Forlinx Embedded Technology has made several ARM9, ARM11, and Cortex A8 boards in the past, and they’ve now launched their first ARM Cortex-A9 board powered by Freescale i.MX6 Quad processor with 1GB RAM, 8GB eMMC Flash, HDMI, LCD, and LVDS interfaces, mPCIe connector for 3G module, SATA, GPS, CAN bus, RS485 port, and more.
The board is composed of a baseboard and a 220-pin CPU module (soldered) with the following combined specifications:
- SoC – Freescale i.MX6 Quad with 4x ARM Cortex A9 cores @ up to 1.2 GHz and Vivante GC2000 3D GPU
- System Memory – 1GB DDR3
- Storage – 8GB eMMC, SATA connector, and SD card slot up to 32GB
- Video Output / Display I/F – HDMI 1.4, LCD interface (7″ capacitive touch available), and 2x 8-bit LVDS interface. 4-wire resistive touch.
- Audio – 1x stereo audio jack, 1x mono microphone jack, 2x speaker headers
- Camera I/F – 1x camera connector up to 5MP (OV5640 sensor)
- Connectivity – 1x Gigabit Ethernet (Up to 470 Mbps), GPS module (SIRF3) + external antenna, optional Wi-Fi + BT module
- USB – 2x USB 2.0 host ports, 1x micro USB 2.0 OTG port, 1x micro USB port for debugging (UART)
- Serial
- 4x serial port including 1x debug interface, 2x 3-wire UART, and 1x 5-wire UART (TTL by default, RS232 optional)
- 1x RS485 (Multiplexed with UART2)
- 1x CAN bus
- Other I/Os – 1x header with 2x I2C, 1x header with 1x SPI, and connection for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth module.
- Expansions – 1x mini PCIe connector for 3G modem with SIM card slot on the back of the baseboard.
- Misc – LEDs, Volume, reset, power, and boot selection keys, battery connector for RTC
- Power Supply – 12V or battery
- Dimensions – 60 x 60 mm (CPU module); 190 x 130 mm (Baseboard)
- Operating Temperature Range – They mention “-20-105 (For commercial application), -40-105 (For industrial application) -20-105 (For vehicle application)”. Believe it you want.
The company mentions Ubuntu, Android, and Linux support on some pictures, but the software resources page only mentions Android 4.4 with an older Linux 3.0.35 kernel and U-boot 2009.08, as well as relevant drivers. I’ve asked about documentation to the company and it’s clear they still live in the past, as “they kindly provide necessary documentation to buyers” so you can’t check before you buy. I could also confirm “SDK/BSPs are also provided with full support for Android, Linux and Ubuntu”.
Forlinx i.MX6 is available now, at an undisclosed price, but I’ve been told “this is a relative high-end item and special for enterprise users, and the prices are more expensive than all the past ones”. You can find further information on Forlinx Embedded i.MX6 board page.
Thanks to Nanik for the tip.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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It’s an industrial board- so the odds are good that it’s going to be pricey compared to the community boards we’re all used to- but that’s “okay”. Most of those boards are missing things like a PCI-E based SATA edge, etc.