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October 12, 2021October 12, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 17 Comments

$55 Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max supports 4K AV1 videos, Wi-Fi 6

Amazon will release new Fire TV Sticks from time to time, and most are only mildly interesting, but the Amazon Fire TV Stick TV 4K Max brings two new interesting features with 4K AV1 video playback, as well as Wi-Fi 6 connectivity which should prevent buffering for higher bitrate 4K videos. The new device builds upon the MediaTek MT8695 based Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K released in 2018, with a more powerful MediaTek MT8696 processor clocked at 1.8 GHz, more memory (2GB vs 1.5 GB), and the same 8GB of storage for the Android 9 based Amazon Fire 7 OS. Amazon claims the new stick is 40% faster, despite a frequency bump from 1.7 GHz to 1.8 GHz only, and MT8696 relies on Cortex-A73 cores Cortex-A55 cores (See comments), instead of the Cortex-A53 cores found in MediaTek MT8695, so the performance improvement probably refers to the faster GPU. Amazon Fire […]

March 8, 2021March 8, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Edge AI video processing system combines SocioNext SC2000 4K camera SoC with Hailo-8 AI accelerator

We’ve previously written about Hailo-8 AI accelerator delivering up to 26 TOPS at low power (3 TOPS per watt), and found in AI edge systems such as Foxconn BOXiedge server powered by a Socionext SynQuacer SC2A11 24x Cortex-A53 cores SoC and capable of analyzing up to 20 streaming camera feeds in real-time for video analytics. Leopard Imaging has now created a much more compact Edge AI processing solution with EdgeTuring based on Hailo-8 M.2 card and Socionext SC2000 4K camera SoC, and designed for low-power video analytics. EdgeTuring features and specifications: Camera SoC / Image Processor – Socionext SC2000 quad-core Cortex-A7 processor @ 650MHz with 4Kp30 H.265/H.264 encoder, up to 1.2 Gigapixel per second processing, LPDDR-3 memory (PoP) AI Module – Hailo-8 M.2 Module for up to 26 TOPS Camera Dual camera but only one sensor works for AI Sensors – 2x Sony IMX477 CMOS Image Sensor, diagonal 7.857 mm […]

February 21, 2021February 21, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO-DevKit targets Amazon Alexa Connect Kit (ACK) development

Last summer, Espressif and Amazon jointly announced the ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO Alexa Connect Kit module providing out-of-box connectivity to ACK (Alexa Connect Kit) cloud services, support for features such as Alexa control, “Frustration-Free Setup” and Amazon Dash replenishment for connected devices. At the time, the module was still at the developer preview stage, and you had to create your own carrier board for the module. But now development has been easier with the companies launching ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO-DevKit compatible with Arduino Zero development board. ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO-DevKit specifications: Wireless module – Espressif Systems ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO with ESP32-PICO-V3 System-in-Package (SiP) based on ESP32-V3 dual-core Xtensa LX6 WiFI and Bluetooth SoC, a 4 MB SPI flash, a crystal oscillator, filter capacitors, and an RF matching network. Expansion – Arduino Zero compatible pass-through headers Debugging – 1x micro-USB port Misc – Power & Status LEDs, Reset button, jumpers to route specific signals to the headers, DSN (Device Serial Number – […]

December 29, 2020December 29, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

AWS IoT EduKit leverages M5Stack Core2 ESP32 hardware

M5Stack Core2 is a neatly packed ESP32 IoT development kit with a 2-inch touchscreen display, motion sensor, a microphone., and a built-in battery that was launched last September. The hardware has been selected by Amazon Web Services and gone through some small modifications including the addition of a secure element, and a yellow paint job giving birth the the “AWS IoT EduKit” hardware and software solution designed to “learn how to build IoT applications using AWS services through a prescriptive learning program”. M5Stack Core2 for AWS IoT EduKit specifications are pretty similar, but with a few tweaks here and there: SoC – Espressif ESP32-D0WDQ6-V3 dual-core Xtensa LX6 processor clocked at up to 240MHz with 520KB SRAM, Wi-Fi, and dual-mode Bluetooth connectivity External Memory – 8MB PSRAM Storage – 16MB flash storage, MicroSD card slot up to 16GB Display – 2-inch IPS LCD screen with 320×240 resolution (ILI9342C driver), and touchscreen […]

December 20, 2020 by Abhishek Jadhav - No Comments

AWS IoT Core for LoRaWAN launched with asset tracking and smart building kits

With increasing connectivity issues on low-power devices, which transmit data over long-range, work on batteries that can last several years without replacement, LoRaWAN is one of the major solutions to address these issues as it has support in Zephyr OS as well. A couple of days back, Amazon Web Services announced AWS IoT support for LoRaWAN, which means that it will enable you to connect and manage low-power wireless devices that use LoRaWAN connectivity with the AWS Cloud. Now the enterprises can set-up a private LoRaWAN network by connecting the devices to the AWS Cloud. AWS Cloud basically accelerates IoT application development by acting on the data generated by connecting LoRaWAN devices using AWS services. “The rapid acceleration of growth in both private and public LoRaWAN networks has been key in the expansion of LoRaWAN deployments worldwide. AWS’ launch of AWS IoT Core for LoRaWAN offers an innovative solution to […]

September 25, 2020September 25, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Amazon Fire TV Stick 3rd Gen is Powered by MediaTek MT8695D SoC

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K powered by a MediaTek MT8695 quad-core SoC for launched for $50 about two years ago. The company has now introduced two cheaper variants with Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite and Fire TV Stick powered by a similar MediaTek MT8695D quad-core processor designed for 1080p (Full HD) HDR video playback. Both devices are basically the same for Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite goes for $29.99, and Amazon Fire TV Stick for $39.99 as the Lite version includes a cheaper Alexa Voice Remote Lite that lacks hardware buttons for controlling the volume and power on your TV and does not support Dolby Atmos (except via HDMI pass-through). New Amazon Fire TV Stick (Lite) specifications: SoC – MediaTek MT8695D quad-core Cortex-A53 processor @ 1.7 GHz with Imagination PowerVR GE8300 GPU supporting OpenGL ES 3.2 System Memory – 1GB DDR4 Storage – 8GB eMMC flash Video Output – HDMI […]

September 24, 2020 by Ayo Ayibiowu - 2 Comments

Amazon Sidewalk – A Low Bandwidth Network For Connecting Smart Devices and IoT

In 2019, Amazon introduced the Sidewalk with privacy and security at the core. Amazon Sidewalk a low-bandwidth, long-distance wireless protocol that is expected to provide a new way for devices to stay connected especially when smart devices leave their WiFi or Bluetooth coverage range by leveraging the 900 MHz spectrum. Amazon Sidewalk will most likely be an LPWAN type network since it is promising neighborhood-like device connectivity with is crowdsourcing initiative. It uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) for short distances, the 900 MHz spectrum, and other frequencies for longer distance coverage. Sidewalk attempts to make sure your BLE devices can still connect to your home network even when you take a walk away from your home. According to Amazon, users can easily access the Sidewalk network using two types of devices: Sidewalk Bridges and Sidewalk-enabled devices. Amazon has now announced that compatible Echo devices can now act as bridges and also some […]

July 30, 2020February 21, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Espressif and Amazon Introduce ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO Alexa Connect Kit Module

Espressif Systems & Amazon have recently announced ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO Alexa Connect Kit (ACK) module providing out-of-box connectivity to ACK cloud services, support for features such as Alexa control, “Frustration-Free Setup” and Amazon Dash replenishment for connected devices. The tiny (23 x 16 x 2.3mm) module is based on the company’s ESP32-PICO-V3 System-in-Package (SiP) based on ESP32-V3 dual-core Xtensa LX6 WiFI and Bluetooth SoC, a 4 MB SPI flash, a crystal oscillator, filter capacitors, and an RF matching network. The module supports 2.4 GHz 802.11 b/g/n WiFi, Bluetooth, and Bluetooth Low Energy connectivity and comes with a PCB antenna and a u.FL connector to plug in an external antenna [Update: That should be an RF test connector instead, see comments]. ESP32-PICO-V3-ZERO module interfaces to a host MCU through a UART interface, and to speed-up time-to-market the module comes pre-certified for regulatory certifications such as FCC, CE, SRRC, IC, and RCM. The module […]