For modern devices, the necessity is high-performance microcontrollers with a processing speed of at least 500MHz, a dozen or more i/o ports, and possibly hardware support for encryption.

For the kind of projects I build most often, microcontrollers just make more sense. They use less power, turn on instantly, take up less space, and cost a fraction of what a Raspberry Pi does.

The microcontroller socket market is gaining traction as demand for efficient testing, programming, and development tools in ...