UK Module, carrier board and developer kit
An NVIDIA Jetson developer kit is a reference carrier board with a Jetson module fitted, plus a heatsink, power supply and basic I/O, sold for evaluation and software development. A production system pairs the production version of the module with a carrier board designed for your I/O, environment and lifecycle. The silicon is the same; what surrounds it is not.
The Jetson module itself is a system-on-module: the processor, GPU, memory and power management on a small board with a high-density connector. It does nothing on its own. The carrier board supplies power, brings the module’s signals out to real connectors such as Ethernet, USB, cameras and CAN, and fits the enclosure. Our guide to what a system-on-module is covers the idea in more depth.
What a developer kit is for
The kit gives you a known-good board to bring up JetPack, develop your application and benchmark the module. Its I/O, form factor and ruggedisation are generic, so it is rarely what you ship: the reference carrier board is not built for your enclosure, connectors or operating conditions.
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Jetson Orin Nano Super Developer Kit. An 8 GB Orin Nano on a compact carrier, the usual starting point for vision projects. The same carrier also accepts Orin NX modules.
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Jetson AGX Orin Developer Kit. A 64 GB AGX Orin with a fan-cooled enclosure, for multi-camera and heavier AI work.
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Jetson AGX Thor Developer Kit. The Thor T5000 module on NVIDIA’s reference carrier, for robotics and large-model development.
Developer kit vs production system
The differences are all in the parts around the module, and each one matters once a system leaves the lab.
| Aspect | Developer kit | Production system |
|---|---|---|
| Purpose | Evaluation, development, benchmarking | Deployment in a product or site |
| Module | Kit version, sometimes with features such as a microSD slot | Production module, with commercial or industrial ratings |
| Carrier board | NVIDIA reference design | Custom or off-the-shelf board for the exact I/O |
| Connectors | Desktop-style, unlocked | Locking, M12 or GMSL2 where needed |
| Cooling and enclosure | Fan heatsink, open or light case | Fanless or sealed, sized to the power mode |
| Environment | Office or lab | Wide temperature, shock and vibration |
| Supply | Evaluation product | Long-life module supply and controlled revisions |
| Software | JetPack image for the kit | Same JetPack, with a board support package for the carrier |
The software point is often overlooked. A custom carrier board needs its own board support package, the device tree and drivers that tell JetPack which connectors exist, before the application developed on the kit will run on it.
What changes in production
Moving from the kit to a deployed system is mostly hardware work around an unchanged application.
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The carrier board. A custom or off-the-shelf carrier board provides the exact I/O, power and form factor the system needs, such as isolated CAN, PoE camera ports or a wide-range DC input.
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Ruggedisation. Production designs add the thermal, sealing, and shock and vibration handling the environment demands.
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Storage. Industrial NVMe or eMMC storage replaces the kit’s removable card or desktop SSD.
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Lifecycle. Production modules carry long availability; the kit is an evaluation tool, not a supply commitment.
From kit to production: a typical path
Most projects follow the same sequence. The team develops and benchmarks the application on a developer kit, using the same module family planned for production. Once the model, frame rates and power mode are fixed, the I/O list is written down: cameras, networks, serial and CAN ports, storage and power input. That list chooses the carrier board or complete computer.
A pilot batch on the production hardware then confirms the software, the board support package and the thermal behaviour at the top of the temperature range. Only then is the JetPack image frozen and cloned for the rollout. Keeping the same JetPack version from kit to pilot to production avoids most surprises, because a library update between stages can change performance or behaviour.
Choosing a carrier board for production
Most projects do not need a custom board. Off-the-shelf Jetson carrier boards cover a wide range of I/O, and complete rugged Jetson computers add the enclosure and cooling. Our guide to choosing a Jetson carrier board walks through the decision. A custom carrier makes sense at higher volumes or where the I/O or shape is unusual.
Plan the module’s supply at the same time. NVIDIA publishes production lifetimes for each Jetson module, set out in our Jetson lifecycle FAQ, and Industrial versions of the AGX Orin add a wider temperature range for harsh sites.
Quick answers on Jetson developer kits
Jetson modules and developer kits: common questions
Can I deploy a Jetson developer kit in production?
It is not designed for it. NVIDIA sells developer kits for development, and their connectors, cooling and temperature range suit a lab. Deployed systems use a production module on a carrier built for the site.
Is the module in a developer kit the same as a production module?
The silicon is the same, but not always the module. Some kit modules differ in small ways, such as storage, so production designs should use the production part number.
Will my software run on a production system?
Yes, with the right board support package. The JetPack version and libraries are the same, so the application moves across once the carrier’s drivers are in place.
Is there a Jetson Orin NX developer kit?
Not from NVIDIA directly. The Orin Nano developer kit carrier accepts Orin NX modules, and several partners sell Orin NX kits.
Which developer kit should I start with?
The one matching your target module. Start on the Orin Nano kit for single-camera vision, and the AGX Orin or Thor kit if the production system will need that performance.
We take the module you validated on the kit and build the deployable system around it as standard: the right carrier board, enclosure, storage and software image, so the system you ship matches the one you prototyped.