Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft), Author at CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

December 7, 2012December 7, 2012 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

TI Releases TI-RTOS, a Free Real Time Operating System for MCUs

Texas Instruments announced TI-RTOS, a complete real-time operating system based on a preemptive multithreading kernel for its MCU platforms. TI-RTOSs includes SYS/BIOS real-time kernel and network developer kit (NDK) TCP/IP stack. TI expects this new OS to speed-up software development by eliminating the need to write complex system software such as schedulers, protocol stacks, and low-level drivers. TI-RTOS features and benefits: Complete embedded operating environmentthat provides full middleware and drivers including: Deterministic, real-time multitasking kernel (SYS/BIOS) TCP/IP stack, including network applications USB, EMAC, MMC/SD host and device stacks and class drivers FAT-compatible file system fully integrated with C RTS file I/O functions Ethernet, USB, UART, I2C and SD device drivers Low overhead core-to-core communication mechanism for dual-core devices Ability to move functions between dual core devices to optimize performance by using the same TI-RTOS kernel on both the ARM and C28x DSP cores. Documentation and examples to augment designs, including examples and […]

December 7, 2012December 7, 2012 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

Droid Stick A2 mini-PC Unboxing

Droid Stick A2 is an HDMI TV Stick based on AMLogic AML8726-MX dual core Cortex A9 processor, and together with HI-802 (aka GK802) mini-PC based on Freescale i.MX6Q, is the most likely platform to get proper Linux support, as AMLogic AML8726-MX source code is somewhat open, and video playback in Linux is supported in the older AML8726-M1 processor (Cf. XBMC Linux in Pivos STB). Kimdecent sent me a sample for evaluation, but as the Android firmware is not really ready for prime-time at this time, I’ll just show some pictures of the device, as well as the user interface, and will review the device once a firmware update is available. Since this is still a sample, I received the device in a white box with the Droid Stick A2, a mini USB to USB cable, a small 5.2V/1A power supply and a plug adapter. There are plenty of ventilation hole […]

December 6, 2012 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Qualcomm Announces SnapDragon S4 MSM8226 & MSM8626 Quad Core Cortex A7 Processors

After news of an AllWinner A31 Tablet earlier today, here’s an other quad core Cortex A7 processor announcement, as Qualcomm has recently added of 2 new chipsets to its Snapdragon S4 family of mobile processors: the MSM8226 and MSM8626 featuring 4 ARM Cortex A7 core and Adreno 305 GPU. The processors support 1080p video playback and up to 13MP cameras. Both processors are built using 28nm technology node, and will be ready for customer sampling by Q2 2013 for UMTS, CDMA and TD-SCDMA. These 2 chipsets will incorporate WTR2605, a new multi-mode radio transceiver, specifically designed and optimized to address China requirements such as support for TD-SCDMA, CDMA 1xAdv and HSPA+. The WTR2605 transceiver comes with an integrated, high-performance GPS core with GLONASS and Beidou support, and is said to offer 40 percent power savings and 60 percent smaller footprint compared to previous generations. The company will also provide Qualcomm […]

December 6, 2012May 29, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 26 Comments

$240 Onda V972 AllWinner A31 Quad Core Android Tablet with 9.7″ Retina Display

We finally get a product based on AllWinner Quad Core A7 SoC! The Onda V972 is a 9.7″ inch tablet features the latest AllWinner A31 quad-core A7 processor with an 8 core Power VR SGX544MP2 GPU, 2GB RAM & 16 GB Flash, and running Android 4.1 Jelly bean (Upgradable to 4.2). Here are the full specifications of this tablet: SoC – AllWinner A31 Quad Core A7 + 8 Core Power VR SGX544MP2 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 16GB Flash + microSD socket Display – 9.7″ capacitive touchscreen IPS display (Resolution: 2048*1536) Camera – 5.0MP rear camera with Auto Focus and 2.0MP front camera Connectivity – Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n with Wi-Fi Display and Direct support USB – USB 3.0 port. 3G support via external dongle. Video Out – HDMI – Apparently only 1080p, not 4K TBC. Video Playback – 4K HD Video Playback supporting MP4/3GP/3G2/RM/RMVB/ASF/FLAC/APE/MOV etc… Audio Codecs […]

December 6, 2012December 6, 2012 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

StickNFind Bluetooth 4.0 Location Stickers for Android & iOS

Last year, Treehouse Labs unveiled BiKN Technology Platform, a 802.15.4 wireless sensor network that allows you to track objects fitted with Bikn tags within 60 m, and find your lost keys at home, your car in a parking lot, or track your pets location for example. A solution for the iPhone is available, and a kit with 2 tags and an iPhone case costs about $130. Since a case is required (for 802.15.4 support), this solution is unfortunately impractical for the variety of Android phones. Luckily, there’s now a new solution based on Bluetooth called StickNFind, by SSI America, which works both for Android 4.0 (and up) devices and iPhones. The StickNFind tags are based on Bluetooth 4.0 (Bluetooth Low Energy), have a line-of-sight range of about 30meters, and are powered by a replaceable CR2016 (or CR2020?) watch battery which can last up to 1 year for 30 minutes daily average […]

December 5, 2012 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Direct Insight TRITON-TX6Q System-on-Module Powered by Freescale i.MX6Q

Direct Insight, a British company, has recently announced the TRITON-TX6Q, a SODIMM system-on-module based on Freescale’s iMX6Q quad core Cortex-A9 processor running at 1 GHz with 1 to 2GB RAM and 128 MB flash. This module targets embedded applications including medical devices, digital signage, and industrial multimedia products. Here are the TRITON-TX6Q specifications: SoC – Freescale i.MX6Q 4x ARM Cortex-A9 up to 1GHz + Vivante GC2000, GC355 and GC320 graphics co-processors System Memory – 1GB or 2GB 64-bit DDR3 @ 1066MHz Storage – 128MB NAND Flash, 2 SD card receptacles on baseboard Display Connection – LCD controller 24-bit parallel up to 1080p, dual LVDS (optional). Resistive & capactive touch screen support. Connectivity – Ethernet 10/100 BaseT with PHY on module. USB – USB Host + USB OTG Peripherals and Interfaces: Up to 5x UART (RS232) with pin sharing 2x I2C, 1x 1-wire and 2x SPI interfaces SSP (synchronous serial /digital audio): […]

December 5, 2012May 29, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

AllWinner A10s Processor Overview

Between the AllWinner A10 and AllWinner A13 processors, there’s now an alternative. AllWinner A10s is based on AllWinner A13 architecture (sun5i), but adds HDMI and Ethernet MAC which makes it suitable for mini PCs and set-top boxes. The first time I heard about this processor was in August with IP878 mini PC, and in October, one reader (Alex) informed me AllWinner had posted more details about his new processor. Here are the key features of this (relatively) new SoC: CPU/GPU – ARM Cortex-A8 Core with 32KB D-Cache/ 32KB I-Cache / 256KB L2 Cache, and Mali-400 VPU HD Video Decoding 1080p@30fps of VP8/6, H.264/H.263, WMV9/VC-1, WMV7/8, MPEG-4/2/1, Xvid codecs HD Video Encoding 1080p@30fps with H.264 codec Video Out – HDMI 1.4 (1080p), Memory Up to 1GB DDR2/DDR3 up to 533MHz (16/32 bits Data Bus) MLC/TLC/SLC/EF-NAND ECC 64-bit Peripherals: USB2.0 OTG, USB2.0 HOST （OHCI/EHCI） SD Card V.3.0, eMMC V.4.2 SPI, TWI and […]

December 5, 2012December 5, 2012 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

Diyomate A5 Dual Core Android Set-Top Box Powered by Infotmic iMAPx820 Processor

I’ve been tipped off about a new Android set-top box – Diyomate A5 Dual Core – that features Infotmic iMAPx820 dual core A5 SoC @ 1 GHz with Mali-400 GPU, 1 GB RAM & 4 GB Flash, and runs Android 4.0.3. Here are the specs of this media player: SoC – Infotmic 820 dual Cortex-A5 + dual core Mali-400 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 4GB NAND Flash + SD card socket Video Output – HDMI and composite Audio Output – HDMI and Stereo audio output Video Codecs – H.263, MPEG1/2, MPEG-ASP, MPEG-AVC(H.264), VC-1, RV, AVS, MJPEG/JPEG, VP8, MVC, VP6(FLV), ETC Audio Codecs – MP3, WMA, M4A (AAC), WAV, OGG, LPCM, FLAC, AC3 and DTS Connectivity: Ethernet – 10/100Mbps Wi-FI – 802.11 b/g/n USB – 2x USB 2.0 Host ports Power supply – 5V/2A AC Adaptor Dimension – 98*98*20 mm Weight – 160 grams Beside featuring 2 Cortex A5 cores up to […]