Docker vs. PyPI vs. Python vs. balenaEngine Comparison Chart

PyPI is the official repository for Python software packages, hosting hundreds of thousands of projects that developers can publish and users can discover and install. It supports both source distributions (“sdists”) and pre-built binary “wheels”, allowing packages to include native extensions for different platforms. Projects on PyPI consist of multiple releases, each of which can include various files for different operating systems or Python versions. Metadata for each package includes things like version number, dependencies, licensing, classifiers, description (including rendering Markdown or reStructuredText), and other information that tools like pip use to resolve, download, and install the correct package. PyPI provides search and filtering based on package metadata, letting users find what they need via keywords, compatibility, or other package attributes.

An engine purpose-built for embedded and IoT use cases, based on Moby Project technology from Docker. 3.5x smaller than Docker CE, packaged as a single binary. Available for a wide variety of chipset architectures, supporting everything from tiny IoT devices to large industrial gateways. Bandwidth-efficient updates with binary diffs, 10-70x smaller than pulling layers in common scenarios. Extract layers as they arrive to prevent excessive writing to disk, protecting your storage from eventual corruption. Atomic and durable image pulls defend against partial container pulls in the event of power failure. Prevents page cache thrashing during image pull, so your application runs undisturbed in low-memory situations. balenaEngine is a new container engine purpose-built for embedded and IoT use cases and compatible with Docker containers. Based on Moby Project technology from Docker, balenaEngine supports container deltas for 10-70x more efficient bandwidth usage.