CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

August 12, 2026August 12, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Apollo Automation launches $40 official ESPHome Starter Kit with ESP32-C6 board, four FPC modules

Apollo Automation’s ESPHome Starter Kit is the first official ESPHome starter kit designed and engineered by Apollo Automation in partnership with the Open Home Foundation. It features the ESPHome C6 board with the ESP32-C6-MINI-1 wireless module and two FPC expansion connectors for four modules part of the kit for PIR motion, temperature, and humidity sensing, as well as a button, a buzzer, and ten RGB LEDs. ESPHome Starter Kit highlights and specifications: Main board – ESPHome C6 Board Wireless Module – ESP32-C6-MINI-1 with 2.4GHz Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth LE, and Thread/Zigbee connectivity Expansion – 2x 14-pin FPC connectors Misc Reset and Boot buttons RGB LED Power Supply 5V via USB-C port Optional rechargeable LiPo battery Dimensions – TBD Modules MH-SR602 PIR motion module with 0 to 3.5 m range AHT20F temperature and humidity module with ±0.3 °C and ±2% RH accuracy 10x RGB LEDs and a piezo buzzer via ESPHome Casita […]

August 12, 2026 by Debashis Das - No Comments

Forlinx AM62L32 Local EVM – A low-power industrial SBC powered by TI’s AM62L32 Cortex-A53/M4F SoC

Forlinx Embedded AM62L32 Local EVM is a low-power industrial SBC built around the Texas Instruments AM62L32 Arm Cortex-A53/M4 hybrid SoC. It is designed for industrial control, IoT gateways, edge computing, embedded HMI, smart security, and other applications. What’s interesting about this board is that it uses a 4-layer integrated PCB design instead of a separate SoM and carrier board configuration that we found on other development platforms like the Calixto Systems AM62L STAMP SOM and iWave Systems AM62Lx SBC. Forlinx AM62L32 Local EVM specifications: SoC – Texas Instruments Sitara AM62L32 dual-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor @ 1.25GHz Memory – 512MB LPDDR4 (Industrial-grade original Winbond W66CP6RBHAGJ) Storage 8GB eMMC flash OSPI Flash (Winbond W25Q128JWSIQ) MicroSD card slot supporting the SD 3.0 protocol Unpopulated OSPI Octal Serial Peripheral footprint GPMC (General-Purpose Memory Controller) Display 4-lane MIPI-DSI up to 1080p60 18-bit RGB (RGB666) LCD interface (multiplexed with GPIO/SPI/I2C) PWM routed for LCD backlight adjustment […]

MINISFORUM Elite Mini M2 Air-304 barebone Wildcat Lake mini PC sells for $263

MINISFORUM Elite Mini M2 Air-304 is a barebone mini PC powered by an Intel Core 3 304 Wildcat Lake penta-core processor with a DDR5 SO-DIMM slot and an M.2 PCIe Gen4 x4 socket for NVMe SSD storage. There’s currently a limited number of Wildcat Lake mini PCs which you can purchase or pre-order, such as the Beelink EQi Wildcat Lake and the BOSGAME E6 Eco. These are ready to use out of the box with memory, storage, and Windows 11 pre-loaded. The MINISFORUM model is the first Wildcat Lake barebone mini PC we’ve seen, where users can bring their own memory, storage, and OS. MINISFORUM Elite Mini M2 Air-304 specifications: SoC – Intel Core 3 304 “Wildcat Lake” 5-core CPU – 1x P-core @ 1.5/4.3 GHz (Turbo) + 4x LPE-cores @ 1.4/3.3 GHz (Turbo) Cache – 6MB L3 cache GPU – 1-core Intel Xe3 Graphics @ 2.3 GHz (9 TOPS) […]

August 11, 2026August 11, 2026 by Debashis Das - No Comments

NXP FRDM-IMX95-PRO i.MX 95 board features 10GbE, faster 6400 MT/s LPDDR5 memory, dual M.2 expansion

NXP FRDM IMX95 PRO i.MX 95 dev board with larger 19×19 mm package, 10GbE, Wi Fi 6 Tri Radio, and dual M.2 expansion

NXP has introduced the FRDM-IMX95-PRO, a compact development board based on the i.MX 95 application processor in the larger 19×19 mm package. It features a 10GbE interface, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, and 802.15.4 tri-radio connectivity, and two M.2 Key-M slots for AI accelerator cards or SSDs. The board also comes with 16 GB LPDDR5-6400 memory, a 32 GB eMMC flash, and NXP’s GoPoint demo interface for robotics, industrial networking, and vision processing applications. FRDM-IMX95-PRO board specifications: SoC – NXP i.MX 95 CPU Up to 6x Arm Cortex-A55 application cores clocked at 1.8/2.0 GHz with 32KB I-cache and D-cache, 64KB L2 cache, and 512KB L3 cache 1x Arm Cortex-M7 real-time core clocked at 800 MHz 1x Arm Cortex-M33 safety core clocked at 333 MHz GPU – Arm Mali-G310 V2 GPU for 2D/3D acceleration with support for OpenGL ES 3.2, OpenCL 3.0 VPU 1080p60/4Kp30 H.265 and H.264 encode and decode JPEG Encoder, […]

August 11, 2026August 15, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

GEEKOM IT13 Max review – Part 2: An Intel Core Ultra 9 185H mini PC tested with Windows 11 Pro (in 2026)

We previously checked out the hardware of the GEEKOM IT13 Max mini PC with an unboxing and a teardown of the 16-core Intel Core Ultra 9 185H mini PC in the first part of the review, before booting it up to Windows 11 Pro. We’ve now had time to test it in more detail. So we will report our experience with the GEEKOM IT13 Max on Windows 11 Pro, covering feature testing, system performance benchmarks, AI benchmarks, YouTube 4K and 8K video playback in Firefox, 2.5GbE and Wi-Fi 6 network performance testing, and thermal performance, as well as measurements of fan noise and power consumption. Since we had already reviewed the GEEKOM GT1 Mega mini PC with the same Intel Meteor Lake CPU in 2024, we’ll compare the results to report any improvements or regressions since then. Software Overview and Feature Testing The System->About window confirms we have an “IT13_Max” […]

August 11, 2026August 13, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

PewCB One Desktop PCB fabrication system enables rapid prototyping at home

PewCB One is a desktop PCB prototyping system designed to accelerate hardware development by manufacturing PCBs at home or in the office in a few hours or less, instead of waiting days for a PCB to come back from the factory. Unlike desktop fabrication methods that rely on chemical processing, the PewCB One is more akin to a fully enclosed laser engraver housed with an integrated air filtration system. Users can perform the full process from double-sided PCB blanks to a complete PCBA at home. PewCB One highlights: Laser Wavelength – 1064 nm Average optical power – 20 W Pulse duration – ~100 ns Spot diameter – 35 μm PCB Blanks Double-sided PCB blanks with vias and plated through-holes Made of copper-clad alumina and zirconia ceramics Dimensions – 23 x 23 mm to 84 x 84 mm PCB traces – As low as 0.1mm; formed using laser ablation, a process that […]

August 11, 2026August 10, 2026 by Debashis Das - 1 Comment

Makerfabs Nomad Terminal features ESP32-S3 WiSoC, LR1121 LoRa transceiver, 3.5-inch touchscreen display

Makerfabs Nomad Terminal – 3.5 inch LoRa GNSS Handheld

Makerfabs Nomad Terminal handheld development platform is built around an ESP32-S3 MCU and a Semtech LR1121 LoRa transceiver for long-range wireless communication, as well as an ATGM336H GNSS module for positioning. The device can be used for applications such as LoRa messaging, GPS tracking, navigation, and remote sensor monitoring without a cellular connection. It also includes a 9-axis motion sensor, a microSD card slot, an RTC, and a 5,000 mAh rechargeable battery. Makerfabs Nomad Terminal specifications: Wireless Module – ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core Tensilica LX7 up to 240 MHz with vector extension for AI/ML workloads RAM – 512KB SRAM; 8MB PSRAM Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE 5 Storage – 16MB flash Antenna – PCB antenna Storage – MicroSD card slot for local data logging Display – 3.5-inch 480×320 TFT LCD (ILI9488 controller via SPI) with FT6236 capacitive touch panel Wireless WiFi 4 and Bluetooth […]

August 10, 2026 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

PyBLE open-source MicroPython IDE works over Bluetooth LE for tablet and iPad users

PyBLE is an open-source, MIT-licensed MicroPython IDE for programming microcontroller boards over Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), which targets Android tablet and iPad users. PyBLE combines a Flutter-based IDE for iPad and Android with support for MicroPython and visual programming (Blockly), an open MicroPython agent firmware, and the PBLE/1 protocol fully documented by the developer. The IDE currently supports features such as editing and running Python, a live console, wireless file management, and initial firmware targets include ESP32, ESP32-S3, and ESP32-C3 wireless microcontrollers. PyBLE highlights: Flutter app Filtered BLE discovery and PBLE/1 open protocol support MicroPython editor with save, run, stop, soft reboot, and live console Wireless file browsing and transfer with integrity checks Offline Blockly workspace with GPIO and standard MicroPython NeoPixel blocks Editable beginner examples Exact Blockly sidecar reopening and a bounded Python-to-blocks importer Adaptive tablet interface for portrait and landscape use Local operation without an account, analytics, or […]