Testing Category - Page 86 of 169 - CNX Software

June 11, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Review of Wio Tracker with GPS, Bluetooth 3.0 and GSM Connectivity

Wio GPS – also called Wio Tracker – is an Arduino compatible board based on Microchip Atmel SAMD21 MCU with GPS, Bluetooth, GSM/GPRS connectivity, as well as several Grove connectors to connect sensors and modules for your IoT project. SeeedStudio sent me a sample for evaluation, so I’ve tested it, and reported my experience below by testing some of the Arduino sketches. Wio Tracker Unboxing All I got in the package was Wio GPS tracker v1.1 board. The top includes the Atmel MCU, an RGB LED, a microphone and 3.5mm AUX jack to make phone calls, a user and power button, a micro USB port for power and programming, a small 2-pin connector for a battery, and 6 Grove connectors for digital, serial, I2C and analog modules. The other side of the board comes with Quectel MC20 module that handles Bluetooth, GPS and GSM, a dual use micro SD card […]

June 8, 2017July 12, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 37 Comments

MeLE PCG03 Apo Fanless Apollo Lake mini PC Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown

You’ll now easily find mini PCs powered by Intel Apollo Lake processor, but many of them are actively cooled, and only support HDMI 1.4 output limited to 4K @ 30 Hz. MeLE PCG03 Apo, an update to the company’s PCG03 fanless mini PC, is powered by an Intel Celeron N3450 quad core processor, support HDMI 2.0 video output up to 4K @ 60 Hz, and is passively cooled. On top of that, it can also be upgraded with an M.2 SSD. The company has sent me a review for sample, and while I’ll focus on testing HDMI 2.0 support, audio pass-through, and whether the mini PC can handle high loads without CPU throttling in the second part of the review, I’ll first have a look at the hardware design today. MeLE PCG03 Apo Unboxing I’ve received the device in the usual black retail package showing the key features with 4K […]

June 6, 2017July 26, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 15 Comments

U5PVR Deluxe Set-Top Box & NAS Review – Part 2: Android TV, Debian, and Live TV App

U5PVR Deluxe is an set-top box with digital TV tuners that runs Android TV 5.1, and support 2.5″ and 3.5″ hard drive. I’ve received a model with a dual DVB-T/T2 tuner, and already posted “U5 PVR Deluxe Android Set-Top Box Review – Part 1: Specs, Unboxing, Teardown, and SATA HDD Assembly” a few weeks ago, where I described the hardware, and I inserted a one terabytes 3.5″ hard drive. I’ve now had time to test the device, but it took much longer than expected due to a partial firmware update issue, which forced me to redo many of the tests. There are also some undocumented features, so if you want to make the most of the device, be prepared to spend time in the forums. U5PVR Connections, OTA Firmware Update, and Setup Wizard The box have one USB 3.0 ports, and three USB 2.0 ports, so most people won’t need […]

June 6, 2017July 11, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Review of Vorke Z3 Android Mini PC with SATA – Part 1: Unboxing & Teardown

After Yundoo Y8 review, I’ve received another Rockchip RK3399 mini PC for review: Vorke Z3, which was sent to me by GeekBuying. Both devices are quite similar for Vorke Z3 adds an external SATA interface, and two external high-gain antennas. I was also expecting Android 7.1 Nougat on Z3, but I’ve been told the current SDK has too many bugs, so the device still ships with Android 6.0.1. I’ll start the review by looking into the hardware inside out, before reporting on my experience with the firmware in the second part in a few weeks. Vorke Z3 Unboxing The retail package is quite bland, but most people will probably not care a bit about this little detail. The devices ships with a 12V/2A power supply, a simple IR remote control, a HDMI cable, a SATA cable, and Vorke Z3 “4K media player” user manual. The device feels of good quality […]

June 5, 2017June 26, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 33 Comments

A95X R2 (Rockchip RK3328) TV Box Review – Part 1: Specifications, Unboxing & Teardown

Rockchip RK3328 is a new TV box SoC competing with Amlogic S905(X) TV boxes thanks to its quad core Cortex A53 processor, Mali-450MP GPU, HDMI 2.0a, and its 4K VPU with HDR support. We’ve already seen a few products launched with the processor such as A5X Plus, and T98 4K Ultra HD TV boxes, but I’ve only just received my first RK3328 TV box – courtesy of GearBest – with A95X R2 model. In the first part of the review, I’ll go through the specifications, and check out the devices, and the hardware design, before testing the firmware in several weeks. A95X R2 TV Box Specifications SoC – Rockchip RK3328 quad core Cortex A53 processor @ 1.5 GHz with Mali-450MP2 GPU System Memory – 1GB RAM Storage – 8 GB eMMC flash + micro SD card Video Output – HDMI 2.0a up to 4K @ 60 Hz with HDR10 and […]

May 28, 2017May 29, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

FriendlyELEC Mailbag: NanoPi NEO OLED Starter Kit, NEO Station NS-120B, and NanoPi K2 Multimedia Kit

FriendlyELEC will send me some review samples from time to time, and normally I just ask for one item, but they aways send a bunch of their products instead. This time I asked for a NanoPi NEO NAS Kit v1.2 to play with, but I got clearly more than what I asked for… Let’s start with the box at the top. It contains “NanoPi NEO complete starter kit” selling for $29.99for $29.00 with the following items: NanoPi NEO board NanoHat OLED Heatsink and thermal pad kit Akuminum housing a Mico USB cable A micro SD card pre-loaded with NEO OLED Ubuntu firmware. Three buttons, and screws It’s actually not fully complete, as you’d need to provide and solder your own male headers to NanoPi NEO board. I did not have time for soldering that day, but the final results should be really neat based on pictures from their website. If […]

May 26, 2017May 26, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Raiscube Prusa I3 3D Printer Review – Part 1: Assembly, First Prints, and Configuration

Karl here. Today we are going to start looking a Raiscube Prusa I3 3D printer kit sent for review by GearBest. It’s very similar to most low cost 3D printer kits with one exception. The parts cooler is not like any similar kits that I have seen. In my short time researching these kits the parts cooler is one of the first upgrades I see people do. Typically the parts coolers are inadequate or nonexistent. We will find out that it is actually too good. In this review we are first going to outline the basic components and a mini build guide. Then we will look and see how it prints. Prusa I3 Desktop LCD 3D Printer Specs Main Features: Mainboard: Melzi V2.0 210 x 210 x 210mm build volume 12864 LCD screen shows your printing information directly and easy for you to manipulate 8mm-thick laser cut acrylic frame for […]

May 24, 2017May 24, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

ARM Chromebooks Run Android Apps Better, Exhibit Longer Battery Life than Intel Chromebooks (Study)

Google has been working on supporting Android apps and the Play Store on Chromebooks, which are normally sold with either ARM or Intel processors. So the ability to run Android apps well is one of the things to consider before purchasing a Chromebook. Shrout Research has published a paper entitled “Chromebook Platform Choice Important for Android App Performance” comparing an Acer Chromebook R13 with a Mediatek MT8173C ARM Cortex A72/A53 processor to Acer Chromebook R11 with an Intel Celeron N3060. The Intel Chromebook has a smaller resolution so this could be an advantage, so less resources are needed to update the display. However, the ARM processor is significantly more powerful than the Intel one according to GeekBench results, and Chromebook R13 is sold for $399 on Amazon US, while Chromebook R11 goes for $299 (and lower during promotions). So it’s not a perfect comparison, but it should give an idea […]