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

March 8, 2024March 8, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 14 Comments

Xtherm II TS2+ review – A 256×192 thermal imager tested with an Android smartphone

Shortly after I wrote about the Mustool MT13S 2-in-1 thermal imager and multimeter, Xinfrared asked me if I wanted to review the Xtherm II TS2+ thermal imager for smartphones. They offer versions that work for Android or iOS smartphones, so the company sent me the Android version of the Xtherm II TS2+ for review. After listing the key features and specifications, I’ll go through an unboxing, and report my experience using the thermal imager with the OPPO A98 5G smartphone running Android 14. Xtherm II TS2+ specifications Minimum focus – 8mm Resolution – 256×192 Pixel Pitch – 12μm FOV – 44.9° x 33.4° Image Frame Rate – 25Hz NETD (Noise Equivalent Temperature Difference) – ≤40mK@25°C, F#1.0 MRTD (Minimum Resolvable Temperature Difference) – ≤500mK@25°C,F#1.0 Temperature Range Measurements- -20°C ~ +450°C with ±2°C or ±2% reading accuracy Operating – -20°C ~ +50°C Temperature Correction – Manual/automatic Power Consumption – <350mW Dimensions – […]

March 7, 2024April 24, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

RealTek RTD1325 SoC shows up in Formuler Z mini 4K Android 12 dongle

Formuler Z mini is a 4K Android 12 TV dongle powered by the new RealTek RTD1325 SoC with a Mali-G57 MC1, 4K AV1 video processing unit, and support for features such as Quick Media Switching (QMS) from the HDMI 2.1 specifications. The Android TV dongle also comes with 2GB LPDDR4 memory, 8GB eMMC flash, an HDMI 2.1 port up to 4K resolution, WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity, Widevine L1 DRM, and a Bluetooth voice remote control. Formuler Z mini specifications: SoC – RealTek RTD1325 CPU – Quad-core Arm Cortex-A55 @ 1.7GHz with 512KB L3 cache [Updated on April 24, 2024 – See comments section] GPU – Arm Mali-G57 MC1 VPU – 4Kp60 10-bit AV1 video decoder System Memory – 2GB LPDDR4 @ 2400MHz Storage – 8GB eMMC flash Video Output – HDMI 2.1 up to 4K resolution (3840 x 2160) with 4K HDR (HDR10+, HLG), QMS support Networking – […]

March 7, 2024March 6, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Allwinner T527 System-on-Module features octa-core Cortex-A55 CPU, 2 TOPS AI accelerator

MYiR MYC-LT527 is a compact System-on-Module (SoM) based on Allwinner T527 octa-core Arm Cortex-A55 SoC with a 2 TOPS AI accelerator, up to 4GB RAM, 32GB flash, and a land grid array (LGA) comprised of 381 pads with a range of interfaces for displays and cameras, networking, USB, and PCIe, and more. The company also introduced the MYD-LT527 development board to showcase the capabilities of the Allwinner T527 CPU module suitable for a range of applications such as industrial robots, energy and power management, medical equipment, display and controller machines, edge AI boxes and boards, automotive dashboards, and embedded devices that require media and AI functionalities. MYC-LT527 Allwinner T527 System-on-Module MYC-LT527 specifications: SoC – Allwinner T527 CPU Octa-core Arm Cortex-A55 processor with four cores @ 1.80 GHz and four cores @ 1.42GHz E906 RISC-V core up to 200 MHz DSP – 600MHz HIFI4 Audio DSP GPU – Arm Mali-G57 MC1 […]

March 6, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

ePulse Feather C6 – An ESP32-C6 development board with Adafruit Feather form factor, LiPo battery support

ThingPulse ePulse Feather C6 is a new ESP32-C6 development board with WiFi 6, BLE5, Zigbee, Thread, and Matter connectivity that follows the Adafruit Feather form factor and supports LiPo battery charging through a charger IC and a fuel gauge. Just like its predecessor called ePulse Feather, the ePulse Feather C6 is optimized for low power consumption but replaces an ESP32-WROVER-E-N8R8 module but an ESP32-C6-MINI-1 with a 802.15.4 radio for Zigbee, Thread, and Matter, as well as 2.4 GHz WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3 LE connectivity. ePulse Feather C6 specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-C6-MINI-1 SoC – ESP32-C6H4 32-bit RISC-V microprocessor up to 160 MHz with 320KB ROM, 512KB HP SRAM, 16KB LP SRAM, 4MB flash Wireless – 2.4 GHz WiFi 6 with Target Wake Time (TWT) support, Bluetooth 5.3 LE and Mesh, 802.15.4 radio with Zigbee, Thread, and Matter PCB Antenna USB – 1x USB Type-C port for power/charging and programming […]

March 6, 2024March 6, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

STM32WBA microcontrollers with Bluetooth LE 5.4, Zigbee, Thread, and Matter to comply with US and EU Cybersecurity regulations

STMicro’s new STM32WBA series, starting with the STM32WBA52, STM32WBA54, and STM32WBA55 devices, is a family of Arm Cortex-M33 wireless microcontrollers with Bluetooth LE 5.4, Zigbee, Thread, and Matter connectivity that achieved the SESIP (Security Evaluation Standard for IoT Platforms) Level 3 security certification and should make them compliant with US Cyber Trust Mark and EU Radio Equipment Directive (RED) regulations due to become mandatory in 2025. The 100MHz STM32WBA54 and STM32WBA55 microcontrollers come with up to 1MB of flash memory, support Arm TrustZone architecture isolating secure processes and storage, and incorporate background autonomous mode, flexible power-saving states, and analog and digital peripherals found in STMicro STM32U5 ultra-low-power MCUs. STM32WBA54 and STM32WBA55 specifications: MCU core – Arm Cortex-M33 at 100MHz with FPU and DSP Memory – Up to 128KB SRAM Storage – Up to 1 MB flash Wireless Bluetooth Low Energy 5.4 Long Range (LR) capable Up to 2 Mbps Bluetooth […]

March 6, 2024March 6, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 15 Comments

Samsung unveils 256GB microSD Express card with up to 800MB/s read speeds

Samsung has just started sampling its 256 GB SD Express microSD card (aka microSD Express card) with a sequential read speed of up to 800 MB/s through its PCIe/NVMe interface. The SD Express standard was first introduced in the SD specification ver 7.0 in 2018 adding pads for PCIe/NVMe interfaces in full-sized SD cards before the microSD Express standard was introduced in the SD 7.1 specification the following year. Since then, the SD association further improved the standard promising ever faster SD Express speeds up to 4GB/s and microSD Express speeds up to 2GB/s. Saying the adoption of the new SD Express and microSD Express standards has been slow would be an understatement, and the Samsung 256GB microSD Express card looks to be the world’s first such storage device. Looking at full-size SD Express cards, I could only find one on Amazon for $59.99 with 256GB capacity, 820 MB/s read […]

March 5, 2024 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

Panthor open-source driver for Arm Mali-G310, Mali-G510, Mali-G610, and Mali-G710 GPUs to be part of Linux 6.10

Panthor open-source Arm Mali G610 GPU driver linux

Collabora has been working on the Panthor open-source GPU kernel driver for the third-generation Arm Valhall GPU (Arm Mali-G310, Mali-G510, Mali-G610, and Mali-G710) for around two years, and the code has just been merged in drm-misc meaning it should be part of the upcoming Linux 6.10 release sometime in July 2024. Many regular readers must already be familiar with the Panfrost open-source driver for Arm Mali GPUs as we’ve covered its development progress over the years. Panthor is a new kernel driver specific to the 3rd gen Valhall GPUs that still relies on the Panfrost driver residing in userspace, as explained by Boris Brezillon from Collabora. Furthermore, the existing Gallium “Panfrost” driver in Mesa has also received a merge request adding support for those GPUs (10th gen Arm Mali = 3rd gen Arm Mali Valhall) meaning popular targets such as the Rockchip RK3588 SoC with an Arm Mali-G610 MP4 GPU […]