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

August 10, 2015September 22, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

MeegoPad T04 Cherry Trail mini PC Sells for $136

Right after writing about MeegoPad T03 TV stick, I noticed another product on Amazon, namely MeegoPad T04 which for once is not based on a Bay Trail processor, but instead the newer Intel Atom x5-Z8300 Cherry Trail quad core processor, and which sells for $139 on Aliexpress or $136 on Amazon US. [Update: T04 is now sold on Gearbest for $123.99 with MGT04 coupon] Since the descriptions on Amazon and Aliexpress can’t be fully trusted, these are only tentative specifications for MeegoPad T04, which are quite similar to the ones listed for Tronsmart Ara x5: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” quad core processor @ 1.44 GHz (Bust freq: 1.84 GHz) with Intel Gen8 HD graphics (2W SDP) System Memory – 2 GB Storage – 32 GB eMMC + micro SD slot Video Output – HDMI Audio I/O – HDMI, 3.5mm microphone jack Connectivity – Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, […]

August 10, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

MeegoPad T03 TV Sticks Runs Windows 8.1 and Android 4.4, Features an Improved Thermal Design

If you were expecting a new processor for MeegoPad T03, you’ll be disappointed that hardware-wise the third MeegoPad hardware specifications are basically the same as MeegoPad T01 and T02, but the new version of the stick should not get as hot as the first two versions, and runs a dual boot image with Windows 8.1 and Android 4.4, that can be upgraded to Windows 10, contrary to some other dual boot Bay Trail devices. MeegoPad T03 specifications are indeed mostly the same of the previous models: SoC – Intel Atom Z3735F “Bay Trail” quad core processor @ 1.33 GHz – 1.83 GHz with Intel HD graphics Gen 7 System Memory – 2 GB DDR3L Storage – 32 GB eMMC + micro SD slot up to 64GB Video & Audio Output – HDMI 1.4 Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 1x USB 2.0 host port, 2x micro […]

August 10, 2015August 10, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Weightless-P Standard is Designed for High Performance, Low Power, 2-Way Communication for IoT

Weightless was unveiled over two years ago, as a new standards for IoT leveraging “white space” spectrum, previously used by analog TV broadcasts, for free M2M / IoT communication using low power (10 years battery life) and cost-efficient hardware ($2 hardware) offering a range of 5 to 10 km. Development kits and base stations were scheduled for Q2 2014, but there’s either been some delays or they are only available to Weightless members, as you need to register to get notified once hardware becomes available. The Weightless SIG (Special Interest Group) has not stopped working on the standard as there are now three Weightless standards: Weightless-W (using White band spectrum), Weightless-N (sub-GHz spectrum), and and newly announced Weightless-P offering similar features as 3GPP carrier grade solutions, but at lower costs and lower power consumption. The key features of Weightless-P are shown below: Excellent capacity and scalability for IoT deployment FDMA+TDMA […]

August 9, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 59 Comments

List of Rockchip RK3368 Android mini PCs

Last year, Rockchip RK3288 was always going to be popular, since it offered a massive performance upgrade compared to its predecessor (Rockchip RK3188) with Cortex A17 cores replacing Cortex A9 cores, and a Mali-T764 GPU replacing an aging Mali-400MP4 GPU, plus the addition of 4K video output and decoding, as well as H.265 video codec support. So many manufacturers got involved that I decided to write a list of RK3288 TV boxes and sticks. Rockchip RK3368, the company’s new “flagship” processor for 2015, is a bit less exciting despite providing eight 64-bit ARM cores, since Cortex A53 cores are significantly less powerful than the Cortex A17 cores found in RK3288, and the performance of the PowerVR G6110 GPU used in the processor is a bit of an unknown for now. RK3368 might still rank pretty well in benchmark since it comes with eight cores instead of four cores, but I’m […]

August 8, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Tronsmart Orion R68 RK3368 TV Box Firmware and Android SDK Released

Tronsmart Orion R68 is an Android 5.1 TV box powered by Rockchip RK3368 octa core ARM Cortex A53 processor with 1 or 2GB RAM, and 8 or 16GB eMMC flash depending on model, most probably based on Beelink i68 hardware. The goods news is that the company has now released the stock firmware as well as the Android SDK for the device. The firmware is version 100L1100_0720, dated July 20th, with the following changelog: OTA firmware updates support USB audio support Remote control function via smartphone In case you need to flash the firmware manually, you’ll need a Windows PC, a toothpick and a micro USB cable, and download Updating_instruction&Drivers&Flashing_Tools.zip which contains instructions, and the latest version of two Windows based utilities: DriverAssitant v4.3 – Program used to install the USB drivers for your version of Windows. FactoryTool v1.39 – The tool that does the flashing. If OTA is working, […]

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

STM32F746G-DISCO is a $49 Cortex-M7 Board with a 4.3″ LCD Display, Arduino Headers

We’ve already seen Atmel started shipping its SAM V71 Xplained Board based on its latest Cortex M7 a few days ago, but Atmel is not the company which recently introduced a Cortex M7 development kit, as ST Micro also launched an STM32F7 Cortex M7 development kit with Arduino headers and 4.3″ LCD at the end of June. The “Discovery Kit with STM32F746NG MCU” (STM32F746G-DISCO) comes with the following specifications: MCU – STMicro STM32F746NGH6 Cortex M7 MCU with 1 MB Flash, 340 KB RAM, in BGA216 package Memory – 128-Mbit (16 MB) SDRAM (64 Mbits accessible) Storage – 16 MB Quad-SPI Flash memory, and micro SD slot Display – 4.3″ 480×272 color LCD-TFT with capacitive touch screen Camera – Camera connector Connectivity – Ethernet connector compliant with IEEE-802.3-2002 USB USB OTG HS with Micro-AB connectors, USB OTG FS with Micro-AB connectors USB functions: virtual COM port, mass storage, debug port Audio […]

August 7, 2015August 7, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

“OpenWRT vs. FCC – Forced Firmware Lockdown?” Video and Presentation Slides

The article about the new FCC rules that may prevent installing OpenWRT, DD-WRT or other third party firmware on Wi-Fi routers and access-point generated quite a buzz at the end of the last month. The “OpenWRT vs. FCC – Forced firmware lockdown?” presentation that started that discussion took place yesterday during BattleMesh V8 event, and the video has now been uploaded to YouTube. Sound quality could be better, and the slides are not shown on the video, but you can download the PDF slides to have an easier time following the presentation. Some keys points include: The requirement to lock firmware are likely to affect all users, not only those living in countries following the FCC regulations. Not only WiFI access points would be affected, but also phones, tablets with CyanogenMod, and more. Vendors will have to “describe in detail how the device is protected from “flashing” and the installation […]

August 7, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

2015 Open Source Hardware Summit Program Published

The Open Source Hardware Summit takes places once a year in different location each year. It was at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 2013, in Rome, Italy last year, and this year the event will be hosted in Philadelphia in the US, and the organizers just released the program. It will be a one day event (September 19, 2015) with four “tracks” with a total of 23 sessions, and a keynote: Science and Education Open Hardware, Open Minds: The Rise of Open Hardware in Academia and K-12 Education by Ben Leduc-Mills. The Rise and Fall of an Open Source Hardware Company by Nancy Ouyang. Open Hardware in Community/Citizen Science by Peter Marchetto. DropBot: an Open-Source Platform for Lab Automation by Ryan Fobel, Christian Fobel, Michael Dryden and Aaron Wheeler. Making Open Hardware the New Standard in Science by Joshua Pearce. Open Source Robotics Foundation and the Robotics Fast […]