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

July 28, 2014July 28, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 14 Comments

Kankun KK-SP3 Wi-Fi Smart Socket Hacked, Based on Atheros AR9331, Running OpenWRT

Kankun KK-SP3 is a $20 Wi-Fi smart socket that can be controlled via iOS and Android app. But one person created a Kankun community on Google+ to try to hack the device and control it from a PC, or from outside the home network for example. Up to now, the device has been opened, found to run OpenWRT, and one the member wrote a Windows app to control the socket from a PC. It is a basic smart socket, without power monitoring capabilities, and unless you start hacking the hardware, all you can do is basically turn it on and off. The device is based on Qualcomm Atheros AR9931, found in many low cost routers supporting OpenWRT, and the socket indeed runs OpenWRT, which you can access via SSH or Telnet (username/password: root/admin). There’s 32MB RAM (Winbond W9425G6JH), and a 10A OMRON relay. The smart socket actually communicates with the […]

July 28, 2014July 28, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Rockchip RK3288 Beta Firmware Release for Unnamed Android TV Box

The whole activity around the upcoming media players based on Rockchip RK3288 is pretty interesting, or some would say amusing. First, many companies started to release pictures of their boards a few months before their products are actually ready, and now we’ve got a beta Android 4.4 firmware for Rockchip RK3288 for an unknown TV box released via Geekbuying Blog. I’ve read rumors about a Tronsmart Orion R28, so it might be that one, but who knows. Before investigating the content of the firmware, here are the features that we know about the hardware: Based on Rockchip RK3288 quad core Cortex A17 processor System Memory – 2GB RAM (Samsung) Storage – 8GB flash (Kingston) Wi-Fi – AP6330 Wi-fi module The firmware is based on Linux 3.10, the build number is rk3288-eng 4.4.2 KOT49H eng.ant.20140721.164453 test-keys, and the software version RK3288_R_BOX_Android 4.4.2-SDK_v1.0.0_140613. Most people won’t need this, but if developers want […]

July 28, 2014July 28, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

MPL CEC10 Compact Embedded Computers Feature Bay Trail SoCs, 5 Gigabit Ports, Rugged Enclosures

MPL, a company specializing in industrial PCs based in Switzerland, has recently announced their CEC10 series “Compact Embedded Computer” featuring Intel Bay Trail-I E3800 processors, with 5 Gigabit Ethernet ports using RJ45, M12, or SFP connectors, and supporting industrial and extended temperature ranges, and as well as various rugged housings. Specifications for MPL CEC10: SoC – Intel Atom E3800 series single, dual, or quad processor @ up to 1.91GHz with Intel HD graphics. System Memory – up to 4GB DDR3L ECC-RAM Storage: mSATA interface Optional 2.5-inch SATA HDD/SSD Optional eMMC flash (soldered) Video Output- DisplayPort, optional eDP / VGA Connectivity – 5x gigabit Ethernet ports. RJ45 connectors by default, but the system also supports M12 connectors or SFP cages. USB – 1x USB 3.0 host port, 1x USB 3.0 device port, 2x USB 2.0 ports Serial – 1x RS-232 port, optional RS-232/422/485 or extra RS-232 port Expansion Slots: Mini-PCIe slot […]

July 27, 2014July 27, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

Testing VolksPC’s MicroXwin Android & Debian Distribution in MK808 mini PC

Earlier this week, I wrote about VolksPC mini PC running Debian and Android simultaneously, and the developers decided to send me a unit for testing. The hardware I received is the popular MK808 mini PC based on Rockchip RK3066 with 1Gb RAM, and 8 GB RAM, but loaded with MicroXwin unified distribution. MicroXwin is an implementation of Windows X that’s not using a client/server protocol, for instead communicates directly with the drivers for better performance, especially on low-end hardware. I connected MK808 to my HDMI TV, added a USB hub to connect a USB keyboard as well as Mele Air Mouse, and powered up the device. The boot to Debian takes about 30 seconds, and 50 seconds for Android. As you boot it will enter in Debian with XFCE desktop environment, and you’ll notice two files, namely the Quick Start Guide and Release Notes that explain how to get started […]

July 26, 2014July 27, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 7 Comments

Geniatech Unveils ATV585 Enjoy TV Box Powered by Amlogic S805 with HEVC Hardware Decoding

After Eny Techology EM6Q-MXQ, there’s at least another Amlogic S805 based media player with Geniatech ATV585 Enjoy TV powered by the quad core Cortex A5 processor, with 1GB RAM and 8GB flash. Compared Amlogic S802 based STBs, you’ll get slower CPU and GPU performance, and lose 4K video decoding and output, but gain HEVC hardware decoding up to 1080p, if you’re lucky, you’ll get Gigabit Ethernet, and in theory, the price should be cheaper. ATV585 Enjoy TV specifications: SoC – Amlogic S805 quad core Cortex-A5 @ 1.5GHz with quad core Mali-450MP4 GPU @ 600MHz System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB eMMC FLASH + micro SD/MMC card slot up to 32GB Video & Audio Output – HDMI 1.4 and CVBS Video Codecs / Containers – MPEG1/2/4, H.264, H.265, VC-1, WMV, AVI, MKV, MOV, etc… Audio Formats – MP3, WMA, AAC, etc… Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, Wi-Fi with external antenna […]

July 26, 2014May 29, 2017 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Lemaker.org is Giving Away Banana Pi Development Boards to Developers and Fans

Banana Pi is a development board powered by AllWinner A20 dual core SoC with 1GB RAM, and with expansion headers and a form factor very similar to the Raspberry Pi. It can run Debian, Lubuntu, Android 4.2, Arch Linux ARM, Scratch OS, and OpenSuse, but Lemarker.org community would like more educational materials such as open source software or hardware projects, tutorials, etc.., so they’ve launched a program to give away boards to developers and people who can help writing and maintaining documentation. There are three categories of projects: STEAM – “Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Mathematics” educational, open source projects running on the the Banana Pi Hardware or Software Project – Open source projects based on Banana Pi which could be helpful to the community, including open source hardware peripherals projects; Banana Pi Fans – You don’t need to be as technical as for the two others categories, but you […]

July 25, 2014December 3, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 36 Comments

Firefly-RK3288 Development Board To Support Android and Lubuntu

We’ve already got a long list of upcoming Rockchip RK3288 based Android media players, but no low cost development boards have been announced to date. We can certainly expect a Radxa Rock 2 board with the Cortex A17 processor, but it might not be the only one, as Firefly-RK3288 development board powered by Rockchip RK3288 is currently being developed by another Chinese team. Current specifications for Firefly-RK3288 board: SoC – Rockchip 3288 quad core ARM Cortex A17 up to 1.8 GHz with Mali-T764 GPU supporting OpenGL ES 1.1/2.0 /3.0, and OpenCL 1.1 System Memory – 2G DDR3 Storage – 8GB eMMC flash + micro SD slot Video I/O HDMI 2.0 up to 3840×2160@60p VGA out (D-SUB connector) VGA in is available via the expansion headers. LCD, MIPI and LVDS Audio Output / Input – HDMI, optical S/PDIF, microphone header, and built-in MIC Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet, dual band 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi with external antenna, and Bluetooth […]

July 25, 2014July 25, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 16 Comments

FreakTab Community Introduces Freakbox Android TV Box Powered by Rockchip RK3188

FreakTab is a community of developers and users focusing on Android tablets, smartphones and especially mini PCs. Users will get answer to their technical problems, and developers such as Finless or Neonode, will release improved custom “ROMs” for more popular devices. But instead of simply working on other product’s firmware, the main contributors on Freaktab have apaprently decided to work together on the Freakbox Project, an Android TV Box powered by Rockchip RK3188 quad core SoC. Freakbox Project hardware specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3188 Quad core ARM Cortex A9 processor @ 1.6GHz with Mali-400MP4 GPU System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB to 16 GB NAND Flash + SD slot up to 32GB Video Output – HDMI 1.4, AV output (3.5mm jack) Audio I/O – HDMI, AV, and S/PDIF Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, dual band WiFi 802.11 b/g/n with external antenna, and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 3x USB 2.0 […]