There were requests to embed PoE on the PINE 64 board. Doing so would take a lot of valuable real estate on the board. It also adds complexity to the power circuits and general board layout. Given the size of the board, I think we'd all agree that the design & functionality choices made by the PINE 64 team have been good ones.
So... As it stands now the best way to get PoE is to do it is externally.
It was suggested in another thread to use the "extra" pairs in the CAT 5/6 cable by splitting them out. This compromises the 802.11 specs, but likely will work for short cables. There will be a significant voltage drop on long cables. Putting in higher voltage supplies to compensate will work, but the voltage drop will vary depending on current draw which can be an issue in some applications. That said, it'll work, but there can be significant power issues doing this.
The better and (IMO) correct way would be to use an external 802.3af compliant power device (e.g. something like a TP-LINK TL-POE10R) paired with a POE switch (e.g. something like a TP-LINK TL-SF1008P) or a 802.3af injector. 802.3af allows 25 watts, the previous standard was 15.4 with 12.95 watts available, so 2 amps @5v is no issue.
NOTE: the power out of the TP-LINK device is a barrel connector, so one would need to make a cable or use something ready made like this http://tinyurl.com/usb2m.
Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with TP-LINK, but have used these devices in the past and they worked well.
Just my $0.01 worth.
So... As it stands now the best way to get PoE is to do it is externally.
It was suggested in another thread to use the "extra" pairs in the CAT 5/6 cable by splitting them out. This compromises the 802.11 specs, but likely will work for short cables. There will be a significant voltage drop on long cables. Putting in higher voltage supplies to compensate will work, but the voltage drop will vary depending on current draw which can be an issue in some applications. That said, it'll work, but there can be significant power issues doing this.
The better and (IMO) correct way would be to use an external 802.3af compliant power device (e.g. something like a TP-LINK TL-POE10R) paired with a POE switch (e.g. something like a TP-LINK TL-SF1008P) or a 802.3af injector. 802.3af allows 25 watts, the previous standard was 15.4 with 12.95 watts available, so 2 amps @5v is no issue.
NOTE: the power out of the TP-LINK device is a barrel connector, so one would need to make a cable or use something ready made like this http://tinyurl.com/usb2m.
Disclaimer: I have no affiliation with TP-LINK, but have used these devices in the past and they worked well.
Just my $0.01 worth.