Ninja Blocks is an company providing open source hardware solutions for home automation. Their first product was called Ninja Blocks Kit which includes a Ninja Block (Beaglebone + Arduino based gateway, but they now also support the Raspberry Pi), sensors, sockets, cables, and a power supply, and works with Ninja Platform, an open source software framework. The goal was to simplify the process of developing automation applications by taking care of all low levels tasks such as electronics, embedded programming, network protocols.., and letting “end users” / developers focus on their application. The company is now working on a new version called the Ninja Sphere, including a “Spheramid” gateway, location waypoints (Bluetooth low energy tags), and smart power sockets. Here are the key features of the gateway: Processor – ARM Cortex A8 (probably Texas Instruments Sitara) Color LED Matrix Connectivity – Bluetooth, Bluetooth LE, Zigbee, and Wi-Fi USB Port – […]
CS918S Android STB Features AllWinner A31s Processor, a Retractable Webcam, Built-in 3G
K-R42-1, now better known as CS918, has been a fairly popular Android set-top box based on RK3188 due to its low price. There’s no a new model called CS918S with a similar casing, but replacing Rockchip RK3188, by AllWinner A31s, adding more flash (16GB), a retractable webcam, and an internal bay with an optional 3G/4G module. Here are the specs of this device: SoC – AllWinner A31s quad cortex cortex A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz + PowerVR SGX544MP2 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 16GB NAND flash + microSD card slot Video Output – HDMI and CVBS (AV) Audio Output – HDMI, optical SPDIF, and AV Video Playback / Encoding 2160p (UHD) H.264 decoding 1080p video decoding for Mpeg1/2, Mpeg4 SP/ASP GMC, H.263, H.264, etc. 1080p@30fps or 720p@60fps encoding 3840×1080@30fps 3D decoding, BD/SBS/TAB/FP supported 3840×1080@30fps 3D encoding Connectivity – Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 (Realtek 8723), 10/100M Ethernet, […]
Rikomagic MK902 Quad Core Android TV Box Features a 5MP Camera
Rikomagic is mostly known for its Android HDMI TV dongles such as the MK802 series, but a new Android media player has recently been listed on its website. MK902 features a quad core Cortex A9 RK3188 processor, 2GB RAM, 8 to 16 GB flash depending on configuration, as well as a 5MP camera for video conferencing. MK902 specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3188 Quad Core cortex A9 SoC @ 1.6 GHz with Mali 400-MP4 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 RAM Storage – 8GB to 16GB NAND flash, and a micro SD card slot (Up to 32GB) Connectivity – WiFi 802.11 b/g/n with external antenna, Bluetooth 4.0, and 10/100M Ethernet Video Output – HDMI and AV output (composite). Audio Output – HDMI, AV output and optical SPDIF USB – 4x USB 2.0 host ports Camera – 5MP webcam with microphone Power supply – 5V / 2.5A The device will come with […]
Linaro 13.10 Release with Linux Kernel 3.12 and Android 4.3
Linaro has just posted a blog entry to announced Linaro 13.10 was available for download. This is normally supposed to occur on the last Thursday of the month, but it’s possible the release occurred on scheduled, and the blog post was late, or it may have been delayed because of Linaro Connect US 2013. You can access a summary of the event together with slides and videos of the sessions and keynotes when available. This release includes the Linux Kernel 3.12-rc5 (staging), Kernel 3.10.14 (LSK), Android 4.3.1, and Ubuntu Linaro 13.10 (still based on Raring). Android has been ported and updated to 4.3.1 from AOSP, and the OS can now boot using UEFI. More work has been done on ARM 64-bit (aka ARMv8 or Aarch64) for Android, the Linux kernel, and tools such as uprobes, o-profile, and ftrace. Some new hardware platforms I may have missed before have popped up […]
Hardkernel ODROID-XU2 Development Board with Exynos 5420 Coming Up in Q1 2014
Insignal recently announced that Arndale Octa with an Exynos 5420 was available for pre-order with shipping expected in December 2013, making it the first company providing a low cost big.LITTLE development board. But there will be some competition as Hardkernel will launch ODROID-XU2 also based on Samsung Exynos 5420 octa-core processor according to a tweet by SamsungExynos official twitter account. The board is also briefly mentioned in an article in Samsung website as it was showcased at ARM Techcon 2013. That’s actually all the information I have. There’s a brochure on ARMFlix’s video, but it’s unreadable. However, we can derive (guess) some of the specifications based on the picture above and ODROID-XU specs: SoC – Samsung Exynos 5420 octa core SoC with 4x Cortex A15 cores up to 1.8 GHz, 4x Cortex A7 cores up to 1.3 GHz in big.LITTLE configuration, and ARM Mali T-628 MP6 GPU System Memory – […]
Mediatek News – $100 Quad-core MT6582 Smartphone, and Eight-core MT6592 Smartphones Available For Pre-order
Daxian XY100S was the first decent quad core smartphone I’d seen selling for less than $100, but for some reasons the price has since then been increased and now sells for at least $125 from Chinese online sellers with decent feedback. The other problem with this phone was the use of TD-SCDMA which meant 3G was not usable in places like Europe. There’s now another quad core phone based on Mediatek MT6582 called W450 that sells for $99.99 on GeekBuying (promotion that will last for about 24 hours more), but you can also find it on Aliexpress for $110 up including shipping. The good news is that it’s using WCDMA 850/2100MHz so 3G will be accessible in most countries. W450 specifications: SoC – Mediatek MT6582 Quad Core Cortex A7 up to 1.3GHz with ARM Mali-400MP2 GPU System Memory – 1GB RAM Storage – 4GB NAND Flash + micro SD card […]
MSC Q7-MB-EP4 Is a QSeven Starter Kit Powered by Freescale i.MX6
MSC Embedded, a company specialized in the design and manufacturing of embedded boards, has recently announced MSC Q7-MB-EP4, a complete Starterkit for the company’s Qseven modules based on Freescale i.MX6 Solo, Dual or Quad processors. The starter kit comes with a suitcase comprise of a heatspreader with heatsink, a 12V power supply, a cable kit (SATA data and power cable), a DVD, a getting started guide, and more importantly a 3.5″ Qseven carrier board (Q7-MB-EP4) with socket for Qseven modules Rev. 1.20 with the following specifications: CPU Module Interface – Socket for Qseven Rev. 1.20 compatible modules based on the Freescale i.MX6 Storage – 1x SATA connector + mSATA Socket with support for mSATA and mSATAmini cards, MMC/SD Card, and serial EEPROM for EPI/DP extensions Standard Interfaces: 7x USB 2.0: 4x USB (Series-A Jack), 1x USB internal pin header, USB on mini USB connector, USB at Mini PCI Express socket […]
MYIR MYD-SAMA5D3X Development Boards Feature Atmel ARM Cortex-A5 SAMA5D3 Processors
MYIR Tech, a company based in Shenzhen, and ARM Connected Community Member, has recently made available MYD-SAMA5D3X boards powered by Atmel ATSAMA5D3 ARM Cortex-A5 embedded MPU. Like many development boards, thise are composed of a baseboard coupled by a 200-pin SO-DIMM computer-on-module (CoM) featuring one of the four Atmel SAMA5D3 processor: SAMA5D31, SAMA5D33, SAMA5D34 and SAMA5D35. The boards all feature 512MB DDR2 SDRAM, 256MB Nand Flash, 16MB Nor Flash and 4MB Data Flash on board. Typical applications developed with these boards include control panel/HMI, smart grid, medical and handheld terminals, outdoor GPS, DECT (digital enhanced cordless telecommunications) phones, and more. MYD-SAMA5D3X boards specifications: Processor – Atmel SAMA5D31, SAMA5D32, SAMA5D34 or SAMA5D35 Cortex A5 up to 536MHz with 128KB of SRAM and 160KB of ROM System Memory – 512MB DDR2 SDRAM Storage – 256MB NAND Flash, 4MB Data Flash, 16MB Nor Flash, one MMC/SD card slot, and one microSD card slot Peripheral […]