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

August 26, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Phytium Mars is an Upcoming 64 Core ARMv8 Processor for Servers

Several server SoCs with a large number of ARMv8 cores have been announced in the past with products such as Cavium ThunderX featuring 48 64-bit ARM cores and EZTile TILE-Mx100 with 100 ARM Cortex A53 cores. Phytium Technology, a Chinese startup funded in 2012, has showcased its work on Mars processor with 64 custom design ARMv8 cores at Hotchips 2015 conference. Charles Zhang, director of research for Phytium, made the presentation entitled “Mars: A 64-Core ARMv8 Processor” at the conference, and a PDF version is available on Hotchips 2015 website (Conf. Day 1 section) but unfortunately it’s password-protected and only accessible by attendees. Last year, they made all presentations publicly downloadable in December, so hopefully it will be the same this year. In the meantime, I relied on an articles published on EETimes and Golem.de, the latter reproduced some of the slides, to get some of the specs and features: […]

August 25, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

ECS LIVA X2 Braswell Mini PC Features Up to 4GB RAM, 64GB eMMC, Sells for $170 and Up

ECS LIVA was one of the first low power Intel mini PC that included both RAM and storage for less than $200 when it was first announced in March 2014. Since then there’s been a tidal wave of Bay Trail mini PCs hitting the market, and now that it’s time for Braswell and Cherry Trail lower system, ECS released LIVA X2 mini PC powered by Intel Braswell N3050 processor, that’s available for $169.99 on Newegg with 2GB RAM and 32GB storage, or $239.99 with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. ECS LIVA X2 specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N3050 “Braswell” dual core processor @ 1.6 GHz / 2.16GHz (Turbo) and Intel HD Graphics (6W TDP) System Memory – 2 or 4GB DDR3L (soldered) Storage – 32GB / 64GB eMMC flash, 1x M.2 for SSD (Up to 1TB) Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, WiFi 802.11ac and Bluetooth 4.0 Video Output – HDMI and […]

August 25, 2015October 6, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 19 Comments

WeTek Core Android 5.1 TV Box to Support Netflix in HD, OpenELEC, Lubuntu and More

Last year, WeTek launched WeTek Play Android TV receiver with DVB-T2, DVB-S2 or ATSC tuners, and in my review of the DVB-S2 version I found out it was a rather capable device despite the low hardware specifications. The company is about to launch WeTek Core, a media player powered by Amlogic S812-H processor, running Android 5.1.1, as well as supporting Netflix up to 1080p. something most other Android media players can’t handle. WeTek Core preliminary specifications: SoC – Amlogic S812-H quad core processor @ 2.0GHz with an Octa-core Mali-450MP gpu System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB NAND flash, micro SD slot Video Output – HDMI 1.4 up to 4K @ 30Hz + AV Audio Output – HDMI, AV, and optical S/PDIF Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n & 802.11ac (TBC), and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 2x USB 2.0 host ports Misc – Power button and LED Power Supply […]

August 25, 2015August 26, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

USB123 USBee AX PRO is a $10 USB Logic Analyzer Clone Compatible with Sigrok

A few months ago, I wrote about low cost logic analyzers selling for $75 and up, but yesterday, I stumbled upon an even cheaper, and admittedly lower end, logic analyzer called USB123 USBee AX PRO, allegedly a clone of the original USBee AX PRO minus the analog inputs, that sells for $9.99 on Dealextreme. [Update: It can also be bought for $5.60 on Aliexpress including shipping to most countries] USBee AX PRO specifications: Sampling rate – 24Msps Sample rate – 24MHz @ 8 channels Input voltage range: 0~5V Digital channel: 8 Low input voltage: < 0.8V; High input voltage: >1.4V Supported Protocols – SPI, IIC, UART, SMBus, I2S, CAN, Parallel, Custom, Search, Async, 1-Wite, PS/2 Dimensions – 5.4 cm x 2.7 cm x 1.8 cm Weight – 60 grams The tool ships with 10 Dupont cables and a USB cable to transfer data to your PC. DealExtreme also provides CDROM […]

August 24, 2015June 18, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO High-End Media Player is Powered by Sigma Designs SMP8758 SoC (Crowdfunding)

CloudMedia, previously known as Syabas, has been in the Linux media player business for many years, having developed various product based on Sigma Designs secure media processor. Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO is their latest media player, which the company claims have high-end audio and video quality thanks to an ESS SABRE Audio DAC, XLR connectors, and Sigma Designs SMP8758 dual core Cortex A9 processor and its VXP engine. Popcorn Hour A-500 PRO specifications: SoC – Sigma Designs SMP8758 ARM Cortex A9 processor @ 1.2 GHz with ARM Mali-400 GPU and VXP image processing engine System Memory – 2048 MB DDR3 Storage – NAND Flash for firmware, 1x SD card reader, internal SATA bay Video Output – HDMI up to 3840×2160 @ 30 Hz Audio Output Digital – HDMI, optical S/PDIF, and coaxial S/PDIF Analog – Stereo RCA jacks, XLR connectors, and headphones Audio DAC – ESS SABRE Audio DAC ES9018K2M […]

August 24, 2015June 18, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 42 Comments

Review of Tronsmart Ara X5 Windows 10 mini PC with Intel Atom X5 Processor

Tronsmart Ara X5 is one of the first mini PC featuring a Cherry Trail processor, more exactly Atom x5-Z8300 quad core processor manufactured with 14nm process. Price and max TDP are similar to Atom Z3735F Bay Trail-T processor found in many mini PCs designed in China, so it will interesting to compare the two platforms. Yesterday, I took some photos of the device, and found out the design was comprised of a baseboard and system-on-module, but today, I’ll focus on testing the device in Windows 10, checking everything works as it should, as well as running some benchmarks, verifying the Windows license status, test H.265 video playback in Kodi, and more. Tronsmart Ara X5 Setup I had not much to do the first time I booted the device, as it was already configured to use English, and the system logged in with user “User” without password. I still double checked […]

August 23, 2015March 13, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 26 Comments

Intel Atom Z3735F vs Atom x5-Z8300 Benchmarks Comparison

I’m in the process of reviewing Tronsmart Ara X5 mini PC with Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” processor, and while testing is not complete yet, I’ve already run PCMark8 benchmarks in the Windows 10 device, so I’ve decided to compare the results I got with MeLE PCG03 mini PC running Windows 10 based on an older Z3735F Bay Trail-T processor that’s about the same price, and with the same 2W TDP. This post can be considered a work in progress, as I may update it latter to add more benchmarks results in Windows or/and Linux (Phoronix). Th exact test I ran was “PCMark 8 Home 3.0 Conventional 3.0”. Both system resolutions were set to 1920×1080, however one noticeable difference is that MeLE PCG03 ran Windows 10 Home 32-bit, while Tronsmart Ara X5 ran Windows 10 Home 64-bit. Benchmark MeLE PCG03 Intel Atom Z3735F Bay-Trail @ 1.33 GHz / 1.83 GHz […]

August 22, 2015August 25, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

Tronfy MX4 Telos Android 5.1 TV Box Unboxing and Teardown

I’ve recently reviewed Mygica ATV1900AC TV box powered by Amlogic S812 with 2GB RAM and 16GB eMMC running Android Lollipop, a device with some high quality components, and a RF remote with voice command and search function that sells for $180. Tinydeal, a Hong Kong-based online shopping site specialized in electronic goods, sent me Tronfy MX4 Telos with very similar specifications including support for 802.11ac and Gigabit Ethernet, but selling instead for nearly half price at $98.99 including shipping. The firmware is also based on Lollipop, and runs Android 5.1.1 instead of Android 5.0.2, and it will be interesting to find out how the cheaper product fare against the higher-end one. Tronfy MX4 (MXIV) Telos Specifications Since it’s the first time I come across this box, I’ll list the specifications first: SoC – Amlogic S812 quad core cortex A9r4 @ 2 GHz with Mali-450MP6 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 […]