CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

May 21, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

n-Fuse introduces SX1303 mPCIe LoRaWAN concentrator card

I first noticed Semtech SX1303 LoRa baseband processor for gateways was in RAKwireless WisGate Developer Base equipped with RAK5146 SX1303 mPCIe LoRaWAN concentrator card. But n-Fuse now offers another option with their LRWCC3-MPCIE mini PCIe card that is an update to their earlier SX1302 based n-Fuse LRWCC2-MPCIE card announced last year. n-Fuse LRWCC3-MPCIE specifications are very similar with the differences highlighted in bold: MCU – STMicro STM32 LoRa Connectivity Semtech SX1303 digital baseband processor with 2xSX1250 and 1xSX1261 Tx/Rx front-ends Frequency Range – 863 to 870 MHz or 915 to 928 MHz Sensitivity 868 Mhz <= -125dBm at SF7, BW 125KHz <= -140dBm at SF12, BW 125kHz 915 Mhz <= -125dBm at SF7, BW 125KHz <= -140dBm at SF12, BW 125kHz Max RF Output Power – Up to +27dBm Listen Before Talk prevents collisions while accessing the spectrum. Fine Time Stamping enables Time Difference of Arrival (TDOA) network-based geolocation. u.FL […]

May 21, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

A compact Raspberry Pi RP2040 WiFi board – Meet $12.95 Wio RP2040 mini

Seeed Studio has launched another Raspberry Pi RP2040 WiFi board with the compact Wio RP2040 mini development board that provides a cheaper and more compact alternative to ESP32 based Pico Wireless carrier board and Arduino Nano RP2040 Connect, albeit at the cost of providing fewer I/O pins, and lacking Bluetooth LE. Wio RP2040 mini dev board specifications: MCU – Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex M0+ microcontroller up to 133 MHz with 264 kB of embedded SRAM Storage – 2MB QSPI Flash Memory WiFi – 2.4 GHz 802.11b/g/n WiFi 4 supporting AP & station modes USB – USB 1.1 Type-C host/device port for programming Expansion – 2x 14-pin headers with 20x multifunctional GPIO pins supporting PIO and PWM, 2x UART, 4x ADC, 2x SPI, 2x I2C. Misc – Boot & Reset(RUN) buttons, Power and user (GP13) LEDs Power Supply 5V via USB-C port(default) 3.6-5V via Vin header pin Dimensions – 45.5 […]

May 21, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

2-key mechanical USB keypad runs QMK firmware (Crowdfunding)

System76 Launch high-end customizable keyboard for PC’s that we covered earlier this week, and ANAVI Macro Pad 2 2-key mechanical USB keypad should not have anything in common, but they do to some extent. Both happen to feature backlit mechanical keys, are open-source hardware, and run the same Quantum Mechanical Keyboard Firmware (QKM) open-source firmware. ANAVI Macro Pad 2 specifications: MCU – Microchip ATtiny85 8-bit AVR microcontroller with 8 KB ISP Flash memory, 512 bytes EEPROM, 512 bytes SRAM Keys – Two Gateron Red mechanical switches with 3 mm LED backlighting and translucent keycaps Host connection – MicroUSB port Dimensions – 40×38 mm OSHWA certification – BG000077. ANAVI Technology says the key is compatible with Windows, MacOS, and GNU/Linux support, but as a USB keypad, it should probably just work with any host device supporting the USB HID class. ANAVI Macro Pad 2 is a smaller version of the earlier […]

May 20, 2021May 21, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 49 Comments

Nezha RISC-V Linux SBC launched for $99 and up

Last month, we wrote about Allwinner D1 SBC & processor that promised to offer a relatively low-cost RISC-V Linux solution. We were not given a name at the time, but there was a logo of Nezha, a fictional character from Chinese literature. The board is now known as the Nezha SBC and has been launched on Indiegogo for $99 and up as a board designed for IoT projects running Linux, but can also be purchased directly on Aliexpress for the same price. [Update: It can also be purchased on Taobao for 599 RMB] Nezha SBC specifications: SoC – Allwinner D1 single-core XuanTie C906 64-bit RISC-V processor @ 1.0 GHz with HiFi4 DSP, G2D 2D graphics accelerators Memory – 1GB DDR3 memory Storage – 256MB SPI NAND flash, MicroSD card slot Video Output – HDMI 1.4 port up to 4Kp30, MIPI DSI & touch panel interface up to 1080p60 Decoding – […]

May 20, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Snapdragon 778G 5G SoC to power “high-tier” smartphones with up to 16GB LPDDR5

There used to be “premium mid-range” smartphones, but Qualcomm now calls those “high-tier” smartphones in the recent announcement of Snapdragon 778G 5G processor succeeding Snapdragon 765G/768G 5G mobile platforms. The octa-core Cortex-A78/A55 SoC features a Snapdragon X53 5G Modem supporting up to 3.7 Gbps downlink, support FHD+ display up to 144 Hz, up to 16GB LP-DDR5 memory, and packs 12 TOPS of AI processing power. Snapdragon 778G (SM7325) specifications: CPU – Eight Kryo 670 CPU cores including 4x Arm Cortex-A78 @ 2.4GHz and 4x Arm Cortex-A55 @ 1.8GHz GPU – Adreno 642L with Vulkan 1.1, Snapdragon Elite Gaming features, H.265 and VP9 video decode, HDR10+, HDR10, HLG DSP – Hexagon 770 Processor with fused AI Accelerator architecture, Hexagon Tensor Accelerator, Hexagon Vector eXtensions, Hexagon Scalar Accelerator 2nd generation Qualcomm Sensing Hub Memory – Up to 16 GB LP-DDR5 memory up to 3200 MHz Display On-Device Display – up to FHD+ […]

May 20, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Sonoff & Tuya smart plugs found to transmit unencrypted passwords

There are many low-cost smart plugs based on ESP8266 that provide a convenient way to control lights or home appliances with your smartphone. But cybersecurity firm A&O IT Group found vulnerabilities in ITEAD’s Sonoff S26 and Ener-J Wi-fi (Tuya) smart plugs that would allow an attacker to easily access your wireless network. The first security vulnerability is pretty common and hard to exploit since it’s only a concern during the setup. Sonoff S26 starts itself into access point mode with ITEAD-1001xxxxxx SSID, and is set up through the eWelink app with the user not needing to know the password. But with older firmware is was needed, so ITEAD still shares the default password: 12345678 in the user manual, and it can be used to connect to the smart plug by anyone. But once configured, it’s not accessible anymore as the smart plug should be in client mode connected to your […]

May 20, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Qualcomm unveils Snapdragon X65 and X62 5G M.2 card reference designs

Qualcomm has introduced 5G M.2 card reference designs based on Snapdragon X65 and X62 5G modems with the aim of accelerating 5G adoption in PCs, Always-Connected PCs (ACPCs), laptops, Customer Premises Equipment (CPEs), XR, gaming, and other mobile broadband (MBB) devices. The Snapdragon X65 card will allow download speeds of up to 10 Gbps, while the Snapdragon X62 model can handle up to 4.4 Gbps with both versions compliant with 3GPP Release 16, and supporting mmWave and sub-6GHz networks. For those who may not know, reference designs are ready to be manufactured solutions provided by silicon vendors to OEM’s. So Qualcomm will not sell the cards themselves but instead, rely on partners who may manufacture them as is or with some tweaks. Companies committed to either sell cards or include them into their offering include Compal Electronics, Fibocom Foxconn, MeiG Smart, Partron, Quectel, Sierra Wireless, Telit, and others with most […]

May 19, 2021May 19, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Android 12 Beta released with revamped user interface

Google has just announced the release of Android 12 Beta. We already covered the first Android 12 developer preview with changes including support for AVIF image format, trust and safety improvement, and enhanced media transcoding. But with the release of Android 12 Beta, Google also introduced significant changes to the user interface created with a design language called Material You, plus some new features that we’ll explore in this post. The most notable user-facing changes include: Personalization – Your phone can now be personalized with a custom color palette and redesigned widgets. This is done automatically using color extraction from your wallpaper images, and Android 12 applies those colors across the entire OS including the notification shade, the lock screen, the volume controls, new widgets, etc… Fluid motion and animations – Google optimized the system to make animations more fluid by reducing the CPU time needed for core system services […]