CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

September 9, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Rikomagic R6 Mini Android Projector Looks Like a Vintage Radio

Rikomagic has been releasing Android TV boxes at least since 2012, but in recent years the company has also started to work on Android projectors, and a couple of years ago I reviewed Rikomagic RKM R1 mini projector, and I was fairly satisfied despite the system using an entry-level quad-core Cortex-A7 processor (Rockchip RK3128). Based on the same industrial design, Rikomagic R5 projector launched in 2018 is more up-to-date to today’s user’s requirements with Rockchip RK3328 and 2GB RAM. But with Rikomagic R6 mini Android projector, the company is trying something different, at least in terms of appearance, as the projector looks like a vintage radio. Rikomagic R6 specifications: SoC – Rockchip quad-core processor System memory – 1 or 2GB DDR3 Storage – 8 or 16GB eMMC flash, microSD slot Projector 4000 lumens (real 70 ANSI lumens) Resolution – 720p physical lense; up to 1920×1080 output Contrast ratio – 2000:1 […]

September 9, 2019September 9, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

NanoPi M4 SBC Metal Case Comes with an NVMe SSD Adapter and Cooling Fan

There are several single board computers that come with NVMe SSD either directly like on ODROID-H2 SBC or indirectly via an expansion board such as M2X extender board for Khadas VIM3. But if you’d like an enclosure for your system it either further adds to the cost, or you need to develop the case yourself. If you’d like an SBC that takes an NVMe SSD in a fairly compact enclosure and at a affordable price (under $100 excluding the SSD), NanoPi M4 metal case kit looks to be a good option and sells for $28 with SSD adapter and fan, or just $26 if you already own the SSD adapter. As a reminder, NanoPi M4 is a Rockchip RK3399 SBC that mostly follows Raspberry Pi form factor comes with 2GB or 4GB RAM with price starting at $50. See NanoPi M4 specifications for more details. One selling point of this […]

September 8, 2019September 9, 2019 by Siji Sunny - 4 Comments

UpSwift – Manage IoT & Embedded Linux Devices Easily & Quickly

UpSwift offers a GUI based management interface to their customers to update, manage, control & diagnose IoT and embedded devices. The solution also supports OTA updates to any device which is running the Linux operating system including Raspberry Pi board and other Arm SBC’s. Because of the pull-based, client/server architecture, the client-side binary looks for updates in configurable frequent interval and executes the changes and updates. The communication between the client and the server is established over secured REST API’s. By monitoring the applications logs and other device parameters, UpSwift’s Cloud-Smart engine is capable of behaving intelligently by sending email alerts to the administrator. UpSwift Basic WorkFlow Post-registration and package selection with UpSwift Cloud-based dashboard, customers can start adding their devices into UpSwift dashboard. Depending upon the selected plans (number devices connected, features, etc.. will vary depends on the plan chosen), customers will be able to manage their products remotely. […]

September 7, 2019September 8, 2019 by Stephen Vicinanza - 8 Comments

PIS2 DIY Handheld PS2 Game Console Uses Raspberry Pi 2 SBC as SMB Server

It’s a Handheld PS2 Game Console The PIS2 is a handheld PS2 game console that has the chopped-up insides of PS2 game system stuffed into a small console, along with a display, controllers and a Raspberry Pi 2 to access the games from the Ethernet to load directly to the hardware. Sony has officially discontinued all handheld PSs as of March 2019, so these DIY consoles are popping up regularly. This one is quite an accomplishment. It Took a Long Time The creator of the PIS2, a hacker named Darkwing, started work on the unit in 2013. He stopped for some time, then started documenting his work on the system in 2017. The ambitious first design specs looked like this PS2 scph-79002 5.6″ Dalian Good Display and VGA chip Genius MaxFire Blaze 2 controller 11.1V 6200mAh made of 6 ncr18650a cells Texas instrument ptn78020 switching regulator IBM Lenovo 05K5494 Laptop […]

September 6, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

NXP i.MX RT106F & RT106A/L Cortex-M7 Processors Target Offline Face Recognition & Smart Audio Applications

NXP i.MX RT crossover processors combine real-time capabilities of microcontrollers with the performance of application processors thanks to an Arm Cortex-M7 core clocked at 528 MHz and more. The performance is indeed impressive as shown by Teensy 4.0 benchmarks, but so far NXP i.MX RT processor targeted general purpose applications. The company has now introduced three new crossover processors designed for AI applications. NXP i.MX RT106F is designed for offline face recognition and expression Identification, while RT106L and RT106A are made for local and cloud-based embedded voice applications. NXP i.MX RT106F Processor Highlights of the processor: CPU – Arm Cortex-M7 @ 600 MHz (3020 CoreMark/1284 DMIPS) Memory – 1 MB On-Chip SRAM plus up to 512 KB configurable as Tightly Coupled Memory (TCM) External memory interface options – NAND, eMMC, QuadSPI NOR Flash, and Parallel NOR Flash Real-time, low-latency response as low as 20 ns Industry’s lowest dynamic power with […]

September 6, 2019September 6, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

MediaTek MT8516 2-Mic Development Kit is Designed for Alexa Voice Service (AVS)

MediaTek has just announced the MT8516 2-mic development kit for Alexa Voice Service (AVS) that aims to help developers build voice-assistant products faster, at reduced costs, and with advanced features such as multi-room music (MRM). The kit is based on MT8516 quad-core ARM Cortex-A35 application processor, which integrates audio front-end and post-processing technologies, as well as Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. MediaTek MT8516 2-mic development kit specifications: SoC – MediaTek MT8516 quad core Cortex-A35 processor @ 1.3 GHz System Memory I/F – LPDDR2, DDR3, LPDDR3, DDR3L Video Output – HDMI 1.4 with ARC Audio 2x DMIC Amazon Alexa support MediaTek PowerAQ Multi-Room Audio 2x 4-channel I2S S/PDIF TDM in/out up to 8 channels 2-channel PDM inputs 2-channel audio DAC and DAC Connectivity – Fast Ethernet, WiFi 4, Bluetooth 4.2 LE USB – 1x micro USB 2.0 OTG port MediaTek MT8516 supports the following technology components, although note that a license […]

September 6, 2019September 6, 2019 by Stephen Vicinanza - 3 Comments

Mastak Modular Air Quality Monitor Kit Supports CO2, Dust, Formaldehyde, Ozone and other Sensor Modules

The Mastak Indoor Air Quality Monitor Kit Medium Systems Limited, a UK company has released the Mastak, SoMs designed in a mechanical range that allows for indoor air quality monitoring, with a data IoT cloud service, and communications that include NB-IoT, 5G, WiFi, BLE, and LTE-M. The system is a new addition to the air monitoring market place. There have been reports on other air quality monitors in past articles that covered quick start and user experience with Sonoff SC WiFi, vThings WiFi CO2 Monitor, and the ANAVI Gas Detector. The Specs The ecological modules are all compatible and contain processor, peripherals and the sensors for data monitoring and collection, as well as the necessary power electronics. The modules were designed too and allow the user to arrange the systems into custom arrangements and place in unique form factors. There are a number of options also, for even further expandability […]

September 5, 2019September 7, 2019 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 54 Comments

FriendlyELEC ZeroPi is a Tiny Allwinner H3 SBC with Gigabit Ethernet & USB, an Optional SPI Flash

Several years ago, FriendlyELEC launched NanoPi NEO board with Allwinner H3 quad-core Cortex-A7 processor followed by NanoPi NEO2 upgrading to the Allwinner H5 64-bit Arm Cortex-A53 processor. Both boards target low-cost headless applications with I/O headers, USB and Ethernet, but while the NEO2 comes with Gigabit Ethernet, NEO SBC only features 10/100M Ethernet. The company has now been working on a new family of boards called ZeroPi that’s very similar to NanoPi NEO boards, but they do not come with any I/O headers, and the first ZeroPi board features Allwinner H3 processor, and Gigabit Ethernet. ZeroPi specifications with highlights in bold or stricken-through showing differences against NanoPi NEO: SoC – Allwinner H3 quad-core Cortex A7 @ 1.2 GHz with an Arm Mali-400MP2 GPU System Memory – 256 or 512 MB DDR3 Storage – MicroSD card slot, unmounted SPI flash Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet via Realtek RTL8211E PHY USB – 1x […]