After the Raspberry Pi, the Gooseberry, here comes the HackBerry. This is another AllWinner board similar to the Gooseberry, but which Ethernet, a full sized USB ports, an IR sensor and 1GB RAM.
Here are the board specifications :
- SoC – AllWinner A10
- System Memory – 1 GB RAM
- Storage – 4GB Flash + SDHC slot
- USB – 2x USB 2.0 ports
- Connectivity:
- 10/100Mbit Ethernet
- Wifi – 802.11 b/g/n
- Video Output – 1 x HDMI + 1x Composite
- Audio I/O – Headphone + microphone
- IR sensor
The board runs Android 4.0, but since it’s an AllWinner device, you can run what you want. In a way it’s similar to the Mele A1000, except it has more memory, but lacks SATA, VGA output and has one less USB port. I can’t see the serial port pins on the PCB picture either.
There is pricing information or availability yet, as Jasbir only ordered 2 for now, and is looking to see if there are some persons interested by this board. I think it could be a very interesting board, if it can sell less than $60.
You can find more information on Jasbir blog.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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I would want one if it sells below $60,-
Interesting post. Thanks.
$60 including tax and shipping, I would say, comparing it to other hardware:
The Mele is 92$ incl tax and shipping, and includes a box, a power supply and a remote control. And yes, it has less memory.
The Raspi is 35$ ex tax, ex shipping, has a slower CPU, and only 256 MB RAM.
And about a box running Ubuntu: now with Ubuntu 12.04, with Unity, Ubuntu has quite high minimum hardware requirements. I would run Ubuntu 11.04 on a 1GB ARM box, but I’m not so sure about Ubuntu 12.04…
I have the feeling a plug-and-play Ubuntu 12.04 box (
@ Peter
It turns out the manufacturer price is $35 for 1k, so it should be possible to sell it for sell than $60.
@ Sander
$60 dollar including tax and shipping might be a bit too aggressive, since even A10 mini PCs are priced around $70.
The $92 on dealextreme does not include import taxes (Do you have to pay those when importing in Europe?). You can get the Mele A1000 for about $82 on Aliexpress.
As far as Ubuntu is concerned, I’ve noticed the bottlenecks are the lack of GPU acceleration (when using Unity 3D) and the SD card performance, but if I use Ubuntu 12.04 ALIP (with xfce desktop env) it runs OK with 320 MB RAM available. Ubuntu 12.04 Desktop can also run but it’s slow because of the SD card performance.
Looks like the rest of your message was truncated…
So far I’ve never paid import taxes on DX shipments. However, most of my DX orders are small in size and value, so it’s quite possible the “douane” is not interested in those packages. A few weeks ago, I suddenly had to pay 2,50 Euro import tax … plus 10 Euro import-tax-handling on two books from amazon.com 🙁
What is “Ubuntu 12.04 ALIP”? And if it has “xfce desktop env”, isn’t it more like Xubuntu? Xubuntu has no Unity, so I would expect that to run on a 1GB RAM machine (ARM or x86).
My sentence “I have the feeling a plug-and-play Ubuntu 12.04 box (” is truncated indeed. I believe I wanted to say “I have the feeling a plug-and-play Ubuntu 12.04 box (with Unity running well) needs quite high-spec hardware (2GB RAM, 2+ core processor, at least ARMv7), and I expect the price to be well above 100$.
@ Sander
I’ve only ordered once with DealExtreme, but I’ve noticed they appear to know what needs to be done so that their customers do not pay unnecessary custom duties.
ALIP stands for ARM Linux Internet Platform, it’s a community image made available monthly by Linaro.
I think sub-100$ systems with 2GB RAM and dual core processor might be available by the end of the year and early next year.
The board might be inside this box;
http://www.aliexpress.com/product-fm/592062804-Hot-New-Model-Google-Android-4-0-ICS-TV-Set-Top-Box-IPTV-Allwinner-A10-CPU-wholesalers.html
@ Peter
Yes it could be as the specs looks the same, except for the 1GB RAM.
@ sander
Xubuntu 12.04 runs fine on 1GB Atom Z520 @1.3MHz (now that there’s a stable if crippled GMA500 driver & Ath9k support in the kernel…)
@ cnxsoft
Waiting for the 2GB dual core systems. Who’ll need a desktop then? :p
@ Peter/cnxsoft
The location of the ports on the device Peter links too also match the board…
This device too:
http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Amazing-New-Model-Android-tv-box-Allwinner-A10-CPU-android-4-0-ICS-1080P-Full-HD/610958_592047897.html
@ cnxsoft
Indeed the memory those not te be 1 GB, but looking at every other STB box from the same “Tomato” supplier. They all have the exact same spec pages and android screen shot. Looks like the very typical Chinese specs error.
@ Peter
It’s also possible they have a PCB supporting both 512MB and 1GB RAM. I’m pretty sure Jasbir did not get the specs wrong, since he’s already got 2 boards.
@sander
If you want to avoid tax duties, never use DHL,UPS. They always put every package to custom office. EMS/Pocztex is better at that field. But the best is to use ordinary post like Hong Kong post or China post. Recently I was ordering mk802 by HK post and have received it in 6 days since shippment from China (weekend included) ! Why pay for couriers ? I’m from PL/Europe.
@ cnxsoft
Indeed Jasbir probably has the specs right. I just meant the specs on aliexpress are wrong (as they are always are 😉 )
It seems this is a generic pcba there I’m not surpised theres products already based on it . From what I can determine the default pcba has 512MB as per the specs on aliexpress. I had to get my boards built and configure for 1GB.
Some pre-release 512MB boards now available with 1GB version to follow. https://www.miniand.com/products/Hackberry%20A10%20Developer%20Board
What is the operating temperature range for this board? I can’t seam to find this information anywhere.