Video Category - CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

May 22, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Silicon Labs SiXG301 and SiXG302 “Series 3” wireless SoCs are built for line-powered and battery-powered IoT applications

Silicon Labs SiMG301 Series 3 wireless SoC

Silicon Labs has just introduced the first 22nm Series 3 SoCs with the SiXG301 and SiXG302 Arm Cortex-M33 multiprotocol wireless SoCs designed for line-powered and battery-powered IoT devices, respectively. The SiXG301 is offered with 4MB flash and 512 KB SRAM, embeds an LED pre-driver for advanced LED smart lighting and smart home products, and supports 2.4 GHz wireless protocols such as Bluetooth, Zigbee, and Thread with support for Matter. The upcoming SiXG302 Bluetooth and Matter SoC offers an ultra-low-power consumption using only 15 µA/MHz active current, or 30% lower than competitive devices in its class, and as such is ideal for battery-powered wireless sensors and actuators. We’ll be focusing on the SiMG301 multi-protocol SoC and SiBG301 Bluetooth LE SoC in this article since the details are sparse for the SiXG302 parts (SiMG302 and SiBG302). Silicon Labs SiMG301 / SiBG301 specifications: MCU Core – 32-bit Arm Cortex-M33 with DSP instructions and […]

May 21, 2025 by Debashis Das - No Comments

Adafruit Sparkle Motion Stick – A compact ESP32-S3 USB WLED controller board with dual 5V LED outputs, an I2S Mic, and a snap-fit enclosure

Adafruit Sparkle Motion Stick + Enclosure Kit

Adafruit has recently released the Adafruit Sparkle Motion Stick, a compact, WLED-friendly Neopixel USB controller board built around an ESP32-S3 Module designed for audio-reactive LED projects, cosplay props, holiday lighting, and more. The module comes with a USB Type-A port for programming and power input (5V, 2A max), and a simple enclosure for protection (not weatherproof). It includes a built-in I2S microphone for audio-reactive effects, an IR receiver for remote control. Other than that it has a user-programmable button, an onboard NeoPixel LED, and a red status LED with two 5V-level shifted signal outputs with power and to connect the LEDs a screw terminal blocks. Adafruit Sparkle Motion Stick specifications SoC – ESP32-S3 dual-core Xtensa LX7 MCU @ 240MHz with 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and BLE 5 LED Control – 2x level-shifted output channels (5V logic) with terminal blocks (26–20AWG support) Audio Input – Built-in I2S MEMS digital microphone for audio-reactive lighting Infrared […]

May 19, 2025May 19, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

1GHz Renesas RZ/A3M Cortex-A55 MPU embeds 128MB on-chip DDR3L for HMI applications

Renesas RZ/A3M is an Arm Cortex-A55 microprocessor (MPU) clocked at up to 1.0 GHz with 128MB on-chip DDR3L for cost-effective, yet advanced HMI applications with up to 1280×800 resolution. The RZ/A3M is similar to its predecessor, the Renesas RZ-A3UL, but it integrates 128MB on-chip RAM in a single System-in-Package (SiP), supports both MIPI DSI and parallel display interfaces, and adds a 2D graphics accelerator for smoother user interfaces. Renesas RZ/A3M specifications: CPU – Single-core Arm Cortex-A55 @ up to 1.0 GHz GPU – 2D drawing engine Memory 128KB on-chip SRAM with ECC Built-in 128MB DDR3L-1600 SDRAM (16-bit bus width) Storage SPI Multi I/O Bus Controller× 1 channel (4-bit Double data rate) Boot from Serial NAND or Serial NOR flash SD card host interface Display I/F – 4-lane MIPI DSI or Digital parallel output up to 1280×800 resolution @ 60 Hz Audio – Serial sound interface (SSI/I2S) USB – 1x USB […]

May 19, 2025May 21, 2025 by Debashis Das - 2 Comments

FlippenHeimer Geiger Counter module adds radiation sensing to Flipper Zero

The FlippenHeimer is a compact Geiger counter add-on module designed to work with the Flipper Zero. It allows users to monitor beta and gamma radiation levels using the Flipper’s display and power source, making it a portable device to detect radiation. Built around a J305 Geiger–Müller tube, the FlippenHeimer provides real-time data logging, visual feedback via graphs. Other than that, it features “atomic dice roller” functionality that uses the random nature of radioactive decay to generate unpredictable outcomes. Key components of this device include 555 timers, LM358 op-amps, 2N3904 and MPSA42 transistors, inductors, and high-voltage capacitors. These features make this device useful for applications such as environmental awareness, hobbyist radiation monitoring, and generating random values. FlippenHeimer Specifications: Main interface – Connects to Flipper Zero via GPIO/UART (plug-and-play with GPIO header) Detection device – J305 Geiger-Müller glass tube, suitable for gamma and beta radiation Radiation detection: Detects beta and gamma radiation […]

May 18, 2025May 19, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

M5Stack Tab5 Review – Part 2: Getting started with ESP32-P4 firmware development using the ESP-IDF Framework and Arduino IDE

In the first part of the review, we checked out the hardware of the M5Stack Tab5 ESP32-P4 IoT development kit and tried the demo firmware, whose user interface allows the user to quickly experiment with the camera, microphone, speaker, WiFi, power consumption, GPIOs, RS485, and more. Since there’s no user application for the Tab5 at this stage, I decided to look into software development resources for the ESP32-P4 devkit in the second part of the review. I’ll first follow the instructions to build the demo firmware from source using the ESP-IDF framework, then analyze key aspects of the source and make some small modifications. After that, I’ll have a look at ESP32-P4 Arduino support via M5Unified and M5GFX library. ESP-IDF 5.4.1 installation and ESP32-P4 Hello World program The first step is to get the ESP-IDF 5.4.1 and configure ESP32-P4 following the instructions on the Espressif website, before testing it with […]

May 16, 2025May 16, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

PitFusion thermal imager for Raspberry Pi combines Melexis MLX90640 sensor and RGB camera (Crowdfunding)

IVMECH Mechatronics’ PitFusion is a thermal imager designed for the Raspberry Pi based on a Melexis MLX90640 32×24 thermal sensor and an Adafruit 0V5647 RGB sensor comparable to the Raspberry Pi Camera Module v1.3. The kit enables users to capture thermal and visible images simultaneously, and can be useful for automation, robotics, security (human/pet motion detection), non-contact temperature measurement, and environmental monitoring applications. PiFusion specifications: Thermal Sensor – Adafruit LX90640 with 32 x 24 pixel array Camera Sensor – Adafruit 0V5647 comparable to the RPi Camera Module v1.3 with 2592 x 1944 resolution Temperature Range – -40°C to 300°C Frame Rate – Up to 32 Hz (thermal), 30 fps (camera) Spectral Range – 8 µm to 14 µm (optimal for human body and object detection) Host Interfaces – I2C for thermal sensor, CSI for camera) Dimensions – 40 x 30 x 10 mm Weight – 15 grams IVMECH says the […]

May 16, 2025May 16, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 15 Comments

TexHoo QN15 – A sub $100 mini PC with Intel Processor N150 CPU

Once entry-level Intel processors have been on the market for long enough, we often start to see systems sell for under $100. The TexHoo QN15 mini PC is offered with a recent Intel Processor N150 Twin Lake CPU for just around $100 in its barebone configuration with WiFi 5, but no RAM, and no storage. The mini PC supports DDR4 memory and NVMe and SATA storage, and offers two 4K-capable HDMI ports, gigabit Ethernet, a M.2 socket for WiFi and Bluetooth, and five USB ports with two USB 3.2, two USB 2.0, and a USB Type-C port. TexHoo QN15 specifications: SoC – Intel Processor N150 quad-core Twin Lake processor @ up to 3.6 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 24EU Intel UHD graphics @ 1.0 GHz; TDP: 6W System Memory – SO-DIMM socket for DDR4-2666/32000 up to 32GB Storage M.2 2280 socket for SATA or NVMe SSD 2.5-inch SATA bay (proprietary SATA […]

May 16, 2025May 16, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Satellite1 Dev Kit is an Home Assistant-compatible DIY voice assistant with ESP32-S3 module, XMOS XU316 audio processor

DIY Voice Assistant in 3D printed enclosure

FutureProofHomes’ Satellite1 Dev Kit is a DIY voice assistant comprised of an ESP32-S3 WiFi and Bluetooth board running ESPHome and an audio “HAT” based on XMOS XU316 audio processor designed for Home Assistant compatibility. It can be used as a smart speaker with a 25W amplifier, a headphone jack, and a built-in 4-microphone array, a music player, and an environmental monitoring system with temperature, humidity, luminosity, and presence sensors. The HAT can also be used with a Raspberry Pi with a 40-pin GPIO header, and two extra 40-pin connectors are reserved for future accessories. Satellite1 Dev Kit specifications: Wireless SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core 32-bit LX7 processor running at 240 MHz Memory – 512 KB SRAM, 8 MB PSRAM. Storage – 16 MB Flash Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.x Audio Processor – XMOS XU316 (XU316-1024-QF60V-I32) 16-core 32-bit RISC processor running at 800 MHz with […]