Can an industrial edge computer really be plug and play? The ALPON X4 (£462 / $550 / €550) offers the simplest setup process we’ve seen. Just register and activate it in your online Sixfab Connect account – the unit even has a QR code to scan to automatically enter its serial number – and then plug it into the supplied 27W USB-C PD power supply. Using its built-in eSIM, the X4 will then connect to the cloud, enabling you to monitor and control it remotely from a web interface. Twin 4G LTE antennas enable it to connect in even the most patchy cellular coverage areas (such as your reviewer’s home).
You get three months of ALPON Cloud (plus a 120MB total LTE data allowance per device) free for the first five devices – after that, it’s $6 monthly per device, plus mobile data costs (pay-as-you-go or data pool). You may well opt to use Wi-Fi, easily set up via the cloud portal, or a wired Ethernet connection.
Cloud control
While you can connect the ALPON X4 to an HDMI display and USB keyboard to directly access the command line of its custom Raspberry Pi OS Lite 64-bit system, it’s just as easy to open a remote terminal from the Sixfab Connect cloud portal.
Applications are all run in Docker containers and can be deployed from the web interface. The simplest and quickest method is to use pre-built ARM64-based images from Docker Hub. Alternatively, you can create and upload your own custom app images to the Sixfab Registry to deploy them manually. Installed apps can be monitored, paused, and restarted from the web interface, along with the option to open a remote terminal into the app container.
In addition, the Sixfab Connect web interface features Device and Network tabs to show you all manner of useful system info, such as CPU activity, temperature, RAM, power, faults status, network status, uptime, and eSIM data usage.
Powerful system
Based around a Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 with 8GB of RAM and 32GB of eMMC storage, the device itself offers plenty of power in a compact form factor of 111.16 × 99.9 × 33mm, plus the four antennas (including one for GNSS), which can be folded into a 90° position for desktop use or laid flat if you’re wall-mounting the unit on a DIN rail. It’s quiet too, with a fanless design and a built-in heatsink inside the full aluminium enclosure with an IP40 rating for dust protection in industrial environments.
The extensive online documentation includes tutorials for numerous possible configurations for industrial Internet of Things (IoT) setups using common protocols such as Modbus, Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA), and Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT). As well as connecting local devices via wireless, USB, or Ethernet, there’s a GPIO port whose RJ45 connection can be expanded into a terminal block using an optional adapter. This breaks out six GPIO pins plus ground and 5V power, routed through a voltage-level converter to ensure stability.
Other use cases covered in the online documentation include a Pi-hole ad blocker, Openfire private chat server, nginx web server, PiSignage digital signage, and Edge Impulse machine learning. It’s a very versatile piece of kit.
Verdict
9/10
A powerful edge computer with excellent wireless connectivity, a robust enclosure, convenient cloud-based management, and ultra-easy initial setup.
Specs
Features: Compute Module 4, aluminium enclosure with built-in heatsink, 4 × status LEDs, 2 × push buttons
RAM / Storage: 8GB LPDDR4, 32GB eMMC
Ports: 100Mbps Ethernet port, Gigabit Ethernet port, 2 × USB-A, HDMI, GPIO (RJ45, requires adapter), USB-C PD (15V DC 1.8A, 27W), screw terminal block (9–30V DC), PoE+ (optional)
Connectivity: Wi-Fi (2.4GHz and 5.0GHz), 4G LTE (via built‑in eSIM), GPS/GNSS
