Nintendo NES Classic is Powered by Allwinner R16 SoC, Likely Hackable

Nintendo NES Classic Edition is a small replica of Nintendo NES, both adapted to modern times with an HDMI output, and keeping with nostalgia thanks to connectors for original game controllers, and pre-loaded with 30 classic games. If you planned to add your own games however, the lack of USB ports, micro SD card slot, or any other storage or network interface could make it impossible. But based on a recent photo tweeted by Peter Brown, senior review editor at GameSpot, there may be light out of the tunnel, as while the main storage device (4Gbit NAND flash) is soldered to the board, the main board is powered by Allwinner R16 quad core Cortex A7 processor with a Mali-400MP2, and it’s quite likely UART / serial console and/or FEL interfaces are exposed on the board, making it possible to hack the device and potentially load your own games. The other […]

Orange Pi PC 2 Development Board based on Allwinner H5 SoC Launched for $20

Shenzhen Xunlong had already launched Orange Pi Zero, the cheapest ARM Linux board with networking you can find today, earlier this week, and I’ve just been informed the company has now listed the more powerful Orange Pi PC 2 board powered by Allwinner H5 quad core Cortex A53 processor on Aliexpress for $19.98 plus shipping.Orange Pi PC 2 specifications: SoC – Allwinner H5 quad core Cortex A53 processor with an ARM Mali-450MP4 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – micro SD card slot up to 64GB, 8Mbit SPI NOR flash Video Output – HDMI 1.4 with CEC support, AV port Audio I/O – HDMI, AV port, on-board microphone Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet USB – 3x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x micro USB OTG port Camera – MIPI CSI Interface Expansions – 40-pin Raspberry Pi compatible header Debugging – 3-pin UART header for serial console Misc – IR receiver; Power […]

Inforce Computing Introduces 6301 SoM and Devkit Powered by Snapdragon 410E SoC with Long Term Availability

Qualcomm launched Snapdragon 410E and 600E processors for the embedded market at the end of September, meaning the processors were easy to source by any company, not matter how small they are, and the company would now offer long term availability often required for embedded systems. Inforce Computing is now leveraging the new Snapdragon 410E processor with their Inforce 6301 micro SoM, and corresponding development kit. Inforce 6301 micro SoM specifications: SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 410E (APQ8016 SoC) quad core ARM Cortex A53 processor @ 1.2GHz, Adreno 306 GPU, and Hexagon DSP @ 700MHz Memory – 1GB LPDDR3 @ 533MHz  (Option: 2GB) Storage – 8GB eMMC v4.5 flash (Option up to 64GB) NAND, 1x micro SD card interface with support up to HS200 Connectivity – Bluetooth 4.1 LE, Wi-Fi dual stream 802.11 b/g/n @ 2.4GHz (WC3620), on-board GPS/GNSS/BeiDou/Galileo (WGR7640) Video – H.264/263 playback and capture @1080p; H.265 playback @720p; Interfaces […]

Outernet Introduces Standalone & DIY Internet Satellite Kits for C.H.I.P Board, Raspberry Pi 3 Board, and Laptops

Outernet goal is to bring knowledge and/or emergency info to places without Internet either to remote places, or where Internet has been temporary shutdown due to natural disasters or political reasons through a satellite feed. In some ways, it works like a typical FM radio, but instead of receiving audio, you’ll get data. The first hardware was based on WeTek Play TV box, and called Lighthouse, but they now have a DIY kit that will work with Next Thing C.H.I.P, Raspberry Pi, or Laptops running Windows 7/10 or Linux, as well as a standalone Outernet Satellite kit including C.H.I.P Allwinner R8 development board. Let’s first check out “Basic Outernet DIY Kit” comprised of three items: L-Band Antenna Frequency: 1525 – 1559 MHz (Center frequency: 1542 MHz) 8dbi 4″  SMA Male connector Dimensions – 12 cm x 12 cm x 1.5 cm Weight – ~100 grams RTL-SDR Blog Software Defined Radio/Tuner […]

Giveaway Week – Star Cloud PCG02U Ubuntu TV Stick

The fourth device for this giveaway week will be MeLE Star Cloud PCG02U TV stick powered by Intel Atom Z3735F quad core processor, but instead of running Windows 10, the device is sold with Ubuntu 14.04, which I upgraded to Ubuntu 16.04. I found out that the device was running pretty well (minus Bluetooth support) in my PCG02U review, and for the price at the time ($70) it was really a good deal. The device has even become the best selling devices on MeLE Aliexpress store, outselling all other Windows devices. However, MeLE ethics are questionable since they used Ian Morrison (Linuxium)’s image in their devices without giving any credits. The package will come with all accessories above, minus the “Caution Hot” sticker which must have gone to sticker heaven…. Simply leave a comment below to enter the draw. Other rules are as follows: Only one entry per contest. I […]

Orange Pi Zero Allwinner H2+ Board with WiFi and Ethernet is Up for Sale for $7 and Up

Orange Pi Zero development board powered by Allwinner H2+ quad core Cortex A7 processor with 256 to 512MB RAM, Ethernet, and USB ports is now available for sale on Aliexpress for just $6.99, with shipping adding $3.39 in my case bringing the total to $10.38. Orange Pi Zero specifications: SoC – Allwinner H2(+) quad core Cortex A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz with Mali-400MP2 GPU @ 600 MHz System Memory – 256 to 512 MB DDR3-1866 SDRAM Storage – micro SD card slot Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet + 802.11 b/g/n WiFi (Allwinner XR819 WiFi module) with u.FL antenna connector and external antenna USB – 1x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x micro USB OTG port Expansion headers – Unpopulated 26-pin “Raspberry Pi B+” header + 13-pin header with headphone, 2x USB 2.0, TV out, microphone and IR receiver signals Debugging – Unpopulated 3-pin header for serial console Misc – 2x LEDs Power […]

RabbitMax Flex IoT Board for Raspberry Pi Supporting up to Five I2C Sensors Launched on Indiegogo for 20 Euros and Up

RabbitMax Flex is an add-on board, compatible with HAT specifications, for Raspberry Pi 2 /3 boards and other Raspberry Pi models with a 40-pin GPIO header. It includes headers for up to 5 I2C sensors, as well as an RGB LED, a buzzer, a relay, a button, infrared receiver and transmitter, and an optional LCD display, and as we’ve seen in my RabbitMax Flex getting started guide, a nice way to learning about hardware programming using either C or Python, or to used in home automation or IoT projects. The project has just been launched on Indiegogo. RabbitMax Flex specifications: Relay – Songle SRD-05VDC-SL-C supporting 125V/250VAC up to 10A, 30VDC up to 10A Storage – EEPROM with some system information for identification IR – IR LED, IR receiver Misc – Buzzer, Button, RGB LED Expansion Header for LCD character display + potentiometer for backlight adjustment 5x 4-pin headers for I2C […]

Giveaway Week – Vana Player Linux Based HiFi Audio Player

After giving away a virtual reality headset on Monday, and a TV box on Tuesday, I’ll offer a very unique device for the third day of this giveawat week with Vana Player, an HiFi audio player based on Allo Sparky ARM Linux development board. Beside the development board the kit includes two audio DAC boards, a 30W amplifier, a reclocker board, a capacitance multiplier board, and accessories like an acrylic “case” and a power supply. The system is running Ubuntu 12.04 with Max2Play web interface to configure the system running a SqueezeBox server, Kodi and more. I found a few bugs during my review, but the company has now released a new firmware update that should fix many of the issues I encountered. All items shown above will be included in the package. Note that you’ll also need a 19.5V power supply, for example from an old laptop to power […]

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