It’s been a while since Raspberry Pi switched to 64-bit processors, but the Raspberry Pi OS has remained a 32-bit version. While the 64-bit OS has been in beta for some time, it’s finally available for everyone to download.
“Over the past year, we’ve been trialing a beta of Raspberry Pi OS in glorious 64-bit. Now it’s time to open it up to a wider audience,” said Raspberry Pi’s Gordon Hollingworth.
As for why it took Raspberry Pi so long to release the 64-bit version for the masses, the company said it wanted to focus on compatibility between devices, so it stuck with the 32-bit version. “We have continued to build our Raspberry Pi OS releases on the 32-bit Raspbian platform, aiming to maximize compatibility between devices and to avoid customer confusion,” reads Raspberry Pi’s blog post.
You’ll need to have a Pi 3, Pi 4, or Pi Zero 2 W to take advantage of the 64-bit operating system, as these are the ones that have the correct processors.
If you want to install the latest version of Raspberry Pi OS on your device, you can head to the download page and snag it right now. The installation process is the same as any other Pi OS, so it’ll be easy enough to get it up and running.
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