Author: Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)

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.
Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 adds industrial/extended temperature range from -40°C to +85°C

Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 adds industrial/extended temperature range from -40°C to +85°C

Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 industrial temperature range

Some Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 are now available in the industrial/extended temperature operating from -40°C to +85°C, suitable for outdoor applications in cold climates and (some) cold storage solutions that require sub -20°C temperature. When the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 was launched in 2020, Raspberry Pi did not provide an operating temperature range. Since then, the Raspberry CM4 has been qualified to operate in the -20°C to +85°C range, which is suitable for most applications but not all. Eben Upton has now announced the availability of Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 variants with extended temperature range. Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 specifications (as of March 2025): SoC – Broadcom BCM2711 quad-core Cortex-A72 processor @ 1.5 GHz with VideoCore VI GPU System Memory – 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, or 8GB LPDDR4-3200 SDRAM Storage – CM4: 4, 8, 16, or 32GB eMMC flash up to 100MB/s; CM4 Lite: No storage device […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments on ESP32-C2 v2.0 wireless SoC adds 20 KB of additional SRAM, 100 KB of extra flash

ESP32-C2 v2.0 wireless SoC adds 20 KB of additional SRAM, 100 KB of extra flash

ESP32-C2 v2.0

Espressif ESP32-C2 (ESP8684) has been updated to v2.0 with 20 KB of additional SRAM, 100 KB of extra flash, with some improvements in terms of erase and program performance. The ESP32-C2 was first unveiled in April 2024 with limited details, and launched in October of the same year as the ESP8684 SiP combining ESP32-C2 die with 4MB flash, as well as a few ESP8684 modules and the ESP8684-DevKitM-1 development board. The ESP32-C2 is meant to be a cost-down version of the ESP32-C3 with less RAM and peripherals, and the ESP32-C2 v2.0 slightly improved on that with parts adding X to the name: ESP8684H2X (2MB flash) and ESP8684H4X (4MB flash). Modules and devkit names are also impacted, albeit not shown yet in the screenshot below. The part names had to be updated because chip revision v2.0 and previous chip revisions are not software-compatible, so Espressif had to update the ordering codes […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment on Qualcomm X85 5G modem powers 12.5Gbps Dragonwing Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) Gen4 Elite platform

Qualcomm X85 5G modem powers 12.5Gbps Dragonwing Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) Gen4 Elite platform

Qualcomm X85 5G Modem Dragonwing FWA Gen4 Elite

As Mobile World Congress 2025 has just started, Qualcomm has announced the X85 5G modem with up to 12.5 Gbps peak download speed, 3.7 Gbps uploads and targeting a wide range of applications from Android smartphones to PCs, FWA routers, industrial applications with Ethernet TSN, or even railways with support for FRMCS (Future Railway Mobile Communication System) in Europe. The company also introduced the Dragonwing Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) Gen 4 Elite platform based on the Qualcomm X85 5G modem, a quad-core processor, GNSS, tri-band Wi-Fi 7, and network Edge AI coprocessor with up to 40 TOPS of NPU processing power. Qualcomm X85 5G modem Qualcomm X85 5G Modem-RF System specifications: Peak Download Speed – 12.5 Gbps (FR1 + FR2), 10.3 Gbps Peak Upload Speed – 3.7 Gbps Cellular Modem-RF – 10CC aggregation in mmWave, 6CC aggregation in 5G sub 6GHz, 400 MHz carrier aggregation (DL) Cellular Technology 5G NR […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments on Software progress and source code release for CIX P1 Armv9 SoC and Orion O6 motherboard

Software progress and source code release for CIX P1 Armv9 SoC and Orion O6 motherboard

CIX P1 Orion O6 source code upstreaming

When the Orion O6 mini-ITX motherboard with a CIX P1 12-core Armv9 SoC was announced in December 2024, we were told binary releases would start on January 15, 2025, and the source code would be released later in Q1 2025. Tom Cubie further explained that upstreaming of the CIX kernel would start in Q2 of 2025, and Linux 6.1 with Device Tree plus Linux 6.6 with ACPI would be supported in the meantime. I’ve been able to quickly check the Debian 12 binary release on the Orion O6 motherboard at the end of January, but as I was looking for an updated image for the second part of the review, I noticed there weren’t any new Debian 12 images so far. That does not mean there haven’t been any work done, as the forums are somewhat active and I’ve been told Radxa is even more active on Discord, although I […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments on Citronics built a router based on the Fairphone 2 mainboard

Citronics built a router based on the Fairphone 2 mainboard

Destore Citronics Fairphone 2 industrial gateway

Belgium-company Citronics has designed a router based on the mainboard of the Fairphone 2 smartphone, connecting the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 “system-on-module” to a carrier board with Ethernet, USB ports, and other connectors, while leveraging 4G LTE, WiFi, and Bluetooth connectivity from the phone’s core board. Citronics calls this type of hardware “Circular Microcomputers,” which refers to small computers focusing on sustainability and circular economy principles using parts from discarded devices like old smartphones. There’s actually more than one router, as Citronics designed its own development kit, and also partnered with other companies to design custom gateways based on the Fairphone 2 mainboard. Let’s have a look at the devkit first. Citronics devkit: Fairphone 2 mainboard SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 (MSM8974AB) quad core Krait 400 processor @ up to 2.26 GHz with Adreno 330 GPU System Memory – 2 GB LPDDR3 Storage – 32GB eMMC flash Connectivity – 2G/3G/4G LTE, […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments on Tropic Square TROPIC01 is an auditable, open architecture, tamper-proof RISC-V secure element (SE) for IoT and microcontrollers

Tropic Square TROPIC01 is an auditable, open architecture, tamper-proof RISC-V secure element (SE) for IoT and microcontrollers

TROPIC01 open RISC-V secure element

Tropic Square TROPIC01 is an auditable, open architecture, tamper-proof RISC-V based secure element (SE) designed to interface with microcontrollers in products such as hardware wallets, authentication solutions, biometric wallets, medical devices, and other IoT solutions. There are plenty of secure elements on the market, but their design is usually closed-source, so the design can’t be easily verified by third parties and flaws may remain hidden even when discovered.  With its open designs, potentially flaws in the TROPIC01 can easily be found, disclosed, and fixed by the community, and such verifiable design improved trust in the security of the solution. TOPIC01 secure element specifications: CPU core – RISC-V IBEX Controller Core with secure firmware updates and customizable FW upon request Memory OTP to store x.509 certificate and keys Flash to store general purpose and PIN verification data Memory address scrambling On-the-fly encryption Error correction code protection Communication Interface SPI application control […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments on ESP32-S3 infrared thermal imaging camera module offers 80×62 resolution, 45° and 90° wide angle versions

ESP32-S3 infrared thermal imaging camera module offers 80×62 resolution, 45° and 90° wide angle versions

ESP32-S3 Thermal Camera module

Waveshare has launched an ESP32-S3-based thermal imaging camera module based on the same 80 x 62 infrared camera found in its Thermal-45/90 camera Raspberry Pi HAT and Thermal-45/90 USB camera. The thermal camera module is offered with two field of views, namely 45° for the basic version and 90° for the wide angle variant, twenty solder pads with GPIOs, UART, and I2C for expansion, a USB-C port for power and programming, and a 2-pin header to connect a battery if required. Waveshare “ESP32-S3 IR thermal imaging camera module” specifications: Wireless Module ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 MCU – ESP32-S3 dual-core Tensilica LX7 up to 240 MHz with 512KB SRAM, up to 8MB PSRAM Storage – 16MB flash Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE 5 Thermal Camera – Meridian Innovation MI0802 Resolution – 80 × 62 Field of View (FOV) 56°(D) x 45°(H) x 34°(V) (Baisc version) 122°(D) x 90°(H) x 67°(V) (Wide angle […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on Giada DN25 fanless 4K digital signage player features Raspberry Pi CM5 Lite module and eMMC flash

Giada DN25 fanless 4K digital signage player features Raspberry Pi CM5 Lite module and eMMC flash

Giada DN25

Most products based on Raspberry Pi CM5 make use of the eMMC flash version, but Giada DN25 fanless 4K digital signage player relies on the Raspberry Pi CM5 Lite module instead, but still uses 32GB or 64GB flash. This looks like a contradiction at first since the CM5 Lite module has no eMMC flash, but more on that later. The media player uses a CM5 Lite module with 2GB RAM and a wireless module, and features two full HDMI ports to drive up to two 4K displays, a 3.5mm audio jack, a Gigabit Ethernet port, four USB ports, and an RS232 port for peripheral connection (e.g. barcode scanner). Giada DN25 specifications: Compute Module – Raspberry Pi CM5 Lite Module SoC –  Broadcom BCM2712 CPU  – Quad-core 64-bit Arm Cortex-A76 processor @ 2.4GHz GPU – VideoCore VII GPU with support for OpenGL ES 3.1 graphics, Vulkan 1.3 VPU – 4Kp60 HEVC decoder […]

UP 7000 x86 SBC