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Can't see it happening in the next decade.

However, if you're interested in embedded hardware, you can buy a RISC-V chip from SiFive now.

https://www.sifive.com/#



Next decade?! That long???


Yes.

x86 is dominant for desktops/laptops. ARM is starting to make inroads with Chromebooks and covers the low end. RISC V is starting from scratch, both in terms of available hardware and software support. If RISC V can quickly prove popular in the embedded space then perhaps we'd see a desktop/laptop earlier than in a decade, but it's a competitive market.

To give a comparison, MIPS is popular in the embedded space, but how many MIPS-based laptops have their been? Very few.


but, lowRISC says they are going to crowdfund a SOC this year... let's say it takes them 2 years to have one I can buy, I should be able to have a RISC V based computer that can run linux within 5 years! Am I dreaming?


lowRISC are currently on v0.4 of their design, and we're already half way through the year. I'd be very surprised if they decided to commit to building an ASIC before they reached v1.0.

http://www.lowrisc.org/blog/2017/06/lowrisc-0-4-milestone-re...

By the way, I'm not trying to stop you dreaming, I'm hinting the fact that if you want to speed things along you should get involved in the embedded space. If you're waiting as a passive consumer you'll more than likely get disappointed, but if you're actively contributing to the platform you may find the wait more bearable as you're helping to speed it along.




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