Exaviz Turns the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 Into a 16-Port PoE Switch Dual-Drive NAS Powerhouse

Single-board computer and computer-on-module (SBC and COM) carrier board specialist Exaviz has announced a feature-packed add-on for the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 that, in its top-end variant, adds an eight- or 16-port gigabit switch with Power-over-Ethernet, a 2.5-gig-Ethernet uplink, two SATA ports, an M.2 Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) slot, and an ESP32-C6 communications coprocessor: the Cruiser Carrier Board.

"The Exaviz Cruiser Carrier Board is a next-generation platform for the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 (CM5)," Exaviz explains of its creation. "Unlike typical carrier boards that require external accessories for networking and wireless, Cruiser integrates everything on a single compact board: an 8-port Gigabit PoE+ switch, 2.5 Gigabit WAN uplink, NVMe and SATA storage, dual 4K display outputs, and built-in WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, and Zigbee via an onboard ESP32-C6 module."

That's an impressive list of features, and not something you normally see on a Raspberry Pi Compute Module 5 carrier board. The switch, in particular, is of note: while it's common to have a Raspberry Pi-based device use Power-over-Ethernet itself, the Cruiser Carrier Board is designed to supply power to external devices — up to eight at up to 30W each, complete with gigabit Ethernet connectivity. If that's not enough, an add-on board extends that to 16 ports, while a Realtek RTL8156BG chip provides a 2.5-gig-Ethernet uplink to external networking.

Elsewhere on the board is an M.2 M-key slot designed for high-performance Non-Volatile Memory Express (NVMe) storage, though also compatible with other M.2-format PCI Express (PCIe) devices like accelerators, two hot-swap SATA III ports with hardware support for RAID 0 (Stripe), RAID 1 (Mirror), span, and JBOD (Just a Bunch of Disks) operation, two full-size HDMI 2.0 outputs, three USB 3.0 ports, four USB 2.0 ports, and even an Espressif ESP32-C6 to act as a communications coprocessor with Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.3 Low Energy (BLE), and Zigbee support. Finally, there are a pair of Qwiic/STEMMA QT connectors for expansion and a backup battery slot for the real-time clock (RTC).

Exact specifications, though, depend on model. All of the above is only available on the Cruiser Carrier Board Full, priced at $149 before pre-order discounts; the Cruiser Lite drops to a four-port Power-over-Ethernet switch and lowers the price to $119, while the Cruiser Keel replaces that with a four-port non-PoE switch to hit a $99 price point. The Interceptor PoE Board, which adds eight more PoE ports, is an additional $59.

All three models are now available to pre-order on the Exaviz store, with a $10 discount; devices are expected to begin shipping this April, the company has said. A desktop case bundle, which adds a steel chassis, Wi-Fi antenna, rack-mount ears, rubber feet, two 40mm cooling fans, and power cabling plus mounting points for up to two 2.5" or 3.5" SATA drives, is available to pre-order at a discounted $119.