If you want to RPi as compact, energy-saving server for home NAS, as or use the access point for similar I / O-intensive applications, you inevitably come across the problem of low throughput: more than 20MB / s (net) are hardly possible. If Ethernet and USB ports claimed alike (as in the case of a NAS or AP), so the rate is even lower.
This problem has the Banana Pi in the expression is not: It is true that here the two USB ports are connected through a hub, which they share the bandwidth, but the USB is designed here as a host. Furthermore, the Gigabit-Ethernet controller is connected separately to the CPU.
With the appropriate adapter cable (not included), a 2.5 "hard drive can be connected via SATA to Banana Pi. The power is also supplied via the device, thus no additional power supply is needed.
The selection of images is now plentiful. In addition to the well-known from the Raspberry Pi "Raspbian" (a Debian Fork), various Linux distributions, an Android and an OpenWRT image available. The Raspbian image comes - as opposed to the original - with pre-installed LXDE desktop and additional software. A minimal image would have been nicer.
Anyone wishing to use a Pi * as a server is so secure better off with the banana pi. The significantly stronger dual-core CPU, the doubled RAM, the high throughput on USB and Ethernet port as compared to the RPI and the presence of a SATA interface for 2.5 "hard drives predestined BPI for these purposes. For Mutlimedia applications it is - despite powerful GPU - currently less suitable by the lack of hardware acceleration.
For control and tinkering, the Raspberry Pi is recommended. The bulk of the additional hardware is developed for this board and work on banana pi only partially. The active community that will help in case of problems, does the rest.
