We’ve seen a fair amount of Jasper Lake mini PCs, and even reviewed one with Beelink U59. MOREFINE M6 stands out due to its size and thickness, being about the size of two smartphones stacked together. The features are also promising with an Intel Celeron N5105 quad-core processor coupled with up to 16 GB RAM, up to 1TB M.2 NVMe SSD, as well as dual 4K video output through HDMI and USB-C ports, a 2.5GbE ports WiFi 6 & Bluetooth 5.2 connectivity, and three USB 3.1 ports. MOREFINE M6 specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N5105 quad-core Jasper Lake processor @ 2.0GHz / 2.9GHz (Turbo) with Intel UHD graphics 605; 10W TDP System Memory – 8GB or 16GB LPDDR4 Storage – 512GB or 1TB M.2 NVMe 2280 SSD, or 256GB M.2 SATA SSD Video Output 1x HDMI 2.0 port up to 4Kp60 1x DisplayPort Alt Mode via USB-C port up to […]
MECOOL HomePlus – A 2-in-1 smart speaker and 4K TV box with DVB Tuner
We’ve reviewed MECOOL devices in the past, such as their hybrid set-top boxes with DVB-T2 and/or DVB-S2 tuners. But MECOOL HomePlus (aka MECOOL KA1) packs even more features as it serves as both a 4K Android set-top box with a DVB tuner and a smart speaker compatible with Google Assitant. Based on Amlogic S905X4 Arm Cortex-A55 processor, and equipped with 4GB RAM and 32GB storage, MECOOL HomePlus runs a Google-certified Android TV 11 OS with far-field voice and hands-free TV control. MECOOL HomePlus (KA1) specifications: SoC – Amlogic S905X4 quad-core Arm Cortex-A55 processor with Arm G31 MP2 GPU RAM – 4GB LPDDR4 Storage – 32GB eMMC flash Video Output – HDMI 2.1 port with HDCP 2.2 Video Codes – 4K AV1, VP9, H.265, H.264 Audio Built-in two linear microphone array 2x 5W RMS speakers Tuner – RF antenna input for DVB T/T2/C tuner (optional) Connectivity 10/100M Ethernet RJ45 port Dual-band […]
LIVA Q3 Plus pocket-sized AMD Ryzen Embedded mini PC sells for $242 and up
ECS LIVA Q3 Plus is another one of those pocket-sized mini PC’s we’ve seen in the past like the ECS LIVA Q2, Chuwi Larkbox, GMK NucBox, and others. Most of those mini PCs are based on Intel Apollo Lake or Gemini Lake mini PC, but LIVA Q3 Plus comes with a twist as it is powered by a 15W AMD Ryzen Embedded V1605B or R1505G processor making it, according to the Taiwanese company, the world’s smallest 15W AMD mini PC. ECS LIVA Q3 Plus specifications: SoC (one or the other) AMD Ryzen Embedded V1605B quad-core processor @ 2.0GHz up to 3.6GHz; TDP: 15W AMD Ryzen Embedded R1505G dual-core processor @ 2.4GHz up to 3.3GHz; TDP: 15W System Memory – 4GB or 8GB DDR4 2400 MT/s Storage – 64GB or 128GB eMMC flash, MicroSD card slot Video Output 1x HDMI 2.0 port up to 4Kp60Hz with CEC function 1x mini DisplayPort […]
Rockchip RK3588S cost-optimized Cortex-A76/A55 processor adds CAN bus, drops PCIe 3.0, other peripherals
Rockchip RK3588S is a cost-optimized version of the RK3588 octa-core Cortex-A76/A55 processor with fewer peripherals, and I’ve been told it’s been designed for tablets, but as we’ll see below, the processor will probably find its way into many other applications. We first saw RK3588S during the Rockchip Developer Event last December, but at the time we did not have any information, except it would be a lower-cost version. I’ve now received an RK3588S datasheet, so let’s have a look at the block diagram and specifications to find out what’s different. Rockchip RK3588S specifications with highlights in bold showing the differences against RK3588: CPU – 4x Cortex-A76 and 4x Cortex-A55 cores in dynamIQ configuration GPU Arm Mali-G610 MP4 “Odin” GPU with support for OpenGLES 1.1, 2.0, and 3.2, OpenCL up to 2.2 and Vulkan1.2 2D graphics engine up to 8192×8192 source, 4096×4096 destination AI Accelerator – 6 TOPS NPU 3.0 (Neural […]
Raspberry Pi CM4 carrier board comes with 5x SATA, 4x GbE, 2x HDMI, RS-485 interfaces
We just wrote that Wiretrustee carrier board for Raspberry Pi CM4 with four SATA interfaces was canceled and made open-source hardware a few days ago, but the Axzez Interceptor carrier board is offering a solution that is somewhat similar with 5x SATA ports and designed for NAS, NVR, IoT, and Managed Switch applications. The Interceptor Carrier Board for Raspberry Pi CM4 notably includes two 4Kp60 capable HDMI ports, 5x SATA ports, 4x RJ45 Gigabit Ethernet ports, 4x USB 2.0 interfaces, RS-485, and is powered via an ATX-24 connector, with a Mini-ITX adapter in the works. Axzez Interceptor specifications: Compatible SoM – Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 Storage Support for 5x SATA HDD/SSD via JMicron JMB585 PCIe to SATA controller Supports software RAID 0, 1, 5, 6 or 10 HDD sleep/standby Video Output – 2x full-size HDMI 2.0 connectors (4Kp60) Networking – 4x Gigabit Ethernet ports via Realtek RTL8367RB switch; programable […]
Palm-sized Celeron N5105 mini PC ships with 8GB DDR4, two HDMI ports
In the last couple of years, we’ve seen several palm-sized 2.4-inch mini PCs based on Gemini Lake processors with the likes of CHUWI LarkBox, GMK NucBox, or LIVA Q2. ZX01 mini PC is a slightly larger 2.8-inch mini PC based on a more recent and powerful Celeron N5105 Jasper Lake processor with 8GB of DDD4 RAM, and a 128GB to 1TB M.2 SSD. The tiny computer also offers two 4K capable HDMI outputs, a Gigabit Ethernet port, three USB 3.0 ports, and an audio jack. ZX01 mini PC specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron N5105 quad-core Jasper Lake processor @ 2.0GHz / 2.9GHz (Turbo) with Intel UHD graphics 605; 10W TDP System Memory – 8GB LPDDR4x or DDR4 (TBC) Storage 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB M.2 2242 SSD MicroSD card slot Video Output – 2x HDMI ports Audio – 3.5 audio jack, digital audio via HDMI Networking Gigabit Ethernet via Intel […]
Beelink Expand F USB-C dock takes M.2 SSD and 2.5-inch SATA drive
Beelink has previously introduced USB docks with the Expand X smartphone dock and Expand M with an SSD. The company’s latest Beelink Expand F USB-C dock looks really like a mini PC from the outside with the usual USB, HDMI, Ethernet, and audio ports, and it can also be fitted with an M.2 2280 SATA SSD and/or a 2.5-inch SATA drive. It can be useful to add PC-like connectivity to a smartphone or add additional storage to a laptop without cluttering your desk with multiple USB drives, and/or potentially saving some USB ports on the host machine. Beelink Expand F specifications: Storage Options No storage, i.e. bring your own SATA drive(s) via M.2 socket up to 440 MB/s and/or 2.5-inch SATA bay 512GB SATA III M.2 SSD 512GB SATA III M.2 SSD plus 1TB SATA HDD Video Output – 2x HDMI ports up to 4K resolution Audio – 3.5mm audio […]
UGOOS UT8 PRO – An RK3568 TV box with 8GB RAM, 64GB storage
UGOOS UT8 PRO is the first TV box I’ve seen with a Rockchip RK3568 processor, if we exclude Firefly Station P2 that’s more like an Arm Linux mini PC. The device runs Android 11 and is equipped with 8GB RAM, 64GB eMMC flash, and offers WiFi 6 connectivity. There’s also the “UGOOS UT8” with basically the same features except it ships with 4GB RAM and 32GB flash, and a dual-band WiFi 5 and Bluetooth module. We previously had seen TV boxes and mini PCs with the similar Rockchip RK3566 SoC in T95 Plus, H96 Max, and Zidoo M6, and the only reason for going with RK3568 in UGOOS UT8 (PRO) should be the extra USB 3.0 host/OTG interface, adding to the USB 3.0 host interface found in both RK3566 and RK3568 processors. UGOOS UT8 (PRO) specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3568 with a quad-core Cortex-A55 processor @ up to 1.8/2.0GHz, Arm […]