Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft), Author at CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

March 18, 2025March 19, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

You can now buy Raspberry Pi RP2350 MCU for 80 cents and up, RP2354A and RP2354B variants coming soon

The Raspberry Pi RP2350 dual-core Cortex-M33/RISC-V MCU was first unveiled along with the Raspberry Pi Pico 2 in August 2024. Since then we have covered many Raspberry Pi RP2350 news and boards, but the microcontroller was hard to source for hobbyist and low-volume projects, which partially explains why companies like NextPCB had promotions offering free PCBA prototyping services for RP2350 designs. The good news is that Raspberry Pi has just announced general availability for the RP2350 microcontrollers starting at $0.80 per unit for the RP2350A in 3,400-piece reels, or $1.1 in single quantity, so anybody can buy the MCUs from their favorite distributor. The British company also announced the RP2354A and RP2354B variants with 2MB of stacked flash memory would soon be available to select partners and mass production will ramp up later this year. Here’s the current official pricing information for the RP2040 and RP2350 microcontrollers. Users can simply […]

March 18, 2025March 18, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 16 Comments

GL.iNet Comet (GL-RM1) low-cost KVM-over-IP solution supports up to 2K resolution

GL.iNet has entered the low-cost KVM-over-IP market with the Comet (GL-RM1) remote KVM to remotely control any computer over an Ethernet connection with an HDMI port for video and audio input and a USB-C port for keyboard and mouse emulation. It’s an alternative to the Sipeed NanoKVM (Cube) with a more powerful quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, an 8GB eMMc flash, a gigabit Ethernet port, and support for up to 2K (2160×1440) resolution at 60 FPS. Comet GL-RM1 specifications: SoC – Quad-core CPU @ 1.5 GHz System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB eMMC flash Video & Audio Input – HDMI port up to 2K @ 60 FPS (2160 x 1440 @ 60 FPS); H.264 encodding with 30 to 60ms latency Networking – Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 port USB USB 2.0 Type-A port to connect peripherals like a Fingerbot or ATX power control board USB 2.0 Type-C port for mouse/keyboard emulation […]

March 17, 2025March 23, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

MicroPython-programmable OpenMV N6 and AE3 AI camera boards run on battery for years (Crowdfunding)

OpenMV has launched two new edge AI camera boards programmable with MicroPython: the OpenMV AE3 powered by an Alif Ensemble E3 dual Cortex-M55, dual Ethos-U55 micro NPU SoC, and the larger OpenMV N6 board based on an STMicro STM32N6 Cortex-M55 microcontroller with a 1 GHz Neural-ART AI/ML accelerator. Both can run machine vision workloads for several years on a single battery charge. The OpenMV team has made several MCU-based camera boards and corresponding OpenMV firmware for computer vision, and we first noticed the company when they launched the STM32F427-based OpenMV Cam back in 2015. A lot of progress has been made over the years in terms of hardware, firmware, and software, but the inclusion of AI accelerators inside microcontrollers provides a leap in performance, and the new OpenMV N6 and AE3 are more than 100x faster than previous OpenMV Cams for AI workloads. For example, users can now run object […]

March 17, 2025March 17, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

M5Stack Unit Gateway H2 – A tiny ESP32-H2 Thread/Zigbee gateway selling for $6.50

M5Stack’s Unit Gateway H2 is a small Thread/Zigbee gateway powered by the ESP32-H2-MINI-1 module with an 802.15.4 radio for Zigbee 3.0, Thread 1.3, and Matter connectivity. The Unit Gateway H2, also known as Gateway H2 Unit…, can operate as a gateway (e.g. a Thread Board Router) or a terminal device that communicates with a M5Stack device via serial/UART through the Grove interface. It also features a USB-C port for power, firmware flash, and debugging. M5Stack says it’s suitable for smart homes, environmental monitoring, sensor networks, and low-power wireless communication nodes. M5Stack Gateway H2 Unit specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-H2-MINI-1-N2 SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-H2 CPU – 32-bit RISC-V SoC clocked at up to 96 MHz RAM and storage – 320 KB SRAM, 128 KB ROM, 4 KB LP memory Wireless – 802.15.4 radio with Zigbee 3.0, Thread 1.3, and Matter support. (Note: the ESP32-H2 also supports Bluetooth 5.2 LE/Mesh, […]

March 16, 2025March 16, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Updated PineTab-V RISC-V tablet ships with Debian 12-based Linux image

Pine64 has launched an updated version of the PineTab-V RISC-V tablet with the same StarFive JH7110 SoC, 8GB RAM, and 128GB eMMC flash, but a few small hardware changes, and a Debian-based Linux image maintained by StarFive themselves. The PineTab-V is not exactly a new RISC-V tablet since it was launched in 2023, but at the time it was reserved for developers since it shipped with nothing… Users had to install the OS (that did not support the display yet) themselves, and work on the software/OS to improve it. The new model still targets developers and enthusiasts/early adopters, but at least now there’s a Debian 12 image optimized for the PineTab-V. The hardware is mostly the same, except Pine64 added an accelerometer, a status LED, an ID for the PineTab-V in the EEPROM, and a fix for slow charging while the tablet is turned off. PineTab-V (2025) specifications: SoC – […]

March 14, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

UNIHIKER K10 low-cost TinyML education platform supports image detection and voice recognition

UNIHIKER K10 is a low-cost STEM education platform for TinyML applications that leverages the ESP32-S3 wireless microcontroller with vector extensions for workloads such as image detection or voice recognition. The UNIHIKER K10 also features a built-in 2.8-inch color display, a camera, a speaker, a 2-microphone array, a few sensors, a microSD card, and a BBC Micro:bit-like edge connector for power signals and GPIOs. It’s a cost-optimized version of its Linux-based big brother – the UNIHIKER M10 – first unveiled in 2022. Arnon also reviewed the UNIHIKER in 2023, showing how to configure it, use the SIoT platform with MQTT message, and program it with Jupyter Notebook, Python, or Visual Studio Code. Let’s have a closer look at the new ESP32-S3 variant. UNIHIKER K10 specifications: Core module – ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 MCU – ESP32-S3N16R8 dual-core Tensilica LX7 up to 240 MHz with 512KB SRAM, 8MB PSRAM, 16MB flash Wireless – WiFi 4 and […]

March 14, 2025March 14, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

Geniatech AIM M2 M.2 module features Kinara Ara-2 40 TOPS AI accelerator

There are plenty of M.2 AI modules based on accelerators such as Hailo-8, MemryX MX3, or Axelera AI, but the Geniatech AIM M2 module is based on the Kinara Ara-2 40 TOPS AI accelerator that we’ve yet to cover here on CNX Software. The Key-M module is designed to handle Generative AI and transformer-based models such as Stable Diffusion at a lower price point than competitors, and operates at a typical sub-2W power consumption in computer vision workloads. Target applications include AI assistants/Copilot, gaming, smart retail, physical security, and factory automation. Geniatech AIM M2 specifications: AI Accelerator Kinara Ara-2 NPU with 40 TOPS of AI power Package – 17x17mm FCBBA System Memory – 16GB RAM (4GB/8GB Option) Host interface – PCIe Gen4 x4 Security – Secure boot and encrypted memory access Misc – Heatsink cooling Supply Voltage – 3.3V Power Consumption – Under 2 Watts (typical) TDP – 12 Watts […]

March 14, 2025March 13, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

PicoCalc Kit is a Raspberry Pi Pico handheld terminal with a backlit STM32 QWERTY keyboard

ClockworkPi has made several Linux handheld terminals over the years such as the GameShell or DevTerm, but the PicoCalc Kit is quite different since it relies on the Raspberry Pi Pico board plus an STM32 microcontroller to handle its built-in keyboard. The PicoCalc Kit is based on the ClockworkPi v2.0 mainboard that takes an RP2040-based Pi Pico H board, connects to a 4-inch IPS display with 320×320 resolution and stereo speakers, integrates a backlit QWERTY keyboard, and ships with a 32GB SD card with an optimized BASIC firmware. PicoCalc Kit specifications: ClockworkPi v2.0 mainboard Compatible boards – Headers for Raspberry Pi Pico H/WH, and Raspberry Pi Pico 2 / 2W MCU – STM32 for keyboard and backlight programmable with the Arduino IDE or STM32 official development tools Storage – SD card slot Display – Screen connector (SPI) Audio 2x speaker connectors 3.5mm audio jack 67-key QWERTY keyboard (I2C) Expansion Connector […]