CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

July 31, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Leadcore Roadmap Until 2017 Shows 14nm FinFET Processors Planned

I first heard about Leadcore in 2013 when they announced several ARM Cortex A7 and A9 mobile processors, but since then they’ve become a bit more popular after Leadcore L1860C quad core processor found its way into in Xiaomi Redmi 2A smartphone. The company has now shown its roadmap for 2016, and 2017 with some interesting developments. We can expect three processors in 2016 all with 64-bit ARM cores manufactured using 28nm process: An 8-core 64-bit processor with Mali-T820 GPU and LTE Cat 6 modem A 4-core 64-bit processor with an unnamed Mali GPU and LTE Cat 6 modem A quad core Cortex A53 processor with TD-LTE and LTE FDD And in 2017, one processor is scheduled, should be manufactured using 14nm FinFET process, which could mean 2017 will be the year 14nm FinFET goes mainstream even for lower cost processors. That currently unnamed processor will feature eight 64-bit cores […]

July 31, 2015August 3, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Freaks3D is a Low Cost Portable 3D Printer (Crowdfunding)

ElecFreaks is a design house based in Shenzhen that caters to makers and startups, and started selling Arduino shields and accessories, as well as Raspberry Pi add-on boards, before moving to robotics kits, 3D printers, and other tools in demand by electronics hobbyists. The company has now designed Freaks3D portable 3D printer, and launched an Indiegogo campaign to fund production. Freaks3D printer specifications: Technology – Fused Deposition Modeling Build Volume – 130 x 150 x 100 mm (LxWxH) Nozzle Size – Standard 400 microns Resolution – Layer: 100 microns; XY: 50 microns Filament diameter – 1.75mm Filament Material – PLA or TPU 3D Files Transfer – USB via PC, or SD card Misc – LCD Display, one button operation, printing bed does not require heating Power Supply – 12V / 8A power adapter, or 12V / 5A power bank (Not included) Dimensions – 290 x 320 x 325 mm Weight […]

ArmSoM RK3588 AIModule7 NVIDIA Jetson Nano-compatible SOM

July 31, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

Next Thing Has Released Software and Hardware Files for the $9 CHIP Computer

Next Thing CHIP computer powered by Allwinner R8 module, also referred as “the $9 computer“, had a very successful crowdfunding campaign having raised over $2,000,000 from nearly 40,000 backers. When launching an electronics products on a crowdfunding campaign, many companies claim their device will be open source, only to disappoint once the perks actually ship, and Next Thing made the same promise, except they appear to have delivered as shown in their latest update “Holy C.H.I.P! It’s C.H.I.P!!!” showing the first production samples, and providing links to hardware design files for the Alpha version, as well as buildroot, U-boot and Linux source code. All resources can be found on docs.nexthing.co, but let’s check what they’ve released so far. Hardware design files on Github include: A Bill of Materials (BoM) Schematics in PDF and DSN formats PCB Layout in BRD and PNG format Pinouts for U12 and U14 connectors Mechanical files […]

July 31, 2015July 31, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

STMicro Introduces $5 CLOUD-ST25TA NFC Evaluation Board

STMicro has just announced a new low cost NFC evaluation board called CLOUD-ST25TA used to evaluate their ST25TA02K NFC Forum Type 4 tag chip part of their ST25TA series, previously known as SRTAG. CLOUD-ST25TA board specifications: SoC – ST25TA02K-P NFC/RFID Tag in UFDFPN5 ECOPACK 2 package Contactless interface NFC Forum Type 4 Tag ISO/IEC 14443 Type A 106 kbps data rate Internal 50 pF tuning capacitance allowing small inductive antenna design Memory 256 Byte (2 Kbit) EEPROM with NDEF data support 200 years data retention 1 million erase-write cycles endurance 128 bit password data protection 20 bit event counter for read or write access with anti-tearing feature Digital pad Configurable general purpose output (GPO) indicating, for example, RF field detection The board features look somewhat similar to NFC tags sold for 50 cents online, but it does come with more memory (256 bytes vs 144 bytes), has a longer claimed […]

July 31, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Linaro 15.07 Release with Linux 4.2 and Android 5.1

Linaro 15.07 has been released with Linux 4.2-rc3 (Baseline), Linux 3.10.83, 3.14.45 and 3.18.17 (LSK), and Android 5.1.1_r8. The Linux kernel got various bug fixes, and a power reduction technique has been implemented for Qualcomm processor. Progress has been made to boot Android with UEFI on Hikey board, and work is still on-going on 96boards including Hisilicon Hikey, Qualcomm DragonBoard 410c, and an upcoming and yet-to-be-formally-announced Marvell PXA1928 board called Helium. Highlights of this release: Linux Linaro 4.2-rc3-2015.07 linaro-android topic updated to 4.2-rc3 and recent AOSP/android-3.18 included GATOR version 5.21.1 llct-misc-fixes topic: “HACK: of: Limit FDT size for CRC check on arm64” has been dropped. FVP model was the last target to require this hack, but the new FVP firmware doesn’t need it anymore updated integration-linaro-vexpress64 topic by ARM LT: Versatile Express TC2 support is back, HDLCD display now works on TC2, the topic will be renamed to integration-linaro-vexpress next […]

July 30, 2015July 30, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Tronsmart Ara x5 mini PC to Feature Intel Atom x5-Z8300 Processor

If you’re getting tired of seeing companies launch products after products based on Intel Atom Z3735F with 32GB eMMC and 2GB RAM, and mainly changing the casing, Tronsmart Ara x5 provides some changes, as the upcoming mini PC will feature an Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” processor instead of the ubiquitous Atom Z3735F “Bay Trail-T” processor. Preliminary specifications for Tronsmart Ara x5: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 “Cherry Trail” quad core processor @ 1.44 GHz (Bust freq: 1.84 GHz) with Intel Gen8 HD graphics (2W SDP) System Memory – 2 GB Storage – 32 GB eMMC + micro SD slot Video Output – HDMI Audio I/O – HDMI, 3.5mm microphone jack Connectivity – Ethernet, dual band 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.0 (TBC) USB – 2x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x USB 3.0 port Misc – Power button, LED on top of device Power Supply – TBD Dimensions – N/A […]

Rockchip RK3568, RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs and SoMs in 2025

July 30, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

$90 H7 Hummingbird Development Board Features Allwinner H8 Octa-core Processor

Allwinner announced Allwinner H8 octa-core Cortex A7 processor in Q4 2014, which targets game console and TV boxes,but since then I had not really heard about hardware based on this new SoC. Merrii Technology has now launched a development board powered by Allwinner H8, and confusingly called it H7 Hummingbird. H7 Hummingboard development board specifications: SoC – AllWinner H8 octa-core ARM Cortex-A7 processor @ up to 2.0GHz with PowerVR SGX544 GPU @ up to 700MHz System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 4GB eMMC flash + micro SD card slot or SD card slot (option) up to 32GB Video Output / Display I/F – HDMI up to 1080p, MIPI DSI connector, LCD connector for RGB/CPU/LVDS LCD including a 6-pin header for backlight. Capacitive touch panel header Audio – HDMI, headset/microphone jack, audio speaker connector, Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet (Despite the processor support Gigabit Ethernet), WiFi 802.11b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0 via […]

July 30, 2015 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

Orvibo Wiwo S20 Smart Socket Now Sells for $16

Kankun KK-SP3 used to be the cheapest smart socket on the market at around $20, and it is hackable too, but only available with a Chinese / Australian plug, and for some reasons, many sellers stopped selling the device. Last year, a similar product called Orvibo Wiwo S20 launched with US, UK, EU or AU plug types, but sold for nearly twice as much as KK-SP3 at the time. The good news is that the price has gone down considerably, as it can be purchased for around $16 on GearBest, and it’s available on others for $20 to $26 including on Amazon US, DealExtreme, and GeekBuying. Let’s remind us of the specifications first: Material – ABC 94V-0 (fireproof) Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n Security – WEP, WPA-PSK or WPA2-PSK Power Plug – US, Europe, United Kingdom or Australia plug Output Current – 10A Output Power – 2000W max. Voltage Range – 100-240V […]