Linux 5.13 Release – Notable changes, Arm, MIPS and RISC-V architectures

Linux 5.13 release

Linus Torvalds has just announced the release of Linux 5.13: So we had quite the calm week since rc7, and I see no reason to delay 5.13. The shortlog for the week is tiny, with just 88 non-merge commits (and a few of those are just reverts). It’s a fairly random mix of fixes, and being so small I’d just suggest people scan the appended shortlog for what happened. Of course, if the last week was small and calm, 5.13 overall is actually fairly large. In fact, it’s one of the bigger 5.x releases, with over 16k commits (over 17k if you count merges), from over 2k developers. But it’s a “big all over” kind of thing, not something particular that stands out as particularly unusual. Some of the extra size might just be because 5.12 had that extra rc week. And with 5.13 out the door, that obviously means […]

SigmaStar SSC33x Camera SoCs are pin-to-pin compatible with Hisilicon Hi3516/Hi3518 processors

SSC336Q development kit

We’ve been writing a fair amount of posts about SigmaStar SSD201/SSD202D processors for smart displays in recent times. But the company also has various camera SoC’s with SSC333, SSC335, SSC336, SSC337, SS338, and SSC339 parts. Those processors feature one or two Cortex-A7 core, embedded RAM, as well as an optional AI accelerator called DLA (Deep Learning Accelerator). The chips manufactured using a 28nm or 22nm process, with the latter being used for parts with the AI accelerator. Most of the Sigmastar SCC33x processors also happen to be pin-to-pin compatible with HiSilicon Hi3516 or Hi3518 SoC that are found in a wide range of IP cameras. Let’s take SSC336D/SSC336Q processor as an example since it comes with the AI accelerator and we have a datasheet courtesy of linux-chenxing.com. SigmaStar SSC336D/SSC336Q camera SoC key features & specifications: CPU – Dual-core Arm Cortex-A7 processor @ 1 GHz with Neon and FPU Embedded Memory […]

M5Stack UnitV2 Linux AI camera features Sigmastar SSD202D SoC

M5stack UnitV2 AI camera

We’ve written about SigmaStar SSD201/SSD202 processors several times now. The low-cost dual-core Cortex-A7 processor comes with 64MB or 128MB built-in RAM, and so far has been found in modules, smart displays, an SBC, and a gateway only available from China via stores like Taobao. But with mainline Linux support progressing nicely, it was only a matter of time until others make a product based on the processor, and M5Stack Unitv2 is an “AI” camera combining SSD202D processor with 128MB DDR3, and a  GC2145 2MP camera sensor. M5Stack UnitV2 specifications: SoC – SigmaStar SSD202D dual-core Cortex-A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz with 128MB on-chip DDR3 Storage – 512MB on-chip NAND flash with around 100MB free space, MicroSD card socket Camera GC2145 1080p color sensor with USB UVC support 68° FoV, 60 cm to ∞ depth of field (DoF) Audio – Built-in microphone Connectivity – 2.4GHz WIFi 4 up to 150 Mbps USB […]

Dual Ethernet SigmaStar SSD201/SSD202 SBC supports 4-inch or 7-inch displays

Dual Ethernet SBC with display

SigmaStar SSD201/SSD202 are low-cost, highly integrated SoC’s with a dual Cortex-A7 processor, 64MB to 128MB on-chip RAM designed for Full HD smart displays, but we’ve also found SSD201 in a 4G LTE industrial gateway. There’s now a different type of board based on the SigmaStar processors with Wireless Tag/Industio IDO-SBC2D06-V1B-12W and IDO-SBC2D06-V1B-22W  SBC’s powered respectively by SSD201 and SSD202, and both equipped with dual Ethernet and a connector for a 4-inch or 7-inch display. Specifications: System-on-Module (one or the other) IDO-SBC2D06-V1B-12W SBC – IDO-SOM2D01  module with SigmaStar SSD201 dual-core Cortex-A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz with 2D GPU, 64MB DDR2,  2Gbit SPI NAND flash IDO-SBC2D06-V1B-22W SBC – IDO-SOM2D01 module with SigmaStar SSD202 dual-core Cortex-A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz with 2D GPU, 128MB DDR3,  2Gbit SPI NAND flash Storage – MicroSD card slot Display – 4-lane MIPI DSI connector for 4-inch RGB565 display or 7-inch RGB888 display Audio – 2-pin Microphone connector […]

SigmaStar SSD210 tiny dual-core Arm Cortex-A7 SoC comes with 64MB RAM, RGB display interface

SigmaStar SSD210 Processor

SigmaStar offers some of the cheapest Cortex-A7 processors on the market, especially considering they usually integrated 64 or 128MB RAM,  which parts like SSD201 or SSD202 which are designed for smart displays, but can also be found in low-cost Linux gateways. The company’s latest SSD210 processor comes with two Cortex-A7 cores clocked at 1.0 GHz, 64MB RAM, and is offering in a QFN68 package that happens to be the exact same size (7x7mm) as the less powerful Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller. SigmaStar SSD210 key features and specifications: CPU – Dual-core Arm Cortex-A7 at up to 1.0GHz with FPU, NEON, MMU, DMA GPU – 2D graphics accelerator System Memory – 64MB on-chip DDR2 RAM Storage I/F – 1/2/4 bit SPI-NOR/SPI-NAND Flash Display – RGB LCD interface supporting RGB565 or RGB666 or RGB888 format up to 60 fps. Multimedia – JPEG encoder with support for YUV 422 or YUV420 format Networking – […]

Linux 5.11 Release – Main Changes, Arm, MIPS & RISC-V Architectures

Linux 5.11 release

Linus Torvalds has released Linux 5.11 just in time for… “Valentine’s Day”: Nothing unexpected or particularly scary happened this week, so here we are – with 5.11 tagged and pushed out. In fact, it’s a smaller-than-average set of commits from rc7 to final, which makes me happy. And I already have several pull requests lined up for tomorrow, so we’re all set for the merge window to start. But in the meantime – and yes, I know it’s Valentine’s Day here in the US – maybe give this release a good testing before you go back and play with development kernels. All right? Because I’m sure your SO will understand. Linus Last time around, Linux 5.10 was an LTS release that added EXT-4 performance enhancements, improved post-Spectre performance, as well as the enablement of BCM2711 (Raspberry Pi 4) display pipeline, among other many changes. Some of the notable changes in […]

SigmaStar SSD201/SSD202 powered 4G LTE industrial gateway made to run mainline Linux

SSD202 gateway board

SigmaStar SSD201 is a dual-core Cortex-A7 processor with 64MB RAM onchip that is designed for smart HD displays. We’ve previously seen it in Industio 7-inch smart display running Linux, but if you want to modify anything you’d need sign an NDA before getting the SDK. Luckily there’s an open-source community named linux-chenxing that aims to bring mainline support to those low-cost SigmaStar processor to mainline, the same way linux-sunxi is working on Allwinner processors. Daniel Palmer noticed MYZR recently launched GW300 4G LTE industrial gateway with specifications that looked familiar. GW300 specifications from manufacturer’s website: Processor – Arm Cortex-A7 dual-core processor @ 1.2GHz Memory – 64MB RAM Storage – 128MByte Flash Connectivity – Ethernet and 4G LTE with high-gain antenna Serial – RS485/ RS232 via 5-pin terminal block Misc – RTC Power Supply – 12V to 24V DC input Dimensions – 127.7 x 87.5 x 30 mm Temperature Range – […]

Industio 7-inch smart display features SigmaStar SSD201 SoM, WiFi and Ethernet

SSD201 smart display board

We previously covered the $10 Industio IDO-SOM2D01 module based on SigmaStar SSD201 Cortex-A7 processor with 64MB RAM built-in, 128MB SPI NOR flash, and designed for full HD smart displays. Today I learned Industio was the design team of system-on-module for Wireless Tag, and the latter is the only distributor of Industio branded products. The company also informed us about Industio IDO-SBC2D70 7-inch smart display based on the aforementioned SSD201 or SSD202 module and connected over Ethernet or WiFi. Industio IDO-SBC2D70 smart display specifications: SoM – Industio IDO-SOM2D01 with SoC – SigmaStar SSD201/SSD202 dual-core Cortex-A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz with 2D GPU, 64MB DDR2 (SSD201) or 128MB DDR3 (SSD202) Storage – 128MB SPI NAND flash (option up to 512MB) Video  Decoder – H.264/H.265 up to 1920×1080 @ 60 fps Dimensions – 2.95 x 2.95 cm Storge – MicroSD card socket (SDIO 2.0) Display – 1024 x 600 IPS RGB module by […]