Video Category - Page 272 of 331 - CNX Software

December 16, 2013February 22, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

GCW Zero Handheld Console Runs 3D Games via Open Source Vivante GPU Drivers (Etnaviv)

GCW Zero is an open source handheld gaming console featuring Ingenic JZ4770 MIPS processor with Vivante GC860 GPU, 512MB RAM, 16GB internal storage, and a 3.5″ LCD with 320×240 pixels. The device runs Linux (OpenDingux) , and retro games and emulators. GCW Zero had a successful kickstarter campaign, and is now available in a few shops such as ThinkGeek (US), DragonBox (EU) for $150 / 125 Euros. Today, I’m writing about this console, not because of amazing specs, nor price, but because it could be the first device with an embedded SoC that retails with an open source GPU driver. In September of this year, GCW Zero received a firmware update with Etnaviv GPU driver for Vivante GC860 adding support for 3D games via OpenGL ES support. The video below shows Quake 3 Arena running on the game console with the Etnaviv drivers. Lots of OpenGL ES1 and 2 features […]

December 15, 2013December 15, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Toradex Colibri VF50/VF61 SoMs Powered by Freescale Vybrid SoCs Sell for as Low as 19 Euros

Toradex Colibri VF50 and Colibri VF61 are system-on-modules respectively powered by Freescale Vyrbrid VF5xx Cortex A5 SoC and Vybrid VF6xx dual core Cortex A5/M4 SoC, which are part of the company’s Colibri ARM computer on modules. Toradex Colibri VF50/VF61 specifications: Processor VF50 – Freescale Vybrid VF5xx (MVF50NN151CMK40) ARM Cortex-A5 @ 400MH, 1.5MB SRAM VF61 – Freescale Vybrid VF6xx (MVF61NS151CMK50) ARM Cortex-A5 @ 500MHz, Cortex-M4 @ 167MHz, 1.0MB SRAM, and multiple hardware accelerated security features listed below. System Memory VF50 – 128MB DDR3 (16-bit, no ECC), or 64MB DDR3 with ECC (8-bit, ECC) VF61 – 256MB DDR3 (16-bit, no ECC), or 128MB DDR3 (8-bit, ECC) Storage VF50 – 128MB NAND flash VF61 – 1GB NAND flash Interfaces via the 200-pin SO-DIMM edge connector (X1): LCD RGB (24-bit), up to 1024 x 768 4-wire or 5-wire resistive touch Audio – I/O (VF61 only), SPDIF In and Out, I2S/AC97 compatibl Ehanced Serial Audio […]

December 13, 2013December 13, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

Tronsmart T1000 Mirror2TV Review with Android and Windows XP

Tronsmart T1000 Mirror2TV is an EZcast HDMI dongle that connects to your TV, supports Miracast, DLNA, and Airplay, and sells for just $30 including shipping. I’ve just received a sample from Geekbuying, and I’ll post some pictures first, followed by a review with ThL W200 Android 4.2 smartphone, and Acer Aspire One D255 netbook running Windows XP. Tronsmart T1000 Unboxing Pictures The package shows it is a Wi-Fi display adapter supporting Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android. Beside the dongle, there’s just a user’s manual (that I did not read, shame on me), and a funny USB wit a microUSB plug at one end, and a Wi-Fi module, and USB plug to connect to your TV or a power adapter at the other end. Since the Wi-Fi module is outside the dongle is much smaller than Android HDMI TV Sticks for example. Another advantage might be better Wi-Fi reception, as if […]

December 10, 2013September 28, 2018 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

Most Embedded GPUs Do NOT Support Hardware Video Decoding Acceleration. The VPU Does.

Many people seem to get confused with the actual function of GPUs used in embedded (ARM / MIPS) SoC, and I can often read comments similar to “with lima drivers we should get video decoding in XBMc soon”, and I’ve just received any email reading “My main task is to build a full hd media player based on ffmpeg with hardware decoding acceleration for Linux. Is it possible with mali400mp4?”. So I’ve decided to write a short post about it to make things a bit more clear. Contrary to GPUs in the PC world, embedded GPUs only take care of 3D, and sometimes 2D graphics, and leave video encoding and/or decoding to another block called Video Processing Unit (VPU). There’s at least one exception with Broadcom Videocore IV GPU as found in the processor used in the Raspberry Pi that apparently takes care of 2D & 3D graphics as well […]

December 9, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Android 4.2 Laptop Boasts 13.3″ Display, Dual Core WM8880 SoC

Charbax has just found a 13.3″ laptop powered by WonderMedia WM8880 dual core Cortex A9 processor running Android 4.2 manufactured by Shenzhen Honlin, and selling for about $108 in China (retail or factory price?). That’s the first time I see a Chinese ARM based laptop with a somewhat decent screen, so I went to Aliexpress to find the device or a similar one, and after going through all the 13.3″ Android tablets, I found a no brand laptop, model GA1331F, sold by Shenzhen GA Technology Development with apparently the same specs for about $170 including shipping via EMS. GA1331F Laptop specifications: SoC – WonderMedia WM8880 Dual-Core ARM Cortex A9 @ 1.5GHz with Mali-400 MP2 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 RAM @ 1033MHz, with an option to get 2GB Storage – 8GB or 16GB MLC NAND flash, SD card slot (Up to 32GB) Display – 13.3″ LCD screen (1280 x 800) […]

December 7, 2013December 7, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Crystal Board Combines Rockchip RK3188 ARM SoC with Xilinx FPGA and Arduino Compatible Board (Crowdfunding)

Red Crystal, a German startup, has just introduced the Crystal Board, a 3-in-1 development board with Rockchip RK3188 SoC running Linux or Android, an Arduino UNO compatible board, and a Xilinx Spartan-6 FPGA. The concept is a similar to the UDOO board, but adds an FPGA. The company has launched a Kickstarter campaign to gather funds to manufacture the Lite and Pro versions of the board for respectively $149 and $179. Crystal Board specifications (Lite and Pro versions): SoC – Rockchip RK3188 ARM Cortex-A9 quad core up to 1.8Ghz + Mali-400 MP4 GPU MCU – Atmel Atmega328 SMD FPGA – Xilinx Spartan6 XC6SLX9 with 9152 logic cells System Memory – 2GB DDR3 @ 1066MHz (1GB DDR3 @ 1066MHz for Lite version) Storage – micro SD card slot, SPI flash Video Output – HDMI 1.4 Connectivity: 10/100M Ethernet port Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n with antenna. Dual band for Pro version, 2.4GHz band for […]

December 6, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

AIRTAME is a Wi-Fi Display HDMI Dongle for Windows, Linux, and Mac (Crowdfunding)

Earlier today, I wrote about Tronsmart T1000 Mirror2Tv, a $30 Wi-Fi Display adapter that can mirror the display from Android, iOS, and Windows devices and computers to your HDMI TV via Wi-Fi, and I’ve been informed a somewhat similar device called AIRTIME had a very successful Indiegogo campaign albeit selling for over $100 including shipping, and with shipping expected for May 2014, so I decided to have a closer look. AIRTIME specifications have not been fully release, but we still get some information: Processor – ARM @ 1GHz System Memory – 512MB RAM Wi-Fi – 802.11 b/g/n Video Output – HDMI 1.4 with CEC and MHL – Up to 1080p resolution Audio – 2 channel stereo with variable bit rate, work in progress for surround sound 5.1 support USB – 1x micro USB for power, 1x USB host port for accessories Power Consumption – About 500ma @ 5V via MHL […]

December 4, 2013May 25, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 24 Comments

How-to Install and “Hack” Linux on T428 or MK802 IV mini PCs

PicUntu 4.5 installer is probably the easiest method to install Ubuntu on a Rockchip RK3188 based mini PC, but if you want a little more flexibility I’ll provide another method to install Linux on T428, MK802 IV or compatible devices, as well as links to go further: dual boot Android / Linux, create your own official distro, status of Mali-400 GPU support in RK3188… The method below is not new, as it was posted by Linuxium (Ian Morrison) in Freaktab in September, but this is the first time I’ve taken the time and managed to run Linux on Rockchip RK3188, and I’ll provide some more detailed steps. Prerequisites Even though in some cases it’s possible to install Rockchip firmware from Linux, AFAIK the tools available in Linux lack supports for the parameter and loader files, so ironically, you’ll need a Windows XP/7/8 machine to install Linux in your mini PC. […]