Ubuntu Touch looked really promising as a Linux mobile operating system supporting mobile desktop convergence, so eventually some people would have been able to use a single device for their mobile and desktop needs. If was not for lack of trying, but sadly Canonical had to end the development of Ubuntu Touch due to lack of interest from phone manufacturers and the community at large, focusing their resources instead of the cloud and IoT. But some people were still very enthousiastic about Ubuntu Touch, Unity and convergence, so since the code was open source, UBPorts continued working on Ubuntu Touch on their own. UBPorts developers have now collaborated with Purism to make Ubuntu Touch one of the officially supported operating systems for the Librem 5 smartphone. Librem 5 will still ship with GNOME based PureOS, but Purism will support customers who want to easily install Ubuntu Touch or PureOS with […]
NanoPi K1 Plus is a $35 Allwinner H5 Development Board using Raspberry Pi Form Factor
Almost exactly one year ago, FriendlyELEC launched NanoPi K2 board powered by Amlogic S905 processor, following Raspberry Pi 3 form factor, but adding an eMMC flash socket, Gigabit Ethernet, 4K video playback, an I2S header, more memory (2GB RAM), and doing without a camera or LCD display interface. The company has now launched another similar looking model – NanoPi K1 Plus – based on Allwinner H5 processor, also equipped with one DVP camera connector, but losing one USB 2.0 port, and HDMI is limited to 4K @ 30 Hz. NanoPi K1 Plus specifications: SoC – Allwinner H5 quad-core Cortex-A53 processor @ 1.3+ GHz with Mali-450MP GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – micro SD card slot, eMMC flash interface Video Output – HDMI 1.4 up to 4K @ 30 fps, CVBS (composite) Audio HDMI digital audio output 3.5mm audio jack On-board microphone 7-pin 2.54mm pin header Connectivity – Gigabit […]
GalliumOS is a Linux Distribution for (Intel) Chromebooks & Chromeboxes
When I wrote about Crostini VM to run Linux apps on Chromebooks last week, I was informed about GalliumOS, described as a fast and lightweight Linux distro for ChromeOS devices – meaning Chromebooks and Chromeboxes – that is based on Xubuntu. Compared to ChromeOS, GalliumOS – and other Linux distributions – provides the ability to run more programs and more flexibility, and GalliumOS is said to deliver improved performance, longer battery life, better touchscreen support, etc.. compared to competing Linux distributions. You can go over the Download page to retrieve an image for your Chromebook or Chromebox, and either replace ChromeOS or go for a dual boot setup. The distribution does not support any Arm Chromebooks for now, and only works with some Intel devices with or without caveats depending on the model used. Check out the hardware compatibility matrix for details. The source code can be found on Github. […]
Kite is an Open Source Hardware Android Smartphone Powered by Snapdragon 450 Processor (Crowdfunding)
Kite is an open source hardware Android phone kit specifically targeting makers which you can assemble yourself into a Kitephone. The phone is based on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 mainboard (Kiteboard v2), and comes with a 720p touchscreen display module, a 12MP camera, antennas, buttons, a 3,000 mAh battery, and a Raspberry Pi HAT compatibility board to optionally interface to external hardware. Kiteboard v2 specifications: SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 octa-core Arm Cortex A53 @ 1.8 GHz with Adreno 506 GPU System Memory – 2 GB RAM Storage – 16 GB storage + microSD card slot Connectivity Cellular LTE Cat. 6/3G/2G, 2x nano SIM slots (dual-SIM dual standby) Two variant North America with LTE FDD Bands: 2,4, 5, 7, 12, 13, 14, 25, 26 LTE TDD Bands: 41 WCDMA 850, 1700, 1900, 2100 GSM 850, 1900 Rest of the World (Europe, Russia, etc…) LTE FDD Bands: 1, 3, 5, 7, […]
24 Orange Pi Zero Boards Cluster and ArmWizard’s Debian Image
ArmWizard forum member “-W.-” needed a cluster to test his firmware build and deployment solution for Orange Pi Zero boards which can deploy the firmware to multiple boards from one single board. So he procured 24 Orange Pi Zero boards, a 24-port switch, some USB hubs and debug board, as well as some other accessories, power supplies, and two wooden planks. That’s the results after assembly. So we have 4 tower of six Orange Pi Zero boards fairly neatly connected to the 24-port Ethernet switch with 30 cm Ethernet cables, and four black USB hubs for the USB to TTL debug boards. The side view below shows the boards are powered by micro USB cables connected to three different power supplies, cooling achieved via four fans, and the power extension is hidden right underneath close to the Ethernet switch. The cluster will also be used for machine learning latter on, […]
My Experience with Dodocool AC750 WiFi Repeater
A while ago, I tested Dodocool DC30S USB type C Hub with HDMI, USB port, and a card reader, and recently the company asked me whether I wanted to review another of their accessories. My ISP has recently taken the habit of being down several hours each month, so I rely on my neighbor’s WiFi (with he’s permission) in those case, but since the signal is too weak, I’m using a wireless audio streamer and a power bank to extend the signal and connect it to my router using WDS Bridging. Then I saw Dodocool DC24 802.11ac WiFi repeater, so I decided to give it a chance. Dodocool DC24 A750 Repeater Unboxing I received the device is a cardboard box with some specifications. It’s an AC750 router/repeater with 300 Mbps @ 2.4 GHz + 433 Mbps @ 5 GHz. The product page linked above has some more details with the […]
RAK8211-NB iTracker Battery / Solar Powered Module Comes with NB-IoT & Bluetooth 5 Connectivity, GPS, and 5 Sensors
Rak Wireless has recently launched a new products called RAK8211-NB iTracker based on a Quectel BC95-G NB-IoT module, Nordic Semi nRF52832 Bluetooth 5 chip, and Quectel L70-R GNSS module. The asset tracker module also comes with 5 different sensors to monitor motion and environmental data, and can optionally be powered directly by a solar panel.RAK8211-NB iTracker specifications: Connectivity NB-IoT via Quectel BC95-G (Global) wireless communication module + SIM card socket Bluetooth 5 via Nordic Semi nRF52832 Arm Cortex-M4F micro-controller (Arduino compatible) GPS/GLONASS via Quectel L70 GNSS module Sensors LIS3DH 3-axis “nano” accelerometer LIS2MDL 3-axis digital magnetic sensor. Tilt sensor BME280 pressure, humidity and temperature sensor OPT3001 intensity of light sensor Expansion – 3x headers with SWD, 2x sensor out + tilt out (also usable as GPIO and analog inputs), 3.3V, GND, and reset Power Supply – 3.5V to 18V via solar panel (P2) or battery (P3) Dimensions – 43mm x […]
Allwinner VR9 SoC is Specifically Designed for Extended/Virtual Reality Headsets
Virtual reality headsets have been powered by application processors designed for smartphones, tablets, or even TV boxes. For example last year, I reviewed a low cost VR headset good enough to watch 360 / VR videos, but not gaming that was based on Allwinner H8 TV box processor. But we’ve previously seen Allwinner was working on VR9 & VR10 processors specifically designed for virtual reality headsets with launches scheduled for Q4 2016 and Q2 2017. There’s obviously been some delays, but the company also now formally launched Allwinner VR9 quad core Cortex A53 processor specifically designed for XR and VR headset (Extended / Virtual reality). Allwinner VR9 key features & specifications with parts that look specific to XR/VR highlighted in bold: CPU – Quad-Core Arm CortexM-A53 @ 1.8GHz with 32KB L1 I-cache + 32KB L1 D-cache per core, 512KB L2 cache, CoolFlex power management architecture GPU – Arm Mali-T760 @ […]