CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

February 28, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Spreadtrum SC9861G-IA is an Octa-core Intel Airmont LTE SoC for Smartphones

Do you member Rockchip & Intel partnership about “SoFia” SoC for smartphones? It did not pan out so well, and but Intel has apparently not given up on the idea of partnering with Chinese companies to design and launch Intel based smartphone application processors, as Speadtrum has just announced SC9861G-IA octa-core Intel Airmont processor @ up to 2.0 GHz with an LTE Cat. 7 modem, and manufactured using Intel’s 14nm process technology. The Airmont architecture is also found in Intel’s own Cherry Trail and Braswell SoCs designed for respectively tablets and mini PCs, so they must have found some further power efficiencies in order to use it in a smartphone, and used some of technology developed for Intel canceled projects. SC9861G-IA withh support 5-mode full-band LTE (TDD-LTE / FDD-LTE / TD-SCDMA / WCDMA / EGG) Cat 7. as well as Carrier Aggregation and TDD/FDD hybrid networking, allowing for peak data […]

February 27, 2017February 28, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

BLCR MX3 is a $12 Backlit Air Mouse with QWERTY Keyboard

There’s an embarrassment of choices when it comes to air mice, but so far apart from models like Rii Mini i28 which looks more like a keyboard than a remote control, I had not seen air mice with backlit keys. But this morning BLCR MX3 showed up in DX new arrivals feed for $17.27 shipped, but you could also find it for about $12 on Aliexpress without BLCR “trademark”. [Update: Also on Amazon US for ~$16]. BLCR MX3 air mouse specifications: Connectivity – 2.4 GHz RF up to 10 meters Sensor – 6-axis sensor with gyroscope and g-sensor Remote side with IR learning function + backlit keys Air Mouse mode QWERTY keyboard with backlit keys Power Supply – 2x AAA batteries (not included) Dimensions – 17.2 x 5.2 x 1.9 cm Weight – 98 grams Material – Plastic + silicone The device ships with a USB dongle and user’s manual, […]

February 27, 2017April 22, 2017 by Karl Johnson - 30 Comments

Karl’s Home Automation Project – Part 1: Home Assistant & YAML, MQTT, Sonoff, and Xmas Lights

Karl here. I am here to write about my home automation project. First thing I want to say is that I am very cost conscious and I don’t mind putting in extra effort into the setup of things to keep costs down. I did invest a lot of time and had to do a lot of reading to get my project going. It took while and I received a lot of groans from my wife while testing. I am still in the process of tweaking things. I started watching a series of videos on YouTube from Bruh Automation. He introduced me to Home Assistant. It got me really excited. He uses a Raspberry Pi as a server but I already had a Wintel Pro CX-W8 Smart TV Box which I use as a server. I run 3 Minecraft Servers, Emby Server, iSpyConnect DVR (2 IP Cameras), Unifi wifi controller, and […]

February 27, 2017April 10, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Rikomagic R1 mini Projector Runs Android 4.4 on Rockchip RK3128 Quad Core Processor

Rikomagic R1 may look like a Android TV box from some angles, but it’s actually a mini projector powered by Rockchip RK3128 quad core processor, with 1GB RAM, 32GB storage, with many of the port of featuring found on a TV box, plus a 854×480 DLP LED projector. Rikomagic R1 projector specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3128 quad core Cortex A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz with Mali-400MP2 GPU System memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 32GB NAND flash + micro SD slot up to 32GB Projector DLP technology with 0.3″ DMD + RGB LED with 1000 lumens (TBC), likely based on Texas Instruments DLP3000. Resolution – 854×480 (WVGA) Contrast ratio – 2000:1 Projection – Area – 30 to 120″; distance: 1 to 5 meters; ratio: 1.19:1 Keystone correction – automatic, vertical: -/+ 40 degrees Manual focus Video Input – HDMI 1.4 port Audio – 3.5mm earphone jack, built-in speaker(s) Connectivity – […]

February 26, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

LibreELEC v8.0.0 Released with Kodi 17.0 (Krypton)

LibreELEC is a JeOS (Just enough Operating System) based on Linux that creates a media center appliance platform for Kodi (formelly XBMC), and a fork of OpenELEC. The developers have now released LibreELEC v8.0.0 with the latest Kodi 17.0 “Krypton”. Beside the update to Kodi 17, some of the changes since the last stable version (v7.95.3) include: Fix for TVheadend issues in the WeTek Play 2 DVB driver Fix for interactive governor causing slowdown issues on the WeTek Core Fix for missing Bluetooth “connect and trust” option when pairing Fix for missing ir-keytable streamzap support after recent changes Updates to refine lirc repeat timing changes Update WeTek Play 2 remote keymap to expose more buttons Updates to linux-amlogic 3.10 (arm) and 3.14 (aarch64) kernels Add hexdump busybox applet needed for Odroid_C2 overclocking The full list of changes can be found on github. While it’s possible to update from an existing […]

February 25, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Netgem SoundBox is a Speaker with Built-in Set-Top Box Features

Netgem, a company specializing in Connected TV & Home, has sent a press release about profit growth, and two new “innovations int its smart home roadmap” with voice control with Amazon, and SoundBox, a connected speaker which embeds set-top box technology. Netgem does not sell directly to consumers, but instead sell its products and solutions to service providers, and they have not provided a great deal of technical details. But we still know the company has improved Netgem Home Platform, a cloud service allowing the deployment and management of multi-screen features, content discoverability, with support for multi-room, multi-source music service through technology from Voxtok. SoundBox will then offer both video and audio service, and be controlled by voice using Amazon Alexa. The SoundBox will be customized for each Telco to adapt to the needs of local markets. A few more details may eventually surfaced on Netgem’s SoundBox product’s page. They’ll […]

February 24, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

NXP QorIQ LayerScape LA1575 Programmable Wireless SoC to Support 5G, 802.11ax & 802.11ad WiFi, and Wireline

NXP has recently announced QorIQ LayerScape LA1575 programmable wireless platform with two ARMv8 cores, and simultaneous multi-standard support for 5G, Wi-Fi (802.11 ac and 802.11ax) and Wireline systems for enterprise and high-end home gateways. QorIQ LayerScape LA1575 key features and specifications: Multicore ARMv8 Processors for user applications DDR4 with ECC Programmable accelerator engines for signal processing. Programmable low latency MAC layer processing engines Programmable high performance packet processing engines to over 10 Gbps Configurable cryptographic offload engines Simultaneous multi-standard support for 5G, Wi-Fi (802.11 ac and 802.11ax) and Wireline systems Multiple Ethernet interfaces including 10Gbps PCIe gen 3.0 Integrated Trust architecture Single source clocking The main benefit of this SoC is that is is programmable, so even if some standards evolve after the release, it can be re-programmed to reflects the changes in specifications. Just to refresh everybody’s memory: 5G is the successor of 4G/LTE scheduled to start (Wave 1) around 2018, […]

February 24, 2017March 2, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 15 Comments

Review of MINIX NEO U9-H Media Hub & MINIX A3 Air Mouse – Part 1: Specs, Unboxing and Teardown

MINIX showcased MINIX NEO U9-H TV box at IFA 2016 last year, but was not ready to launch the product or provide the full details yet. The company has now completed development of their Amlogic S912-H octa-core TV box, and sent a review sample for evaluation on CNX Software together with their latest MINIX A3 air mouse with voice command function. I’ll start by listing the specifications of the TV box, take some pictures, and tear it apart to check out how it’s been designed in the first part of the review, and test the firmware in the second part which I intend to post in a few days. MINIX NEO U9-H Media Hub specifications One of the main difference over other Amlogic S912, is the -H suffix which means Dolby and DTS licenses have been paid for so all apps will handle those audio formats: SoC – Amlogic S912-H […]