CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

March 22, 2017March 22, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

Atomo is a Raspberry Pi Compatible Modular Electronics Prototyping System (Crowdfunding)

Atomo is a modular electronics protyping system comprised of four elements: Control, I/O, Power, and Connector, with the PCBs for each category color-coded with respectively red, blue, green, and black. The connector board connects power, I/O and control(ler) boards together in a way that’s supposed to be neater than most hand made prototypes. The whole ecosystem includes 15 different boards: Controllers with 26-pin Raspberry Pi compatible header 2 IO Module Controller (CM-M2K22-A) based on NXP Kinetis K22F MCU 4 IO Module Controller (CM-M4K64-A) based on NXP Kinetis K64F MCU 8 IO Module Controller (CM-M8K64-A) based on NXP Kinetis K64F MCU Connectors 8 IO Module Connector (GM_M8P2_A) – Dim: 145mm x 100mm; power up to 40V @ 64A 4 IO Module Connector (GM_M4P1_A) – Dim: 71mm x 100mm; power up to 40V @ 32A 2 IO Module Connector (GM_M2P1_A) – Dim: 71mm x 65mm; power up to 40V @ 16A 2 IO Module Low-Power Connector […]

March 22, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 115 Comments

Mecool KIII Pro Hybrid STB Review – Part 2: Android Firmware, TV Center, and DVB-T2 & DVB-S2 App

Last year I reviewed K1 Plus T2 S2, an Android TV box powered by Amlogic S905 quad core processor with DVB-T2 and DVB-S2 tuner support, which worked with some caveats. VideoStrong has now send me an updated model with Amlogic S912 octa-core processor, which I presented in the post entitled Mecool KIII Pro Hybrid Android STB Review – Part 1: Specs, Unboxing and Teardown, where I listed the specifications, and showed photos of the device and the boards (main board + tuner board). I’ve now had time to play with the device, and in many respects the user experience is very similar to the one I got with KI Plus T2 S2 models, but there are also some tweaks, and a few bugs which I’ll report in the second part of the review below. KIII Pro Hybrid TV Box Setup, Settings, & Power Consumption The four USB ports are really […]

March 22, 2017March 22, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Khadas Vim Amlogic S905X Development Board Gets Android 7.1 Firmware and SDK

Khadas Vim is a development board powered by Amlogic S905X quad core processor that officially supports Ubuntu 16.04, OpenELEC and Android 6.0. Shenzhen Wesion Technology , the maker of the board, has now released Android 7.1 firmware image and SDK for the board. As we’ve seen before Amlogic Android 7.1 SDK still relies on Linux 3.14.29, but Linux 4.4 is also in the works. If you want to give it a try on your board, download Vim_Nougat_170321.7z directly, or from the firmware download page. The current image installs to the eMMC flash via USB or a bootable micro SD card (Windows methods only), so it will wipe whatever OS you have already on the board. The firmware is based on the features of their Android 6.0.1 image, but upgraded to Android 7.1.1 with Chrome and Gapps (for Google Play Store support). Source code for the Android 7.1 SDK can be […]

March 22, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Google Releases Android O Developer Preview with UI & Audio Improvements, Better Performance, etc…

Nearly exactly one year after Android N developer preview release, Google has now announced the release of Android O developer preview in order to get feedback from the developer community before the official release of Android 8.0? Oreo? in Q3 2017. So what’s new so far in Android O? Here are some of the changes: Background activity limits – Automatic limits on what apps can do in the background for implicit broadcasts, background services, and location updates. Notification channels – New app-defined categories for notification content for better control from the use, as user may only block or change the behavior from one channel, instead of applying the same behavior to all notifications from a given app. For example, a News app may have notifications for Technology, Sports, Politics, International, etc… Autofill APIs – Platform support for autofill, where users can select an autofill app, similar to the way they […]

March 21, 2017March 21, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

ARM DynamIQ Improves on big.LITTLE Technology, Supports Up to 8 Heterogeneous Cores in a Single Cluster

ARM unveiled big.LITTLE technology in 2011 which consisted of clusters of low power cores such as Cortex A7 or A53, and high performance cores such as Cortex A15 or A72, with the system assigning tasks to the best processor for the job in order to optimize battery life. big.LITTLE supports up to 4 cores per cluster, and you can mix different types of cores within a single cluster. ARM DynamIQ changes all that as up to 8 cores are supported within one cluster, and you can mix low power and high performance cores within a given cluster. ARM DynamIQ multicore microarchitecture will be available for all new ARM Cortex-A processors starting this year, and targets automotive, networking, server, and primary compute devices. ARM claims it’s especially advantageous for artificial intelligence due to better performance, and autonomous driving due to increased safety, and it allows for much faster response from accelerators. […]

March 21, 2017March 21, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

AAEON RICO-3288 Pico-ITX Board is Powered by Rockchip RK3288 Processor

When Rockchip RK3288 was launched in 2014 we got a few development boards like Firefly-RK3288, PopMetal, and Radxa Rock 2, and later on MiQi board. ASUS Tinker board made the processor popular again in 2017, and now AAEON, an industrial embedded company of ASUS group, has just unveiled RICO-3288 Pico-ITX Board based on the processor, and targeting OEMs instead of hobbyists & makers. RICO-3288 board specifications with RICO-3288F & RICO-3288V models adding wireless connectivity & battery options, as well as CAN and an extra RS-232 port for for the latter: SoC – Rockchip RK3288 quad core Cortex A17 processor @ 1.8GHz with ARM Mali-T760 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3L RAM Storage – 16GB eMMC flash, micro SD slot up to 64GB Video Output / Display IF mini HDMI 2.0 up to 4Kx2K @ 60Hz (Note that 4K @ 60 Hz may not work with all HDMI 2.0 TVs). eDP […]

March 21, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

NuMicro M2351 TrustZone Enabled ARM Cortex M23 MCU is Designed for Fingerprint Applications

ARM Cortex-M23 & M33 ARMv8-M cores were unveiled at ARM Techcon 2016 last October. They are the first MCU class cores to support TrustZone technology for better security, and one of the first micro-controllers to feature the technology is Nuvoton’s NuMicro M2351 Cortex M23 MCU designed for fingerprint applications. NuMicro M2351 MCU specifications Processor Core – ARM Cortex-M23 ARMv8-M core @ up to 48 MHz Memory – 96 KB embedded SRAM Storage – Up to 512 KB embedded flash with dual bank mode supporting OTA firmware update, 32 KB Secure Boot ROM Display IF – 8 COM x 40 SEG controller with internal charge pump for segment LCD panel Peripherals – UART, SPI, I²C, GPIOs, USB and ISO 7816-3 for smart card reader. Security features TrustZone Technology 8 Memory Protection Units (MPU) 8 Security Attribution Units (SAU) Implementation Defined Attribution Unit (IDAU) 2 KB OTP ROM with additional 1KB lock […]

March 20, 2017March 20, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

$32 Bluetooth 4.1 Audio Transmitter and Receiver Comes with S/PDIF Ports, a 3.5mm Audio Jack

As I browsed through DealExtreme new arrivals, I found a type of device I had not noticed in the past: a Bluetooth Audio transmitter and receiver that come with optical SPDIF input and output, as well as 3.5mm AUX port, and sells for $31.99 shipped on DX. Let’s have a look at the hardware first Audio In & Out – 3.5mm AUX port, SPDIF IN, SPDIF OUT Buttons – Tx/Rx mode selection, SPDIF/AUX selection, multifunction button Connectivity – Bluetooth 4.1 with 10 meters range; use aptX low latency audio Power Supply – 5V via micro USB port Battery – 350mAh rechargeable battery good for 15 hours on a charge; Charging time: 2 hours Dimensions – 6 cm x 6 cm x 1.84 cm The little device ships with a micro USB Cable for charging, a 3.5mm AUX cable, an optical TOSLINK cable, an RCA Cable, and a user manual. TX […]