Category: Hardware

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on UP 710S – A slim, credit card-sized Intel N97 development board with M.2 E-Key WiFi socket and GPIO, I2C, SPI, and COM wafers

UP 710S – A slim, credit card-sized Intel N97 development board with M.2 E-Key WiFi socket and GPIO, I2C, SPI, and COM wafers

UP 710S Intel N97 development board

AAEON’s UP 710S is a credit card-sized Intel N97 SBC and development board with an M.2 E-Key socket for a WiFi and Bluetooth module, and similar interfaces such as gigabit Ethernet, USB 2.0, USB 3.0, and  HDMI outputs as found in Raspberry Pi boards. It’s very similar to the UP 7000 SBC with Intel N50, N97, or N100 CPU, but it’s designed to be slimmer so the 40-pin Raspberry Pi-compatible header has been replaced by 1mm pitch wafers exposing GPIO, I2C, SPI, and serial (COM) interfaces. UP 710S specifications: Alder Lake-N SoC Default – Intel Processor N97 quad-core  processor up to 3.6 GHz with 6MB cache, 24EU Intel UHD Graphics Gen 12 @ 1.2 GHz; TDP: 12W Options – Intel N50, N100, N200 System Memory – Up to 8GB LPDDR5 Storage Up to 128GB eMMC flash 256Mbit flash for the BIOS/UEFI Video Output – HDMI 1.4b video output up to 4Kp30 […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments on Raspberry Pi SSD Kit and Class A2 microSD cards review with Raspberry Pi 5

Raspberry Pi SSD Kit and Class A2 microSD cards review with Raspberry Pi 5

Raspberry Pi SSD Kit Class A2 MicroSD card review

Selecting a microSD card, and to a lesser extent an SSD, for your Raspberry Pi may feel like walking through a landmine field with fake microSD cards that may perform poorly and severely impact the performance and/or reliability of your Raspberry Pi, and you’ll find plenty of articles helping you select a good microSD card for your Raspberry Pi. That’s probably why Raspberry Pi Holdings decided to launch its own Raspberry Pi-branded class A2 microSD cards and NVMe SSDs, so users can be sure they got a certified storage device that should perform as advertised as long as they purchase those from some authorized resellers. The company sent me 32GB and 64GB Raspberry Pi microSD cards and a 256GB Raspberry Pi SSD kit for testing, so I’ll test those in this review and compare them against other SSDs and microSD cards I’m currently using. Since we’ve not covered the new […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on High-speed data acquisition with Raspberry Pi Pico 2’s HSTX interface and HDMI to USB 3.0 video capture dongle

High-speed data acquisition with Raspberry Pi Pico 2’s HSTX interface and HDMI to USB 3.0 video capture dongle

Raspberry Pi Pico 2 high-speed data acquisition

We previously explained the HSTX high-speed serial transmit interface of the Raspberry Pi RP2350 microcontroller was mostly useful for video outputs and display interfaces since it can only transmit, and not receive data. But Steve Markgraf found another use case for the HSTX interface – high-speed data acquisition – combining a Raspberry Pi Pico 2 board with the DVI Sock board for Pico and one of those cheap MS2130-based HDMI to USB 3.0 video capture dongles. He managed to stream out up to 75 MB/s of real-time data from an overclocked RP2350 to a host computer with a USB 3.0 port. The Adafruit Feather RP2350 HSTX board should also work, but also not been tested. Steve’s “hsdaoh-rp2350” data acquisition over HDMI firmware is based on the dvi_out_hstx_encoder example from Raspberry Pi using the HSTX interface for DVI output and code by Shuichi Takano implementing the HDMI data island encoding required […]

Posted on by Debashis Das - No Comments on Variscite DART-MX91 SoM offers dual GbE, WiFi 6, 15 years support

Variscite DART-MX91 SoM offers dual GbE, WiFi 6, 15 years support

DART MX91 SoM

The Variscite DART-MX91 system-on-module (SoM) is a compact, cost-effective NXP i.MX 91 Arm Cortex-A55 module which is part of the DART Pin2Pin family already includes the DART-MX93 and DART-MX8M-PLUS among others. The SoM supports up to 2GB of LPDDR4 RAM and 8 to 128 GB of EMMC storage along with dual CAN-FD, dual Gigabit Ethernet, and dual USB interfaces. Wireless options include certified Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, and optional 802.15.4 for low-power wireless communication. Additionally, it supports three I2S audio interfaces, S/PDIF, and support for both digital and analog stereo mics along with 8-bit parallel camera interfaces and display with a capacitive touch controller. Variscite DART-MX91 SoM Specifications SoC – NXP i.MX91 single-core Cortex-A55 processor clocked at 1.4 GHz with 32 KB I-cache and D-cache, 256KB L2 cache (no 3D GPU) System Memory – Up to 2GB LPDDR4 Storage – 8 to 128GB eMMC flash Networking Qualcomm Atheros AR8033 Gigabit […]

Posted on by Debashis Das - 3 Comments on $29 Banana Pi BPI-CanMV-K230D-Zero features Kendryte K230D RISC-V SoC for AIoT applications

$29 Banana Pi BPI-CanMV-K230D-Zero features Kendryte K230D RISC-V SoC for AIoT applications

Banana Pi BPI CanMV K230D Zero

The Banana Pi BPI-CanMV-K230D-Zero is a compact and low-power single-board computer built around the Kendryte K230D dual-core XuanTie C908 RISC-V chip with an integrated third-generation Knowledge Process Unit (KPU) for AI computation. It follows the form factor of the Raspberry Pi Zero or Raspberry Pi Zero 2W board and targets IoT and ML applications. The SBC comes with 128MB of LPDDR4 RAM and uses a microSD card slot for storage. Additional features of this board include dual MIPI-CSI camera inputs for 4K video, a 40-pin GPIO header for I2C, UART, SPI, PWM, and more. Wireless features include 2.4GHz WiFi, USB 2.0 with OTG, and microphone support. These features make this SBC suitable for applications such as AI tasks such as image, video, and audio processing. Banana Pi BPI-CanMV-K230D-Zero Specifications SoC – Kendryte K230D CPU CPU1 – 64-bit RISC-V processor @ 1.6GHz with RVV 1.0 support CPU2 – 64-bit RISC-V processor […]

Posted on by Tomisin Olujinmi - No Comments on Qualcomm QCC730M dual-band WiFi 4 and QCC74xM WiFi 6, BLE 5.3, and 802.15.4 modules target low-power and IoT edge devices

Qualcomm QCC730M dual-band WiFi 4 and QCC74xM WiFi 6, BLE 5.3, and 802.15.4 modules target low-power and IoT edge devices

Qualcomm QCC730M module

Qualcomm has added two new IoT modules to its wireless connectivity product series: the Qualcomm QCC730M ‘micro-power’ WiFi 4 module and the QCC74xM tri-radio module, with both modules designed for smart homes, smart appliances, medical devices, and industrial applications. The Qualcomm QCC730M is a dual-band, micro-power Wi-Fi 4 module with a 60MHz Arm Cortex-M4F MCU, 640kB SRAM, 1.5MB RRAM, hardware crypto accelerator, and secure boot, debug, and storage. Its low-power design is ideal for portable, battery-powered IoT devices like IP cameras, sensors, and smart locks. Based on the Qualcomm QCC730 module, it features a 36-pin LGA package with a PCB antenna or RF connector and supports up to 4MB of optional NOR flash. The Qualcomm QCC74xM is Qualcomm’s “first programmable connectivity module,” integrating a 32-bit RISC-V module, optional stacked memory (PSRAM and NOR flash), and a tri-radio chipset for WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.3, and IEEE 802.15.4 (Thread and Zigbee). Its […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite review – A low-cost Intel Processor N100 mini PC tested with Windows 11 Pro

GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite review – A low-cost Intel Processor N100 mini PC tested with Windows 11 Pro

GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite mini PC review windows 11

We’ve already checked the hardware of the GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite mini PC with an unboxing and teardown in the first part of the review. It is a low-cost mini PC based on an Intel Processor N100 CPU, coupled with 8GB DDR4-3200 memory, a 256GB M.2 SATA SSD, dual Display output through HDMI and DisplayPort connector, GbE, WiFi 6E, and a 9-pin expansion header port – as found in some NUC model – to access an external power button, reset button, and LEDs when housed in a cabinet or kiosk. You’ll find the full Mini Air 12 Lite specifications in our previous article about it. We’ve now had more time to test the mini PC, so we’ll report our experience with the Mini Air12 Lite running Windows 11 Pro operating system in the second part of the review. We’ll go through a software overview, test most of the features, run […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 17 Comments on Orange Pi 4A low-cost octa-core SBC is powered by Allwinner T527 Cortex-A55 AI SoC with a 2TOPS NPU

Orange Pi 4A low-cost octa-core SBC is powered by Allwinner T527 Cortex-A55 AI SoC with a 2TOPS NPU

Orange Pi 4A

Orange Pi 4A is a new low-cost credit card-size single board computer (SBC) powered by an Allwinner T527 octa-core Cortex-A55 processor with a 2TOP NPU and offered with either 2GB or 4GB RAM. The board also comes with multiple storage options: a 128 or 256Mbit SPI NOR flash for the bootloader, an eMMC socket for up to 128GB modules, an M.2 socket for NVMe SSDs, and a microSD card slot. It’s also equipped with four USB 2.0 ports, a gigabit Ethernet port, three display interfaces (HDMI, MIPI DSI, eDP),  two camera interfaces, and a 40-pin “Raspberry Pi” header. The Orange Pi 4A is somewhat equivalent to an octa-core Raspberry Pi 3/4 with some extra features. Orange Pi 4A specifications: SoC – Allwinner T527 CPU Octa-core Arm Cortex-A55 @ up to 1.8GHz (four cores) and up to 1.42 GHz (four cores) XuanTie E906 RISC-V core @ 200MHz GPU – Arm Mali-G57 […]

UP 7000 x86 SBC