storage News - CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

June 10, 2025June 11, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Adapter allows users to connect an M.2 NVMe SSD to a microSD Express card slot

The SD Association released the SD 7.1 standard with support for cards compliant with the microSD Express standard, enabling SSD-like performance on microSD cards by using a PCIe/NVMe interface, and more recent updates to the standard even enable speeds of up to 2GB/s. Saying that adoption has been slow would be an understatement, but things have changed recently, thanks to the introduction of the Nintendo Switch 2 portable game console, the first mainstream device to support the new standard. NVNT has had fun with it by designing a microSD Express to M.2 NVMe adapter (SDEX2M2) for the Nintendo Switch 2 or other devices supporting the microSD Express standard. The board design is pretty simple because it simply routes the PCIe signals from an M.2 NVMe 2230 SSD to the microSD Express connector. Three components can be found on the board: an M.2 2230 M-socket, a 220Ω ferrite bead, and an […]

June 8, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

ZimaBoard 2 Review – Part 2: An Intel N150 micro server and mini PC tested with ZimaOS, Ubuntu 24.04

We’ve already checked out the hardware of the ZimaBoard 2 micro server in the first part of the review with an unboxing and a teardown of the Intel N150 mini PC, followed by a first boot to ZimaOS and a walk-through of the web dashboard to see what features it had to offer. I’ve now connected two SATA drives to the ZimaBoard 2 and done further testing with ZimaOS, notably checking system information and testing storage and networking performance. I also installed Ubuntu 24.04 on the ZimaBoard 2 for further testing for people preferring to use the system as a mini PC with SATA storage. ZimaOS v1.4.1 update When I connected to the web dashboard again, there was a new update for ZimaOS v1.4.1. Before and after the update is completed, I was shown the change log with new features like a scheduled shutdown function and a list of bug […]

May 23, 2025May 23, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Apacer PT25R-Pi HAT SSD for Raspberry Pi 5 integrates 60GB to 480GB BGA SSD, supports CoreSnapshot 2 Backup and Recovery function

Apacer PT25R-Pi HAT SSD is an upcoming HAT for the Raspberry Pi 5 or compatible SBCs with a PCIe FFC connector that integrates a BGA SSD chip with 60 GB to 480GB capacity, and supports advanced features like CoreSnapshot 2 backup and recovery solution, write protect, instant keychange for improved security, and power loss protection. We’ve already seen many Raspberry Pi HATs for NVMe SSDs, but those are typically designed for M.2 SSD modules. The PT25R-Pi HAT SSD comes with built-in storage on the HAT, so it’s basically plug-and-play, and all the user has to do is install the HAT and connect the cable. Apacer PT25R-Pi / PT25R-Pi+ HAT SSD specifications (preliminary): Storage – Built-in 60GB to 480GB SSD chip Connection to Raspberry Pi 5 40-pin GPIO header 16-pin Raspberry Pi FFC connector limited to PCIe Gen2 x1 for optimized power usage Advanced features Optional support for CoreSnapshot 2 backup […]

May 15, 2025June 8, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

ZimaBoard 2 micro server review – Part 1: Unboxing, teardown, and ZimaOS interface

We’ve just received a review sample of the ZimaBoard 2 micro server and mini PC powered by an Intel Processor N150 “Twin Lake” CPU. The system features two 2.5 Gbps Ethernet ports, two SATA III ports, two USB 3.1 ports, and a miniDP video port supporting 4K resolution. IceWhale Technology provided us with the ZimaBoard 2 model 832 prototype with 8GB RAM and 32GB eMMC flash preloaded with the ZimaOS operating system for review. In this article, we will unbox the device and its accessories, perform a teardown, and boot the micro server with the pre-installed ZimaOS and check the web dashboard. In the second part of the review, we will test ZimaOS in more detail, run some benchmarks since it’s our first Twin Lake mini PC, install an Ubuntu virtual machine, test the SATA ports and PCIe 3.0 x4 slot, and more. ZimaBoard 2 unboxing We received a package […]

May 10, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 19 Comments

Beelink ME Mini is a compact 6-slot SSD NAS and mini PC powered by an Intel N150 Twin Lake SoC

Beelink was one of the first companies to launch an Intel Processor N150 mini PC with the EQ14 model, and they’ve now launched the ME Mini 6-slot SSD NAS based on the Twin Lake processor, coupled with 12 GB RAM, 64GB eMMC flash, and a 2TB NVMe SSD. The compact NAS/computer also features two 2.5GbE ports, a WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2 wireless module, HDMI 2.0 video output, and a few USB ports. Like the Beelink EQ14, it comes with an integrated 100/240V power supply instead of an external power brick. Beelink ME Mini specifications: SoC – Intel Processor N150 quad-core Twin Lake processor @ up to 3.6 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 24EU Intel UHD graphics @ 1.0 GHz; TDP: 6W System Memory – 12GB LPDDR5 4800 MHz; note: a 16GB LPDDR5 model will also be available Storage 5x M.2 2280 PCIe 3.0 x1 sockets 1x M.2 2280 PCIe 3.0 […]

April 22, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

512GB ADATA Premier Extreme SD 8.0 Express memory card delivers up to 1600MB/s read speed

ADATA Technology has launched the industry’s first SD 8.0 Express specification memory card with the Premier Extreme SD 8.0 Express memory card delivering up to 1,600 and 1,200 MB/s read and write speeds using a PCIe Gen3 x2 interface and the NVMe transfer protocol. The SD 7.0 specification was introduced in 2018, adding the SD Express standard using PCIe and NVMe Interfaces for speeds of up to 985 MB/s. Since then, the SD 9.0 specification was ratified in 2023 upping the speed to 4GB/s with SD 8.0 Express. But while the specifications have evolved over the years, and some SD and microSD Express cards were unveiled, including 256GB and 512GB Samsung microSD Express cards, market adoption has been slow since hosts need to support the new format, but few manufacturers do. You’ll find SD Express or microSD Express card readers, high-end cameras with an SD Express slot, and the upcoming […]

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

Radxa Dual 2.5G Router HAT adds 2.5GbE networking and M.2 NVMe storage support to Raspberry Pi 5-compatible SBCs

The Radxa Dual 2.5G Router HAT is an expansion board adding 2.5GbE networking and an M.2 PCIe x1 socket for NVMe SSD storage to the Raspberry Pi 5 and compatible SBCs with a PCIe FFC connector. We had previously seen Raspberry Pi 5 HATs with 2.5GbE such as the Pineberry HatNET! 2.5G, or even one with 2.5GbE and NVMe SSD (52Pi W01 U2500 HAT), but the Radxa Dual 2.5G Router HAT is the first to implement two 2.5 Gbps Ethernet ports to enable routing, and also features an NVMe SSD as a bonus. Radxa Dual 2.5G Router HAT specifications: Supported SBCs – Raspberry Pi 5, Radxa ROCK 2F, Radxa ROCK 2A, Radxa ROCK 5C, the upcoming Radxa 4D (RK3576), and potentially others PCIe Switch – ASM2806 PCIe 3.0 switch chip with PCIe Gen3 x2 upstream and four PCIe 3.1 lanes downstream up to 8GT/s Storage – 1x M.2 M-Key socket […]

March 12, 2025March 13, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

5th Gen AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 Series Zen 5 processors supports up to 6TB DDR5 memory, up to 160 PCIe Gen 5 lanes

AMD has just introduced the 5th Gen AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 Series “Zen 5” processors designed for embedded systems with a focus on longevity (7 years), reliability, and system resiliency, and targeting networking, storage, and industrial edge systems with support for up to 6TB of DDR5 memory, up to 160 PCIe Gen5 lanes with CXL 2.0. The EPYC Embedded 9005 Series processors are offered with 8 to 192 cores in a single socket and deliver up to a 1.3x faster networking process and 1.6x faster storage. The company also claims a 1.3x increase in socket throughput and 1.3x better performance/Watts compared to the competition thanks to the new Zen 5c architecture. AMD EPYC Embedded 9005 highlights: CPU sub-system AMD EPYC Embedded 9745 to 9965 – Zen 5c architecture up to 12x core complex dies (CCDs), 192x cores, 384x threads AMD EPYC Embedded 9015 to 9655 – Zen5 architecture up to […]