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November 27, 2025 by Debashis Das - No Comments

UltraBar X – A high-end modular desktop smart-hub with a 5:1 ultra-wide touch display, magnetic snap-on modules (Crowdfunding)

The UltraBar X is a modular desktop command center/smart-hub built around an ultra-wide “CoreBar” touch display with a system of magnetically attachable input modules. Designed as an intelligent hub for Windows, macOS, and Linux environments, it also works as a smart home controller. With a 45-degree ergonomic tilt, wireless PC wake, smart-home integration, and modular touch/mechanical inputs, it gives creators, gamers, and power users quick access to all key functions. The whole system is built around the CoreBar hub and modular add-ons like VivoCube, DotKey, SenseCube, and KnobKey, all of which use the QuantumLink magnetic protocol for instant attachment and auto-detection. The CoreBar hub features a 5:1 touch display, LineOS firmware, Bluetooth Mesh, USB/HID connectivity, and an AI-driven SceneShift engine that adapts UI layouts and macros to different workflows. The four optional modules add AMOLED touch controls, Cherry MX keys, rotary knobs, and multi-sensor environmental sensing (mmWave radar, light, temperature, humidity, […]

November 17, 2025November 17, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

HackStar – An RP2040 or ESP32-S3-based USB hacking cable/dongle (Crowdfunding)

HackStar is an ethical hacking tool based on Raspberry Pi RP2040 or ESP32-S3 in a USB cable or dongle form factor for education, pentesters, and makers. While the email I received claimed the HackStar was the “first-ever production-ready ethical hacking product on Kickstarter”, we’ve written about a range of hacking devices based on ESP8266, ESP32, and/or RP2040 microcontroller(s) such as the popular Flipper Zero, the BUG USB stick, nRFBOX V2 ESP32 wireless hacking tool, ESP32 Marauder Double Barrel, HackyPi USB adapter, and many others. What’s relatively new, or at least less common (see HackCable project), here is that the HackStar is also available as a USB Type-A to USB Type-C WiFi hacking cable… HackStar Cable hardware specifications: Wireless SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 dual-core LX7 processor @ 240 MHz with 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE/dual mode USB Type-A male connector USB Type-C male connector Length – TBD HackStar […]

November 13, 2025November 13, 2025 by Debashis Das - 3 Comments

The PV PI HAT adds 10A true MPPT solar charging to the Raspberry Pi (Crowdfunding)

PV Pi A Solar Charging Hat for Raspberry Pi

Developed by Luke Ditria and his team at AutoEcology, the PV PI is a plug-and-play MPPT solar charging HAT designed for Raspberry Pi and other SBCs like the Orange Pi, Banana Pi, and NVIDIA Jetson. Designed for outdoor and remote projects and built around TI BQ25756 charge controller and STM32F103 MCU, it supports LiFePO4 management, true MPPT charging, power monitoring, and automation over the RS-232 UART interface. It also produces 5V output via a high-current buck/boost converter, supports watchdog-based power cycling, RTC wake-up scheduling, and automatic restart at safe voltage levels. With XT30 connectors, stackable headers, and RTC backup, the PV PI HAT is ideal for solar-powered IoT like AI-based wildlife monitors, environmental monitoring, and remote data logging applications. PV PI HAT specifications Compatibility – Raspberry Pi, Orange Pi, Banana Pi, NVIDIA Jetson, etc… Main MCU – STmicro STM32F103 Arm Cortex-M3 microcontroller @ 72 MHz Charge controller – BQ25756 I2C […]

November 11, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Kode Dot – An easy-to-use, pocket-sized, battery-powered ESP32-S3 devkit (Crowdfunding)

Kode Dot is a pocket-sized ESP32-S3 maker device for prototyping with a built-in 2.13-inch AMOLED, a 500mAh battery, a 9-axis IMU, a microphone and a speaker, an RTC, a few buttons, a GPIO header, and a magnetic connector for expansion. Kode Dot is designed to simplify the prototyping process. Users can still write code using the Arduino IDE, PlatformIO, or ESP-IDF framework and upload it via the kit’s USB-C port, but thanks to kodeOS firmware, each program becomes a standalone app with its own name, icon, and interface, accessible from the graphical user interface. Kode Dot specifications: SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 dual-core microcontroller with 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5 LE, ESP-NOW peer-to-peer protocol System Memory – 8 MB octal PSRAM Storage 32 MB octal SPI flash microSD card slot Display – 2.13-inch Color AMOLED with 502 x 410 resolution Audio ICS-43434 MEMS microphone 1W MAX98357A speaker amp USB – […]

November 7, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Nexalta Guardian NXG0042AI – Qualcomm IPQ9574-based networking solution with 10GbE, WiFi 7, 5G, local AI (Crowdfunding)

Nexalta Guardian NXG0042AI is a large networking and IoT gateway “monster” powered by a Qualcomm IPQ9574 chipset offering 10GbE and 2.5GbE networking, WiFi 7 support with up to five concurrent WiFi radios, up to four/seven 5G modems, up to 52 (e)SIMs, and two on-board Compute Module slots for Rockchip RK3588 or NVIDIA Jetson SO-DIMM system-on-modules. The main board (XWR A1) also offers 25Gbps WAN fabric, three MCUs for BMC, power management, and cryptography, M.2 slots for NVMe storage or AI accelerators, two mSATA sockets, HDMI video output, USB ports, Starlink satellite support, and a range of IoT protocol options such as LoRaWAN, 5G RedCap, UWB, Bluetooth LE, and so on. Nexalta Guardian specifications: Main SoC subsystem SoC – Qualcomm IPQ9574 quad-core Arm Cortex-A73 processor @ 2.2GHz processor System Memory – 2GB DDR4 RAM Storage – 8GB eMMC flash, 64MB NOR flash SoM sub-system 2x 260-pin SO-DIMM sockets for: Turing RK1 […]

November 3, 2025November 3, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

HackBEE is a Raspberry Pi RP2350 USB-C dongle for developers (Crowdfunding)

Hack the Board’s HackBEE is a tiny programmable USB-C dongle and development platform powered by the Raspberry Pi RP2350 Arm Cortex-M33/Hazard3 RISC-V microcontroller. It supports USB host and device modes, has side buttons, and includes a multi-color RGB LED for feedback. The device can be used as a programmable HID device (keyboard/mouse/media controller), a USB host or device for testing and prototyping, an automation tool for repetitive tasks, a compact input emulator, or a teaching tool for C/C+, MicroPython, and embedded systems education. HackBEE specifications: MCU – Raspberry Pi RP2350A CPU Dual-core Arm Cortex-M33 @ 150 MHz with Arm Trustzone, Secure boot OR Dual-core RISC-V Hazard3 @ 150 MHz Either two cores can be used. Memory – 520 KB on-chip SRAM Package – QFN-60 Storage – Not disclosed USB – 1x USB Type-C host/device port Security – Arm TrustZone for Cortex-M33 cores, optional boot signing (OTP), protected OTP storage, SHA-256 […]

October 13, 2025October 13, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

Ubo Pod – A Raspberry Pi 4/5-based personal AI assistant (Crowdfunding)

The Ubo Pod Developer Edition (DE) is an open-source AI vision and conversational voice assistant platform built around the Raspberry Pi 4 or 5, and designed for developers who want more control over their AI experiences. The device aims to replace black boxes like Amazon Echo or Google Next AI assistants, with an open hardware smart speaker running open-source software, and offering features such as speech-to-text, LLMs/VLMs, text-to-speech, tool calling, and various multiple trigger mechanisms, among others. The Ubo Pod supports both cloud-based and fully local private AI, and features an embedded GUI on the integrated display and a WebUI for no-code setup. Ubo Pod specifications: SBC Ubo Pro 4 – Raspberry Pi 4 Ubo Pro 5 – Raspberry Pi 5 Storage 32GB MicroSD card included and preloaded with OS. Ubo Pro 5 – M.2 PCIe socket for NVMe SSD (or AI accelerator) Display – 1.54-inch color TFT IPS display […]

September 2, 2025September 2, 2025 by Sponsored Post - No Comments

ACMER X1 – A large 3-in-1 120W & 4W IR water-cooled Laser engraver & CNC router (Sponsored)

ACMER X1 3-in-1 laser engraver and CNC router

ACMER X1 Ultra is a DIY maker’s dream, featuring a large 3-in-1 120W diode, 4W IR laser engraver, and CNC router with a large work area of around 2.5 x 1.2 meters, catering to the needs of most users. However, the company is fully aware that different users have different needs, so they create different versions of the machine: the X1 with a work area of 76.7 x 76.7 cm and no CNC support, the X1 Plus with a work area of about 1.2 x 1.2 meters, and the aforementioned X1 Ultra. You’ll find the key specifications for all three variants of the ACMER X1 machine in the table below. The 120W diode in the professional-grade laser system supports speeds of up to 3,0000mm/min. It’s 3-4 times faster and can cut workpieces twice as thick compared to a traditional 40W laser engraver, and delivers 6 times higher energy efficiency compared to […]