an M.2 slot/header and give us the freedom to choose. - AsiaRF isn’t far away, but taxes and FedEx shipping costs keep many customers away (compared to Compex modules). You could really help by making MediaTek modules more accessible via AliExpress. You “just” need to design a small M.2 module based on MT7990 or MT7991 (or Mini PCIe if that’s required). Those modules could be used in the R4, R4 Lite, R4 Pro, and R2 Mini!
And by the way: Compex designed the WLE7002E25 for 8 W power consumption, while AsiaRF offers the AW7990 with 11.5 W
Questions:
- What is the FPC connector for?
Additional PCIe?
size is 97mm x 65mm, and 4 RJ45, other is same as Openwrt one,We will try our best to make it compatible with the Openwrt one software. and now just support SSD ,not support 5G ,if you need 5G support ,you can try BPI-R4 Mini.
1 Like
any specs or 3D pictures for the new bpi-r4 mini?
Hi，
The hardware specifications remain largely unchanged: 256MB of SPI NAND and a small SPI NOR, plus 1GB of DDR4 memory.
Hi, thank you for your suggestion!
This is the R2mini, based on the MT7981B’s 2.4G/5G Wi-Fi 6. There will also be an R4mini, based on the MT7987’s 2.4G/5G Wi-Fi 7.
The mini series is primarily designed for users who frequently move around or need to carry their routers. Therefore, we prioritize portability, power consumption, and heat dissipation.
EPA solutions generate a lot of heat, and the small PCB of the mini series cannot achieve adequate heat dissipation.
MMCX/SFP connectors are bulky, which contradicts our goal of making the mini series as small as possible. Therefore, the mini series will not consider MMCX, SFP, or ePA.
In the future, our products will be divided into mini, standard, and Pro series to meet different needs (we are also developing an SODIMM module for the MT7988A).
We are testing the BE19000 with EPA, and considering designing other Wi-Fi modules.
The FPC connector only contains SPI/I2C signals and can be used to connect a small LCD or other SPI peripherals.
.
Big Thank YOU, Simon!
thanks for sharing, very attractive cpe board
These mini routers for traveling should also have mini PCIe for cellular modems and ideally battery charging circuitry as well.