B4R vs PlatformIO IDE
B4R
b4x.comPlatformIO IDE
platformio.orgSide by side
| Figure | B4R | PlatformIO IDE |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | $249/mo |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | — | Yes |
| Self-hosted | — | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 4 |
| Spec score · Embedded Development IDEs | 7.6 (#12) | 7.8 (#9) |
| Purpose | B4R is a development tool for building native programs for Arduino, ESP8266 and ESP32. | PlatformIO is a cross-platform, cross-architecture tool for embedded systems engineers and software developers building applications for embedded products. |
| Support | Anywhere Software directs technical questions to its forum and says it answers email inquiries within 24 hours. | The free Community support option includes round-the-clock access to community forums and documentation; paid Business support lists online ticket submission and a response time under 24 business hours. |
Plans
PlatformIO IDE
- CommunityFree
- PlatformIO IDEFree
- Business$249 a month
- EnterprisePriced on request
In their own words
B4R
B4R is a free Windows development tool for creating native programs for Arduino-compatible boards, ESP8266, and ESP32. Its plan costs nothing and permits commercial use. The product page lists a modern IDE, connectivity options, and an Arduino–Android Bluetooth Low Energy example. Integrated flashing is available, but integrated debugging is not. Setup requires Arduino IDE v2, Arduino CLI, and Java; OpenJDK 14 is listed when Java is not already installed. Users configure paths to arduino-cli.exe and javac, then choose a board type and serial port in the Board Selector. C source code and generated compiled objects appear in the Objects folder. B4R libraries are open source under the MIT license. The product page links learning resources, example projects, tutorials, and a forum. Anywhere Software directs technical questions to its forum and says email inquiries receive answers within 24 hours. The maker identifies Erel Uziel as founder and CEO and says it has specialized in mobile development since 2005.
PlatformIO IDE
PlatformIO IDE has no write-up on Specifiction yet; its figures are above.