Yesterday, Samsung announced the HomeSync, a media server featuring a dual core processor at 1.7 GHz, 1GB RAM, 8GB eMMC, and a 1TB hard drive. HomeSync is said to be running a modified version of Android Jelly Bean. Here are HomeSync specifications: Processor – Dual Core @ 1.7GHz (I’d guess it should be the Exynos 5250, but why all the mystery?) System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB eMMC + 1TB HDD Connectivity LAN – Gigabit Ethernet WiFi – 802.11 b/g/n 2.4GHz & a/n 5GHz HT40 2×2 MIMO Channel Bonding Bluetooth – V4.0 USB – 2x USB 3.0 Host, 1x Micro USB (11pin) Video Output – HDMI out Audio – Optical Audio (Audio Amp. Connection) Video Codec – H.264, H.263, MPEG4, VC-1, Sorenson Spark, WMV7/8, MP43, VP8, DivX Audio Codec – MP3, AAC LC/AAC+/eAAC+, WMA 9std/10pro/Lossless, FLAC, Vorbis, AMR-NB/WB, Wav, Mid, AC-3 DRM – HDCP 1.3/2.1, Playready, Widevide, Trustzone […]
CoolShip is a $89 Rockchip RK3066 Android Keyboard Desktop Computer
If you’re nostalgic and miss your Commodore C64, FocusWill Coolship could be right for you. It’s a keyboard desktop computer running Android 4.0 ICS (or a customized of Android version called CoolShip OS) powered by Rockchip RK3066 SoC with 1GB RAM, 4 to 8 NAND Flash, VGA and HDMI outputs and more. Here are the specifications of this device: SoC – Rockchip RK3066 Dual Cortex A9 @ 1.5Ghz + Mali-400MP4 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 RAM Storage – 4 to 8 GB NAND Flash + SD Card slot Connectivity: 10/100Mbps Ethernet (via USB to Ethernet chip) 802.11b/g/n Keyboard – 104 Standard QWERTY keyboard with number keys + Touchpad Video Outputs – VGA + HDMI with dual display support. Video Codecs – MPEG-1/2/4, H.264, H.263, RMVB, WMV, VC-1, AVS, MVC, RV8/RV9/RV10, VP6/VP8 Audio I/O – Stereo Speakers (2×1Ω;0.7W), 1x MIC and 1x Earphone jack USB – 2x USB2.0 Power Supply […]
Canonical Unveils Ubuntu on Tablets
Yesterday, Ubuntu.com displayed a time counter for an announcement reading “Tic Toc Tablet Time” that ended being about Ubuntu on Tablets, and not an HTC Tablet running Ubuntu as some blogs speculated, as both companies had a timer counter set to expire at the same time for separate, and unrelated, announcements. The interface looks very much like Ubuntu for Phones with a similar “Welcome Screen”, except multiple users are supported, no icons (except for apps), and you can swipe around the 4 edges to access the dash, opened applications, notifications, and more. Canonical highlights 5 key features for Ubuntu on Tablets: Real multitasking – Run mobile and tablet apps at the same time on the same screen Secure multi-user Voice controlled HUD productivity Edge magic for cleaner apps – As I said previously no buttons, you control eveything from the edges. Content focus – Messages and media are easily accessible […]
How to Open an Android mini PC / HDMI TV Dongle
Since I’ve been asked, I’ve done a short video showing how to open an Android mini PC, namely Droid Stick A2. As most casings are based on similar design the same method can be used for many other mini PCs that comes with a plastic casing. Some other mini PCs with a metallic casing, such as Hi802, need to be opened with a different, and IMHO easier, method as you just have to remove 2 screws. For Droid Stick A2, all you need is a flat head precision screwdriver. First look for small spaces between the two parts of the casing, insert the screwdriver where the largest space is, and gently lift it up. Watch the video below for a demo. Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews […]
PQ Labs iStick A200 Android mini PC Connects to G4 Series Multi-Touch Screens
PQ Labs iStick A200 is a Rockchip RK3066 Android 4.1.1 mini PC with 2 GB RAM, 4 GB Flash, an HDMI (female) output, a USB 2.0 Host port, and a miniUSB port for power. Pretty boring stuff if you ask me… And I would not be writing about it, if the company hadn’t interfaced their infrared touch frames to this mini PC to allow 10-point multi-touch on a large screen or projector output, making it a pretty good solution for conferences and interactive digital signage. Before going further, let’s have a look at the details of specifications for the iStick A200: SoC – ARM Cortex A9 Dual Core @ 1.6Ghz with HyperSpeed (Equivalent to 2.0Ghz Dual Core) and Quad Core Mali400 GPU (cnxsoft: It has to be Rockchip RK3066) System Memory – 2 GB DRAM chipset Storage – 4 GB NAND flash + microSD socket (Up to 32 GB) Video […]
ARM big.LITTLE Processing Demo (HMP) on ARM TC2 Test Chip
Samsung launched Exynos 5 Octa at CES 2013. This processor comes with 8 cores: 4 Cortex A15 cores and 4 Cortex A7 cores, and it’s the first processor that’s been announced to work in big.LITTLE configuration, where the big cores (A15) handle demanding tasks, and the LITTLE cores (A7) handle simpler tasks such as audio playback or background tasks. This is all done to optimize power consumption. There are 2 big.LITTLE software implementations: In-kernel switcher (IKS) and heterogeneous multi-processing (HMP). The first one is easier to implements but can only use 4 cores (in Exynos 5 Octa) at a time, and the second is more complex, but can handle all 8 cores, and assign individual tasks to a particular core. For more technical details about big.LITTLE implementations, you can read my previous post. ARM and Samsung recently uploaded a video providing an overview of big.LITTLE (but instead of IKS and […]
Open ARM GPU Drivers FOSDEM 2013 Video and Call to ARM Management
As I previously wrote, FOSDEM organizers are slowly uploading FOSDEM 2013 videos. One of the most interesting talk “Open ARM GPU Drivers” is now available. I’ve also uploaded it to YouTube (embedded below) to give it more exposure. Luc Verhaegen has also written a recent blog post entitled “Hey ARM!” where he announces the release of the modified source for Quake 3 Arena demo, and asks ARM to join them in making an open source driver. Open ARM GPU Drivers @ FOSDEM2013 This session covers the following key points: Problem – Binary drivers are mainly designed to run in Android, and it’s very difficult to have proper GPU drivers for Linux, and companies are not interested to release open source drivers or even just documentation, as they are not convinced it will benefit them in any way. Legal – This is actually the main issue, as open sourcing existing driver […]
Lernstift – Linux Based Learning Digital Pen
Lernstift UG, a German startup, is working on a digital pen, called Lernstift as well, that can help children learning how to write by vibrating in case of errors. The Lernstift can be used in 2 modes: Calligraphy Mode – Pointing out flaws of form and legibility. Orthography Mode – Detecting orthographic (1 vibration) and grammatical (2 vibration) mistakes. Since it features a ballpoint, it can be used as a real pen, you know to write on paper…, but you can also write in the air, so I suppose they’ll also make a version without ballpoint, so that kids can enjoy one of their favorite pastimes: writing on the walls! The pen features a CPU module (2) that’s used to handle handwriting recognition, gather data from the motion (1) and pressure (3) sensors, and manage the Wi-Fi module (4). A battery, a power switch, and a pen refill complete Lernstift […]