Author: Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)

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.
Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment on Samsung Unveils ATIV Q Android & Win8 Convertible Tablet, Galaxy NX DSLR Camera Running Android 4.2

Samsung Unveils ATIV Q Android & Win8 Convertible Tablet, Galaxy NX DSLR Camera Running Android 4.2

Samsung Premiere 2013 took place yesterday in London, and the company announced 9 new products at the event. But 2 devices really stood out for me: ATIV Q – A 13.3″ tablet convertible to a notebook that runs Windows 8 and Android 4.2.2 simultaneously. Galaxy NX – a DSLR Camera running Android 4.2.2 supporting interchangeable lenses. Galaxy S4 Active was also interesting as it’s compliant with IP67, which means it’s dust proof and water resistant, so you don’t have to worry about dust / sand getting into the device, or dropping it into the water. It can stay under in 1 meter of water for 30 minutes, and even though the touchscreen won’t operate under water, you can still take underwater pictures during your snorkeling trip. Don’t expect it to work for diving though. Samsung ATIV Q (Preliminary) Specifications: Processor – Intel Core i5 (Haswell) GPU – Intel HD Graphics […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments on Mele M9 Android Set-top Box Powered by AllWinner A31

Mele M9 Android Set-top Box Powered by AllWinner A31

After Mele A1000G Quad, Mele has just launched another model called M9, still based on AllWinner A31 quad core processor, with an external Wi-Fi antenna, but no SATA support. Mele M9 specifications: SoC – AllWinner A31 quad core Cortex A7 @ 1.5GHz + PowerVR SGX544MP2 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 RAM Storage 16GB NAND Flash SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 1.4 Audio I/O – HDMI + S/PDIF optical out + Audio jack output Video Playback – Up to 2160p @ 60 Mbps USB – 3x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x mini USB 2.0 OTG port Connectivity Ethernet – 10/100Mbps Wi-Fi – 802.11 b/g/n Power Supply – 5V/2A The device runs Android 4.1 with a customized “Windows 8” user interface, and comes with a 5V/2A power adapter, an IR remote control (show below), an HDMI cable, a user’s manual, and a warranty card. The remote above as a […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment on Linor Technology Fargo are Ethernet Boards with 4 to 8 Relays

Linor Technology Fargo are Ethernet Boards with 4 to 8 Relays

There are more and more “IoT” solutions for home or industrial automation which allow you to control your lights or other equipments remotely with your smartphone or tablet. Many of them are DIY with boards such Arduino or Raspberry Pi combined with an expansion board featuring one or more relays, and some of them can be used out of the box such as Linor Technology Fargo boards. The company designed 4 boards that are powered by a Microchip PIC32 MCU with a small NOR flash, provide Ethernet connectivity, and run a small webserver that allows you to monitor and control the relays with any connected device that can run a web browser. Here are the hardware specifications for the boards (Fargo R8, R4, R4ADI and R4DI): MCU – Microchip PIC32 32-bit MCU Storage – 8MB flash on Fargo R8 for firmware and log storage (up to 10,000 items log) Sensors: […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments on Beyond Semiconductor Announces BA21 Processor Core for Embedded MCUs

Beyond Semiconductor Announces BA21 Processor Core for Embedded MCUs

Beyond Semiconductor, a Ljubljana, Slovenia based company, has recently announced BA21, a 32-bit processor core, with 2.5 Coremark per megahertz, and clocked up to 125 MHz, that’s roughly equivalent to a Cortex M3 core @ 120 MHz. Target applications include mixed signal embedded processing, wireless communications ICs (e.g. Bluetooth, Zigbee, GPS), industrial Microcontrollers, and battery-powered or ultra-low-cost devices.If you’ve never heard about Beyond Semi, you may want to read my previous article about their BA25 core (Cortex A7/A8 equivalent) for a bit more details about the company. Here are the key features of BA21 core: 32-bit Processor Small silicon footprint (less than 10k gates) for lower leakage and dynamic CPU power Two-stage pipeline architecture Extreme Code Density for lower instruction fetching energy Advanced power management Dynamic clock gating and power shut-off of unused units Software- and hardware-controlled clock frequency Wake-up on tick timer or external interrupt Performance Up to 2.5 […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 17 Comments on Cubieboard2 Powered By AllWinner A20 is now Available for $59

Cubieboard2 Powered By AllWinner A20 is now Available for $59

Cubieboard is a low cost board based on AllWinner A10 with lots of ports and expansion pins, that supports Linux and Android. There’s now a new version called Cubieboard2 based on the same board but powered by AllWinner A20 dual core Cortex A7 processor instead, and still with 1GB RAM and 4GB Flash. As you can see the specifications are the same as the original Cubieboard except for the SoC: SoC – AllWinner A20 Dual core ARM Cortex-A7 processor with Mali-400 MP2 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 4GB internal NAND flash, up to 64GB on micro SD slot, and up to 2TB on 2.5″ SATA disk Video Output – HDMI Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, plus optional Wi-Fi module USB –  2x USB 2.0 HOST, 1x USB 2.0 OTG Expansion headers – 96 pins including I2C, SPI, RGB/LVDS, CSI/TS, FM-IN, ADC, CVBS, VGA, SPDIF-OUT, R-TP, and more Misc […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment on F&S armStoneA9 is a Pico-ITX Board Powered by Freescale i.MX 6 with up to 4GB RAM

F&S armStoneA9 is a Pico-ITX Board Powered by Freescale i.MX 6 with up to 4GB RAM

F&S Elektronik Systeme GmbH has announced the armstoneA9, a pico-ITX board featuring Freescale i.MX 6 Solo/Dual or Quad Cortex A9 processor with up to 4GB DDR3 SDRAM, and 128 MB flash (1GB+ flash optional) that available in both commercial and industrial temperature range. Here are the specifications of the board: SoC – Freescale i.MX 6 Cortex-A9 (Quad-/ Dual-/ Single-Core) @ 800 MHz to 1 GHz with Vivante GPU System Memory – 1GB (standard version) to 4 GB DDR3 SDRAM Storage – 128MB Flash (1GB+ optional), micro-SD Card Slot, and SATA interface Display: up to SVGA (800 x 600, 65536 colors) via RGB up to WUXGA (1920 x 1200, 18Bit/ 24Bit) via 2x LVDS up to FullHD (1920 x 1080, 24Bit) via HDMI Touch Panel – 4-wire, analogue resistive and PCAP-Touch Interface via I2C Interfaces: 1x 10/100/1000MBit Ethernet 3x Serial (2x RS232, 1x TTL 3.3V Level) 1x USB 2.0 Host, 1x […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment on Microchip Announces New PIC32MX3/4 32-bit MCUs Based on MIPS M4K Core

Microchip Announces New PIC32MX3/4 32-bit MCUs Based on MIPS M4K Core

Microchip Technology has just announced a new family of PIC32MX3/4 MCUs featuring a MIPS M4K core @ 80 MHz, coupled with 16 to 128KB RAM, 64 to 512KB flash, that are designed to be used in connectivity, graphics, digital audio and general-purpose embedded control. Microchip PIC32MX3/4 32-bit micro-controllers have been available for several years, but the company added 7 new MCUs with more memory, higher integration of peripherals, and lower cost. PIC32MX3/4 key features are as follows: MIPS M4K core @ 80 Mhz with 105 DMIPS performance (equivalent to Cortex M3 MCU @ 84MHz), 16 to 128KB RAM, 64 to 512KB flash, and 12KB boot flash. 4 channel GP DMA, 2 channel DMA I/O: 28 channels 10-bit ADCs 5x UARTS, 2x I2C, 2x I2S/SPI, GPIOs 5x PWM 16-bit parallel master port (PMP) Charge Time Measurement Unit (CTMU)/Temperature Sensor 5x 16-bit timers, watchdog timer, Real-time clock USB OTG (MX4 family only) […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MDP Benchmarks

Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 MDP Benchmarks

A few days ago, I saw some benchmark results showing Xiaomi M3 smartphone powered by Snapdragon 800 SoC getting a ridiculous score above 80,000 points in Antutu, but thought it was really odd, and it turned out to be a fake Antutu screenshot. The actual scores for Snapdragon 800, are much lower, yet one of the fastest mobile platform ever, according to benchmarks performed by Engadget, which hold of Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 Tablet and Smartphone MDPs. Engadget provided comparison of the benchmark for 12 devices, but I selected the 4 most powerful of the lot in the table below.   S800 MDP tablet (MSM8974) S800 MDP phone (MSM8974) Samsung Galaxy S4 (Exynos 5 Octa) Nvidia Tegra 4 ref device Quadrant 2.0 20762 22022 13326 16436 Vellamo 2.0 2997 2914 1977 N/A AnTuTu 3.x 35783 33828 28167 36305 SunSpider 0.9.1 (ms) 543 566 732 499 SunSpider 1.0 (ms) 657 674 N/A N/A […]

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