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

June 17, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

iPazzPort SY-20-19VC Android STB is also a Remote Control Charging Dock

iPazzPort SY-20-19VC, aka iPazzPort Pearl, is an Android 4.1.1 set-top box powered by Rockchip RK3066 that comes bundled with with a dual sided RF remote with a QWERTY keyboard, touch pad, and voice support. That’s pretty common these days. The design however, is somewhat original, as once you’re done watching videos or playing games, you can put back the remote into an opening in the set-top box to store it and recharge it, and it may prevent you from losing the remote under the pillows, and the remote will be fully charged most of the time. Here are the specifications of this media player: SoC – Rockchip RK3066 @ 1.6GHz + Mali-400 MP4 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 4GB + micro SD card slot (up to 32GB, or is it 16GB?) Connectivity 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi 10/100M Ethernet 3G via external USB 3G dongle Video Output – HDMI 1.4 […]

June 17, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Stealth Nighthawk F-117A is a Raspberry Pi-in-a-Stick Preloaded with XBMC

Stealth Nighthawk F-117A was a “single-seat, twin-engine stealth ground-attack aircraft formerly operated by the United States Air Force (USAF)”, but it’s now an HDMI dongle based on the same processor as the Raspberry Pi, namely Broadcom BCM2825, software compatible with the Raspberry Pi, and preloaded with an XBMC OS, which turns out to the Raspbmc. The main hardware differences with Raspberry Pi are that you lose Ethernet, composite output, and all headers used for hardware hacking, but you gain Wi-Fi, a casing, and an even smaller form factor. Here are the specifications of the device: SOC – Broadcom BCM2835 @ 700mhz with Video Core IV GPU/VPU System Memory – 512MB Storage – micro SD card slot (up to 32GB) USB – 1x USB 2.0 host port + micro USB port for power Video Output – HDMI (up to 1080p) Connectivity – Wi-Fi 802.11n Power – 5V/1A via microUSB port Dimensions – […]

June 16, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

This is How the BeagleBone Black is Manufactured

CircuitCo has recently uploaded an interesting “Make of the BeagleBone Black” video showing how the BeagleBone Black is manufactured in their facilities in Richardson, Texas, USA. The main steps are as follows: A machine applies solder paste to the PCB Pick and place components Reflow soldering for SMT components Hand placement of through hole components such as the Ethernet connector Selective soldering PCB washing Optical inspection via an automatic optical inspection (AOI) machine Manual inspection Burn-in tests after flashing the board with factory firmware Functional testing Packing and shipping Beside the overall process, one interesting point is that human hands are only involved with through-hole components placement, functional testing and packing & shipping. Even those steps may eventually be automatized in the future with robots such as Baxter. Watch the video, it’s worth a look. Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his […]

June 15, 2013May 25, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 50 Comments

Ubuntu 12.04 Now Boots on Rockchip RK3188 mini PCs (T428, MK908, Rikomagic MK802 IV…)

After the release of the RK3188 Linux kernel source code last week, Ian Morrison (Linuxium) has managed to boot Ubuntu 12.04 with XFCE desktop on Tronsmart T428. However, as Tronsmart refused to release their source code, further Linux development is likely to happen on Rikomagic MK802 IV, because Rikomagic released the code for their device, so development work will be easier. AFAIK, this is the first time Linux boots natively on RK3188 devices, so it’s still early stage (no Wi-Fi, Bt or graphics acceleration), but if you still want to give it a try here are the instructions (for T428):] Create a SDCARD with an Ubuntu 12.04 root file system on it and ensure it is labeled as “linuxroot” (Visit Slatedroid for details) Flash your RK3188 minipc with rooted stock 4.1.1 ROM. (May not be needed if you ROM is already rooted) Boot Android, and install Android Terminal Flash t428-3.0.36-linuxium-test+-kernel.img […]

June 14, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Rockchip RK3188 Based Giayee TVB103 Android TV STB Features VGA and HDMI Video Output

Although there are now many Rockchip RK3188 mini PCs, full sized quad core Android STB are not so common, especially with VGA output, and Giayee TVB103 is the only quad core media player providing both HDMI and VGA output that I know of. Here are Giayee TVB103 specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3188 ARM Cortex A9 28nm Quad core 1.8GHz CPU + Quad-core GPU Mali400 System Memory – 1 to 2GB DDR3 RAM Storage – 8/16/32GB NAND Flash + micro SD card slot (up to 64GB) Connectivity: Built-in WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n module supporting dual band (2.4GHz & 5GHz) 10/100 Base-T Ethernet Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR Video Output – HDMI, VGA, and AV (Note the latter can’t be seen on any pictures) Audio – L and R Output (RCA), S/PDIF, earphone jack & MIC input USB – 2x USB Host ports, and 1x Mini USB OTG port Dimensions – 155 x 90 […]

June 14, 2013June 15, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 16 Comments

$59 Digitstump DigiX is an Arduino Due Compatible Board with Wi-Fi and Mesh Networking

The DigiX, by Digistump, is hobbyist board with an Atmel SAM3 Cortex M3 MCU @ 84 MHz, embedded low power Wi-Fi (b/g/n) and mesh networking,audio output, USB on the go support, and the company claims it is 100% compatible with anything that works with the Arduino Due, with some extra I/Os for a total of 99 I/O pins. The hardware specifications go as follows: MCU – Atmel AT91SAM3X8E 32-bit ARM Cortex M3 Processor @ 84 Mhz with 96KB SRAM, 512KB Flash Connectivity On-board 802.11b/g/n WiFi Module (FCC/CE Approved) On-board nRF24L01+ wireless module (removable) – 2.4Ghz band 99 I/O Pins including 12 PWM, 12 Analog Input, 2 Analog Output (DAC), CAN bus, 4x UARTs, 2x I2C, SPI, JTAG, DMA and more. Audio – 3.5mm stereo jack USB – micro USB OTG port Misc – On-board RTC, user LED Power Supply – 3.3V, 3.4-5.5V (LiPo Ready), 5V, or 6-16V input (on-board buck regulator) (Max?) Power […]

June 13, 2013June 13, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Unu is an Android Tablet, a Gaming Console and a Smart TV

In the last year or so, we’ve started using Android set-top boxes or mini-PCs to make our TV smart and play games, and some products such as Ouya and Gamestick, using similar hardware, have been specifically designed for game play. But Unu Tablet, which can be used as a tablet (really), can also transform your TV into a gaming platform, and a smart connected TV, thanks to a docking station, and a game controller. Here are the known specifications for Unu tablet: SoC – 1.6 GHz quad-core chip (I’m guessing Rockchip RK3188). System Memory – Unknown Storage – 8GB NAND Flash + microSD card slot Display – 7″ IPS display, 1280×800 resolution. Connectivity – WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 2 microUSB ports Video Output – mini HDMI jack Camera – 5MP rear camera, 2MP front camera This Android 4.2.2 tablet comes with a docking station that handles charging and […]

June 13, 2013June 13, 2013 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Texas Instruments Introduces SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3000 BoosterPack

Texas Instrument launched SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3000 in Q1 2012 in order to bring WiFi connectivity to any device including 8-bit or 16-bit MCU, as CC3300 internally handled all networking tasks, and exchange data with the MCU via an SPI interface. This Wi-Fi processor allows to use Wi-Fi for data transmission for the Internet of Things, and offers much better battery than other system relying on software to handle network traffic. Today, the company has just announced SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3000 BoosterPack, a low cost evaluation platform that works with both MSP430 and Tiva C Series LaunchPad evaluation kits, and sells for $35. SimpleLink Wi-Fi CC3000 BoosterPack features and benefits as seen in the press release: SmartConfig technology: One-step Wi-Fi configuration using smartphones, tablets or PCs Easy network setup for display-less (headless) devices Simultaneous multiple device provisioning iOS, Android and Java sample applications available Royalty-free software Flexible memory size – Small memory foot print […]