“TL;DR: you can now get the 1.4GHz clock speed, 5GHz wireless networking and improved thermals of Raspberry Pi 3B+ in a smaller form factor, and at the smaller price of $25. Meet the Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+.
Long-time readers will recall that back in 2014 the original Raspberry Pi 1 Model B+ was followed closely by a cut-down Model A+. By halving the RAM to 256MB, and removing the USB hub and Ethernet controller, we were able to hit a lower price point, and squeeze the product down to the size of a HAT.
Although we didn’t make A+ form-factor versions of Raspberry Pi 2 or 3, it has been one of our most frequently requested “missing” products. Now, with Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ shipping in volume, we’re able to fill that gap by releasing Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+.
Phenomenal cosmic powers! Itty-bitty living space
Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+ incorporates most of the neat enhancements we made to its big brother, and features:
A 1.4GHz 64-bit quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 CPU
512MB LPDDR2 SDRAM
Dual-band 802.11ac wireless LAN and Bluetooth 4.2/BLE
Improved USB mass-storage booting
Improved thermal management
Like its big brother, the entire board is certified as a radio module under FCC rules, which in turn will significantly reduce the cost of conformance testing Raspberry Pi–based products.”