Linux

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on AndromedaBox Networking Edge Board Includes a Dual Core Marvell Processor, SATA, Gigabit Ethernet, and More

AndromedaBox Networking Edge Board Includes a Dual Core Marvell Processor, SATA, Gigabit Ethernet, and More

Last year, Marvell introduced AndroMeda Box Edge IoT board using 96Boards form factor and running Brillo (now Android Things), but the company has been working on the similarly named AndromedaBox Networking Edge (ANE) board with a tweaked version of 96Boards form factor including Gigabit Ethernet and SATA, and powered by a dual core ARMADA 3700 processor. AndromedaBox Networking Edge specifications: SoC – Marvell ARMADA LP 3700 dual-core ARM Cortex 53 processor @ up to 1.2 GHz System Memory – 512MB LPDDR4 Storage – 8GB eMMC flash, 1x SATA 3.0 port Connectivity – 1x Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 port, 1×1 802.11ac Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.2 USB – 2x micro USB 2.0 port, 1x USB 3.0 port Expansion – 1x PCIe 2.0 (maybe via a slot on the back of the board), 40-pin LS (Low Speed) Expansion connector Power Supply – Likely 8 to 18V input as per 96Boards specs Dimensions – 85 […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on Giada F105D Apollo Lake Mini PC Supports up to 3 Displays via HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort, and VGA Ports

Giada F105D Apollo Lake Mini PC Supports up to 3 Displays via HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort, and VGA Ports

Giada F105D is an upcoming mini PC powered by either a Celeron N3350 dual core or N3450 quad core processor part of Apollo Lake family with up to 4GB RAM, a 2.5″ SATA bay, and three video outputs: HDMI 2.0, DisplayPort and VGA. Except for the processor, F105D-BS200 and F105D-BQ200 mini PCs have the same specifications: SoC F105D-BS200 – Intel Celeron N3350 dual core processor @ 1.1 / 2.4 GHz with 12EU Intel HD 500 graphics (6W TDP) F105D-BQ200 – Intel Celeron N3450 quad core processor @ 1.1 / 2.2 GHz with 12EU Intel HD 500 graphics (6W TDP) System Memory – Up to 4GB DDR3L-1600MHz with 2GB on-board + 2GB on 204-pin SO-DIMM socket Storage – 1x 2.5″ SATA drive bay (max. height 7.5mm), 1x M.2 (PCIe), 1x mSATA III, 1x micro SD slot Video Output VGA up to 2560×1600 @ 60Hz, 24bpp HDMI 2.0 up to 3840×2160 @ […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments on Facebook Zstandard “zstd” & “pzstd” Data Compression Tools Deliver High Performance & Efficiency

Facebook Zstandard “zstd” & “pzstd” Data Compression Tools Deliver High Performance & Efficiency

Ubuntu 16.04 and – I assume – other recent operating systems are still using single-thread version of file & data compression utilities such as bzip2 or gzip by default, but I’ve recently learned that compatible multi-threaded compression tools such as lbzip2, pigz or pixz have been around for a while, and you can replace the default tools by them for much faster compression and decompression on multi-core systems. This post led to further discussion about Facebook’s Zstandard 1.0 promising both smaller and faster data compression speed. The implementation is open source, released under a BSD license, and offers both zstd single threaded tool, and pzstd multi-threaded tool. So we all started to do own little tests and were impressed by the results. Some concerns were raised about patents, and development is still work-in-progess with a few bugs here and there including pzstd segfaulting on ARM. Zlib has 9 levels of […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments on Kunbus RevolutionPi RevPi Core Raspberry Pi based Industrial Computer Sells with Digital I/O Modules and Fieldbus Gateways

Kunbus RevolutionPi RevPi Core Raspberry Pi based Industrial Computer Sells with Digital I/O Modules and Fieldbus Gateways

Kunbus, a German company specialized in industrial network solution, has decided to design an industrial system based on Raspberry Pi Computer module supporting variable power supply, a wide temperature range, DIN rail mounting, etc, as well as corresponding digital I/O modules and fieldbus gateways. RevolutionPI RevPi Core specifications: SoC – Broadcom BCM2835 ARM11 processor @ 700 MHz System Memory – 512 MB Storage – 4GB flash Video Output – Micro HDMI port Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet port USB – 2x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x micro USB port Misc – RTC, 3x status LEDs (2 programmable) Power Supply – 10.7 V to 28.8 V; polarity protection; 4 kV / 8 kV ESD protection & EMI passed (according to EN61131-2 and IEC 61000-6-2), surge and burst tests passed Power Consumption – Max: 10 Watts including 2 x 450 mA USB load; typ.: 4 watts. Dimensions – 96 x 22.5 x 110.5 […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments on Samlinking D240 Mediatek MT7620A Router Boards Support Two 4G LTE mini PCIe Modules, PoE for $38 and Up

Samlinking D240 Mediatek MT7620A Router Boards Support Two 4G LTE mini PCIe Modules, PoE for $38 and Up

Samlinking Technologies, a manufacturer of 4G WiFi integrated solution based in Shenzhen, has launched D240 router board powered by Mediatek MT7620A MIPS processor with 128MB RAM, 64 MB flash, four Fast Ethernet LAN ports, one Fast Ethernet WAN port with PoE, as well as two PCIe slots accepting 4G LTE modems.Three Samlinking D240 models are available with D240A1, D240A2, and D240A3 with different combination of LTE module, and 802.11 b/g/n and/or 802.11ac connectivity. SoC – Mediatek MTK7620A MIPS processor @ 580MHz System Memory – 128MB Storage – 64MB flash + micro SD card slot Connectivity 802.11 b/g/n/ac up to 300, or 300 + 867 Mbps depending on model+ 2 u.FL connectors 5x 100 Mbps Ethernet port (RJ45) with 4 LAN ports, 1 WAN port with PoE 802.3af 2x PCIe slot with LTE Cat3 to Cat 6 modem cards 2x SIM card slots Serial – 1x 4-pin header USB – 1x […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments on Linux 4.9 Release – Main Changes, ARM and MIPS Architectures

Linux 4.9 Release – Main Changes, ARM and MIPS Architectures

Linus Torvalds released Linux 4.9 on Sunday: So Linux 4.9 is out, and the merge window for 4.10 is thus open. With the extra week for 4.9, the timing for the merge window is obviously a bit awkward, and it technically closes in two weeks on Christmas Day. But that is a pure technicality, because I will certainly stop pulling on the 23rd at the latest, and if I get roped into Xmas food prep, even that date might be questionable. I could extend the merge window rather than cut it short, but I’m not going to. I suspect we all want a nice calm winter break, so if your stuff isn’t ready to be merged early, the solution is to just not merge it yet at all, and wait for 4.11. Just so you all know (I already bcc’d the main merge window suspects in a separate mailing last […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments on How to Use Sonoff POW ESP8266 WiFi Power Switch with MQTT and ThingSpeak

How to Use Sonoff POW ESP8266 WiFi Power Switch with MQTT and ThingSpeak

ITEAD Studio’s Sonoff is a family of cheap home automation products based on ESP8266 WiSoC, and I’ve already tested Sonoff TH16 wireless switch with a humidity and temperature sensor using the stock firmware and eWelink app for Android or iOS. It works, but up to recently it required a registration to a cloud service (the company will now allow use from the local network), and the source code is closed. So for the second device under review, namely Sonoff POW wireless switch with a power consumption monitor, I decided to install ESPurna firmware working on ESP8266 Sonoff devices and NodeMCU, as it’s open source, supports Sonoff POW natively, includes a web interface to control the device from the LAN, and includes an MQTT client. MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport) is a lightweight publish/subscribe messaging protocol used to control IoT sensors and devices, and it’s a popular method to gather data […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 18 Comments on $59 RetroEngine Sigma Retro Game Console is Based on Orange Pi Lite Board (Crowdfunding)

$59 RetroEngine Sigma Retro Game Console is Based on Orange Pi Lite Board (Crowdfunding)

2016 has been the year of retrogaming comeback with products like PocketCHIP, Nintendo NES Classic, GPD Win and quite a few other projects. There will soon be a new option with RetroEngine Sigma, an inexpensive Linux based retro-gaming console based on Allwinner H3 processor. RetroEngine Sigma fanless game console hardware specifications: SoC – Allwinner H3 quad core Cortex A7 @ 1.2 GHz with an ARM Mali-400MP2 GPU up to 600 MHz System Memory – 512 MB DDR3 Storage – 16 or 32GB micro SD card Video & Audio Output – HDMI port Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n WiFi USB – 2x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x micro USB OTG port Misc – Programmable status LED, 2 user configurable buttons P1 & P2 Power Supply – 5V/2A via power barrel Dimensions – 110 x 85 x 33.5 mm The specifications look similar, so I went to my little list of Allwinner H3 […]