CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

October 2, 2023October 2, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Ollie v2 USB to UART/CAN/RS485/RS232 converter gets USB-C port, plastic enclosure, and more (Crowdfunding)

USB-C to UART, CAN Bus, RS485, and RS232 converter

Ollie v2 is an improved version of the Ollie USB to isolated UART, CAN Bus, RS232, and RS485 converter that gains a USB-C port, a plastic case, the ability to set the voltage from the target board, and various other minor improvements. Like the first version, the Ollie v2 is a portable tool designed for hackers and field engineers that allows them to work with a single device instead of a bunch of USB converters, each handling a single protocol, and isolation makes sure the host, such as a laptop, is protected from high voltages. Ollie V2 specifications: Serial chip – WCH CH344 quad-serial port chip (instead of XR21V1414 in the first design) Host interface – USB Type-C port Isolated interfaces (all with ESD protection) 2x UART ports up to 6 Mbps with 1.8/3.3/5 V or target voltage levels (set by slide switch) CAN 2.0A/B up to 1 Mbps bus […]

October 2, 2023October 1, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

ZX05 mini PC with Processor N100 CPU, 12GB RAM goes for $133 and up

ZX05 is another Intel Processor N100 Alder Lake-N mini PC whose main selling points are its PC stick-like size (145 x 62 x 20mm) and its price with the device selling for $132.62 and up on AliExpress with 12GB RAM and an M.2 2280 socket for an NVMe SSD. Despite its dimensions, the pocket-sized PC comes with two HDMI ports, three USB 3.2 Gen 1 ports, gigabit Ethernet, WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.2, and an audio jack which should cover most basic computing use cases. ZX05 specifications: SoC – Intel Processor N100 Alder Lake-N quad-core/quad-thread processor @ up to 3.4 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 24EU Intel HD graphics @ up to 750 MHz; TDP: 6W System Memory – 12GB LPDDR5 soldered-on board Storage – Optional 128GB, 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB NVMe SSD via M.2 2280 socket Video Output – 2x HDMI 2.0 ports up to 4Kp60 Audio – 3.5mm […]

October 1, 2023September 30, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

Sipeed Tang Mega 138K Pro Dock features GOWIN GW5AST FPGA + RISC-V SoC

Sipeed has launched another FPGA board part of their Tang family with the Tang Mega 138K Pro Dock powered by a GOWIN GW5AST SoC with 138K logic elements as well as an 800 MHz AE350_SOC RISC-V hardcore unit, and featuring a PCIe 3.0 x4 interface, DVI Rx and Tx, two SFP+ cages, a Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 port, and more. We’ve previously seen companies like AMD (Xilinx) and Microchip produce FPGA SoCs with hard cores such as the Zynq Ultrascale+ family (4x Cortex-A53) or the PolarFire MPSoC (4x 64-bit SiFive U54 RISC-V cores), but it’s the first time I see GOWIN introduce an FPGA + RISC-V SoC, as all the previous parts that came to my attention were FPGA devices. Sipeed Tang Mega 138K Pro Dock specifications: System-on-Module – Sipeed Tang Mega 138K Pro SoC FPGA – GOWIN GW5AST-LV138FPG676A with 138,240 LUT4 1,080 Kb Shadow SRAM (SSRAM) 6,120 Kb Block SRAM […]

September 30, 2023October 1, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

PALMSHELL NeXT H2 SBC and micro server offers 10GbE for $199 and up

Palmshell Next H2 10GbE 2.5GbE micro server

PALMSHELL NeXT H2 is an affordable AMD Ryzen Embedded R1505G-powered micro server, also available as an SBC for developers, that features two 10GbE SFP+ cages and one 2.5GbE RJ45 port, as well as expansion sockets for wireless connectivity. The system supports up to 32GB RAM plus an M.2 NVMe SSD and two SATA drives for storage, offers several wireless connectivity options with WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, and 4G LTE/5G, and is equipped with two 4Kp60-capable HDMI ports, and four USB ports. PALMSHELL NeXT H2 specifications: SoC – AMD Ryzen Embedded R1505G dual-core/quad-thread processor @ 2.4GHz up to 3.3GHz with AMD Radeon Vega 3 graphics; TDP set to 25W System Memory – Optional 8GB or 16GB DDR4 @ 2400 MT/s via 2x SO-DIMM slots Storage Optional 256GB or 512GB NVMe (PCIe 3.0) SSD via M.2 Key-N 2280 socket 2x SATA III connector MicroSD card socket Video Output – 2x HDMI […]

September 29, 2023September 29, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Arduino GIGA R1 WiFi board gets touchscreen display shield

The Arduino GIGA Display Shield is a 3.97-inch RGB touchscreen display designed for the Arduino GIGA R1 WiFi board introduced a few months ago with an STM32H7 dual-core Cortex-M7/M4 microcontroller and a Murata 1DX module for WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.1 connectivity. Besides featuring an 800×480 touchscreen display, the new shield offers some other features such as an MP34DT06JTR digital microphone, a Bosch BMI270 six-axis IMU, a 20-pin Arducam camera connector, and an RGB LED. Arduino GIGA Display Shield (ASX00039) specifications: Display – 3.97-inch touchscreen display with 800×480 resolution (model: KD040WVFID026-01-C025A), 16.7 million colors, 5-point touch, connected over I2C Camera I/F – 20-pin ArduCam camera connectors Sensors Bosch SensorTech BMI270 6-axis IMU with 16-bit tri-axial gyroscope and a 16-bit tri-axial accelerometer STMicro MP34DT06JTR MEMS microphone Misc -1x RGB LED (I2C) Supply Voltage – 3.3V Dimensions – 106 x 80 mm The new shield can be mounted to the GIGA R1 […]

September 29, 2023September 29, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 16 Comments

Samsung LPCAMM integrates LPDDR RAM on removable modules

Samsung has unveiled a new type of removable memory module called the LPCAMM (Low Power Compression Attached Memory Module) with LPDDR designed for PCs and laptops, and the company expects them to eventually be used in servers found in data centers. I would also not be surprised to find them in embedded systems in the future, for example in an updated COM Express standard. Laptops typically come with either low-power DDR (LPDDR) soldered to the motherboard or SO-DIMM modules with DDR memory chips, but there weren’t any removable modules with low-power memory so far, and Samsung LPCAMM changes that. The new LPCAMM module will initially be fitted with LPDDR5X chips and deliver a 50% performance boost (up to 7500 MT/s), improve power efficiency by 70%, and reduce the mounting area by 60% (78 x 23mm) compared to SO-DIMM modules A main factor in reducing the area required is that two […]

September 28, 2023September 28, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

BIGME B251 – An All-in-One color E-Ink computer and standalone monitor (crowdfunding)

The BIGME B251 is a 25.3-inch color E-Ink monitor that is also sold as an All-in-One (AIO) PC with a 12th generation Core-i5 processor, 16GB RAM, and a 1TB SSD. The B251 is based on the same E-ink Kaleido 3 color display with 3200×1800 resolution as the DASUNG E-Ink color monitor, but BIGME included some extra features such as a cold/warm dual front light and voice control. It’s also the first time I’ve seen an AIO PC with an E-Ink display. BIGME B251 key features and specifications: All-in-one model SoC – Unnamed 12th Generation Intel Core-i5 Alder Lake processor System Memory – 16 GB RAM Storage – 1TB SSD OS – Windows 11 Display – 23.5-inch color E-ink Kaleido 3 color screen with 3200 x 1800 resolution, xRapid-refresh Tech, adjustable image quality, warm and cold dual front light, support for landscape and portrait mode orientation, Video Input – HDMI, mini […]

September 28, 2023April 27, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 97 Comments

Raspberry Pi 5 SBC launched with 2.4 GHz Broadcom BCM2712 quad-core Cortex-A76 SoC

The long-awaited Raspberry Pi 5 SBC is finally here with a powerful Broadcom BCM2712 quad-core Cortex-A76 processor clocked at 2.4 GHz, 4GB or 8GB memory, and the usual Raspberry Pi Model B form factor. The Raspberry Pi 4 Model B was introduced in June 2019, so it took over four years to get a new model, and the Raspberry Pi 5 should deliver 2 to 4 times the performance, compete directly with Raspberry Pi-shaped Rockchip RK3588S SBCs such as the Radxa Rock 5A or Cool Pi 4 Model B and benefit from a larger community and better software support. Raspberry Pi 5 specifications: SoC – Broadcom BCM2712 CPU – Quad-core Arm Cortex-A76 processor @ 2.4 GHz with crypto extensions, 512KB per-core L2 caches, 2MB shared L3 cache GPU – VideoCore VII GPU @ 800 MHz with support for OpenGL ES 3.1, Vulkan 1.2, 4Kp60 HEVC decoder System Memory – 4GB […]