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April 8, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Kodi 21.0 Omega released with FFmpeg 6, LG webOS support, and more

Kodi 21.0 “Omega” has just been released with the latest version of the open-source media center adding 3,750 commits since the release of Kodi 20.0 “Nexus” on January 15th, 2023 that notably added AV1 hardware decoding in Android and x86. The new Kodi 21.0 version updates FFmpeg to version 6, adds native support for LG webOS televisions after some reverse-engineering, and implements new features such as Dolby Vision on-the-fly profile conversion in Android, native windowing in macOS that does not rely on the SDL library, and an in-game player viewer to view which game port each player’s controller is currently connected to. Most of the changes were not user-facing and instead, were under-the-hood improvements to the stability, performance, and security of Kodi. You’ll find more changes in the Kodi 21.0 Alpha/Beta/RC pre-release announcements and the complete list of changes on GitHub. That also means Kodi v22 “P*” development has started. […]

April 2, 2024April 2, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

DIY ESP32 drone costs about $12 to make

The team at Circuit Digest has designed a low-cost DIY drone controlled by an ESP32 module, based on a custom PCB and off-the-shelf parts that costs around 1000 Rupees to make, or $12 at today’s exchange rate. The DIY ESP32 drone was designed as a low-cost alternative to more expensive DIY drones that typically cost close to $70. The result is a WiFi drone that fits in the palm and controlled over WiFi using a smartphone. Interestingly it does not include any 3D printed parts as the PCB forms the chassis of the device. DIY ESP32 drone key features and components Wireless module – ESP32-WROOM-32 for WiFi control using a smartphone. Storage – MicroSD card slot Sensors – MPU6050 IMU for stability control. Propulsion 4x 720 coreless motors 2x 55mm propeller type A(CW) 2x 55mm propeller type B(CCW) USB – 1x USB-C port for charging and programming (via CP2102N) Power […]

November 4, 2023November 4, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Makeblock mBot Neo robot review with Smart World Add-on Pack

MakeBlock mBot Neo, also known as mBot2, is an educational robot that builds upon the previous generation mBot1 robot, and the company has sent us a review sample, following our earlier review of the Ultimate 2.0 10-in-1 educational robot kit, along with the Smart World Add-on Pack. The mBot Neo features a new ESP32-based CyberPi control board with WiFi connectivity for IoT and AI support. The robot is also equipped with a 2nd generation Ultrasonic sensor with improved object detection accuracy and status indicator, a built-in 4-ch RGB line sensor that can detect colors, as well as a new drive motor that comes with an encoder for more precise motion control. The mBot Neo robot kit is expandable with metal parts from other Makeblock models, mBuild modules and various electronic modules can be added making it also possible to build custom robots with third-party structural parts. The mBot Neo robot […]

June 15, 2023June 18, 2023 by Sponsored Post - Comments Off

56% off UPDF – An Adobe Acrobat Alternative for PC, Mac, iOS and Android (Sponsored)

UPDF is an all-in-one PDF editor that can read, annotate, edit and sync, convert, encrypt, sign, and organize PDFs. It’s a cross-platform software that works on Mac OS, Windows, Android, and iOS with one license working on all operating systems. The developers also plan to release AI features next month to automatically translate, summarize, write, rewrite, explain, and proofread PDFs quickly using the latest artificial intelligence development, but users can already benefit from a 56% discount for UDPF Pro as part of the Father’s Day promotion for which we’ll provide more detail at the end of this post. Key features of UPDF PDF Editor View and Read PDF – UPDF supports basic features of PDF readers such as opening and reading PDFs, printing PDF, searching for a text query, or even displaying a PDF as a slideshow. Edit and Sync PDF – As an advanced PDF editor, the program can […]

March 10, 2023March 11, 2023 by Paisit Wongsongsarn - 4 Comments

Review of SONOFF ZBCurtain Zigbee Smart Curtain Motor

Recently, Sonoff has released a new Zigbee product – called ZBCurtain – that turns your ordinary curtains into smart curtains. With this product, you can experience new benefits when using your curtains, such as automatic opening/closing, remote control through your mobile device, or setting up advanced automation to control your curtains based on factors such as temperature, humidity, or even using input from the other sensors. These smart capabilities provide benefits for your home or workplace, such as increased safety, energy savings, and convenience. The Sonoff Zigbee Curtain Motor (or ZBCurtain for shorts) can be integrated with your existing ordinary curtains, transforming them into smart curtains that can be controlled remotely via your smartphone, your voice commands, or even from a traditional remote controller. ZBCurtain Unboxing Within the package, we can find a wireless remote control, main motor units with a 3.5-meter long cable, and mounting brackets to attach the […]

October 21, 2022October 24, 2022 by Sponsored Post - Comments Off

MobileTrans – A secure phone-to-phone transfer solution (Sponsored)

If you have just purchased a new phone and feel daunted by the task of transferring data from your old phone, Wondershare MobileTrans secure phone-to-phone transfer solution could be a lifesaver. Trusted by more than 500,000 users worldwide, the MobileTrans program can help you transfer WhatsApp data, photos, apps, messages, videos, and more between your new and old phone, no matter if you’ve switched from Android to iPhone or vice versa, or kept faithful to the same operating system. WhatsApp Data Transfer The software allows users to migrate WhatsApp data easily from iPhone to Android and vice versa including messages, stickers, media such as photos, videos, and audio messages, as well as documentation, locations, emojis, and contacts. It’s also possible to restore WhatsApp backups from Google Drive to an iPhone. MobileTrans also works with Whatsapp Business Transfer and GBWhatsApp, as well as other messaging apps such as LINE. Kik and […]

March 10, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Picovoice on-device speech-to-text engines slash the requirements and cost of transcription

Picovoice Leopard and Cheetah offline, on-device speech-to-text engines are said to achieve cloud-level accuracy, rely on tiny Speech-to-Text models, and slash the cost of automatic transcription by up to 10 times. Leopard is an on-device speech-to-text engine, while Cheetah is an on-device streaming speech-to-text engine, and both are cross-platform with support for Linux x86_64, macOS (x86_64, arm64), Windows x86_64, Android, iOS, Raspberry Pi 3/4, and NVIDIA Jetson Nano. Looking at the cost is always tricky since companies have different pricing structures, and the table above basically shows the best scenario, where Picovoice is 6 to 20 times more cost-effective than solutions from Microsoft Azure or Google STT. Picovoice Leopard/Cheetah is free for the first 100 hours, and customers can pay a monthly $999 fee for up to 10,000 hours hence the $0.1 per hour cost with PicoVoice. If you were to use only 1000 hours out of your plan that […]

January 14, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

Khadas Tea – A MagSafe Hi-Fi headphone amplifier to play lossless audio on smartphones (Crowdfunding)

From this side of the Internet, Khadas is better known for their single board computer, but the company has also made Hi-Fi audio products starting with the Khadas Tone in 2018 as an add-on board for Khadas VIM/VIM2 SBC, followed by Khadas Tone 2 Pro mini desktop Hi-Fi system in 2020. The latest audio product from Khadas is a smartphone accessory with Khadas Tea being a thin MagSafe-compatible magnetic Hi-Fi headphone amplifier based on aptX HD and LDAC capable Qualcomm QCC5125 Bluetooth SoC and ESS ES9281AC Pro DAC that sticks to the back of your phone. Khadas Tea specifications: Bluetooth Audio SoC – Qualcomm QCC5125 Bluetooth 5.0 audio chipset USB DAC – ESS ES9281AC Pro Amplifier – RT6863D (Buffer Stage) Audio I/O 3.5mm headphone jack Built-in stereo microphone for making and receiving calls over Bluetooth Sampling Rate USB: up to 32bit 384KHz @ PCM, or DSD 256 (Native) Bluetooth: up […]