Category: Testing

QA & Testing procedure, software and more.

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on 2017 Tevo Tarantula Dual Extruder 3D Printer Review – Part 1: Assembly and First Prints

2017 Tevo Tarantula Dual Extruder 3D Printer Review – Part 1: Assembly and First Prints

Karl here. Going to review the Tevo Tarantula 3D printer a little differently this time. With this build process, I need to space over several days due to time and working on many projects at once. I am logging each session with dates and times. I rarely have big blocks of time to work on my projects with working a full time job, and 2 children. I think this is indicative of a lot of people so wanted to give it a try. If you like this format let me know. If you are new to 3D printing, I would suggest reading the 3D Printer Basics section from Raiscube R2 review. Tevo Tarantula Specs Bed Size – 200x280x200 Extruder – all metal dual color Bed Leveling – Auto Extruder Style – Bowden Materials – Metal Frame with some Acrylic parts Heated Bed – Yes Filament – 1.75 Filament Included – […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments on HDFury Vertex is a High-End HDMI 2.0 Splitter, Scaler, and Diagnostic Tool

HDFury Vertex is a High-End HDMI 2.0 Splitter, Scaler, and Diagnostic Tool

Most people won’t need this, but if you are working on HDMI, HDFury Vertex HDMI 2.0b splitter and scaler could be a very useful product. It comes with one HDMI 2.0b input port, two HDMI 2.0b output ports, some audio ports, an OLED display showing EDID, HDR, and other information, and a Windows tool allowing you to find out the full details about your HDMI connection over USB. HDFury Vertex hardware specifications: HDMI revision: HDMI 2.0b (Level A) 600Mcsc – 18Gbps Max Resolution: 4K60 4:4:4 8b, 4K60 4:2:2 12b, 4K120 4:2:0 8b or 8K30 4:2:0 8b I/O – 2 HDMI In, 2 HDMI Out, IR, RS232, USB, Analog Jack, Optical Out. Upscale port – FHD 1080p to UHD 2160p & 4K/DCI Downscale port – UHD 2160p & 4K/DCI to FHD 1080p Signal Conversion – Resolution, Chroma Subsampling, Color Space, Color Depth, HDCP HDCP Conversion – Any HDCP to any HDCP […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments on How to Install RKMC “Kodi for Rockchip” App in your TV Box

How to Install RKMC “Kodi for Rockchip” App in your TV Box

I’ve started playing with Vorke Z3, an Android 6.0 TV box based on Rockchip RK3399 , and saying that Kodi 17.3 – installed from the Google Play Store – is not working so well is an understatement. The other Rockchip TV boxes I’ve recently reviewed with Android 6.0.1 such as Yundoo Y8 and A95X R2 are all using TVMC, a fork of Kodi 16.1 specifically designed for Rockchip devices. However, there’s no source code for that app, but a Rockchip engineer is maintaining his own fork of Kodi, with the code and some binaries libraries released on Github. The project is called RKMC. I did install the app, but I misunderstood part of the instructions at first, and the device would not boot anymore. I lost many hours of work, as I had to reflash the firmware. So I’ll show how I installed it in Vorke Z3 TV box. You […]

Posted on by Karl Johnson - 4 Comments on Raiscube R2 3D Printer Review – Part 3: How to Install E3D Hotend Clone For Faster Prints

Raiscube R2 3D Printer Review – Part 3: How to Install E3D Hotend Clone For Faster Prints

Karl here with the final article on Raiscube R2 3D printer for now. Going to talk about the challenges of this upgrade, and how to do it yourself. This has been one of the most frustrating projects that I have worked on. I set 3 goals for this upgrade: Simple as possible Least amount of modification to the printer ability to revert back I don’t feel like I met my goals but I feel like I made it 90%. Trying to meet the simple as possible with least amount of modifications is what caused me so much grief. What is needed E3D Hotend for $9.56 on GearBest Kapton Tape for $1.87 Thermal paste Rotary cutting tool (maybe hacksaw good luck with that) Shrink tube or electrical tape Wire 3 printed parts on Thingiverse Zip Ties & Velcro E3D Installation Steps Print 3 parts from Thingiverse above with 50% infill and .2 […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments on A95X R2 TV Box Review – Part 2: Android 7.1, Video & Audio Tests, and Benchmarks

A95X R2 TV Box Review – Part 2: Android 7.1, Video & Audio Tests, and Benchmarks

In the first part of A95X R2 Rockchip RK3328 TV box review, I listed the specifications of the device, took a few photos, and reported about the chip used in the PCBA. I’ve now had time to play with the box, so I can report about my experience with Android 7.1, video & audio capabilities, and the performance of the device in the second part of the review. First Boot, Setup, and First Impressions I connected a USB 3.0 hard drive to the USB 3.0 port of the box, a USB keyboard to one of the USB port to take screenshots, and a USB hub with the RF dongles for my air mouse and gamepad in the remaining USB 2.0 port. I completed the hardware setup with Ethernet and HDMI cables, as well as the power supply. I then pressed the power button on the unit to start it up, […]

Posted on by Steven - 5 Comments on THL Box 1 Pro TV Box Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown

THL Box 1 Pro TV Box Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Teardown

Today we will be taking a look at the THL Box1 Pro box. We will take this is two parts, first being the unboxing and teardown then software and performance. Let’s start with the unit’s specs. THL Box 1 Pro TV Box specifications CPU – Amlogic S905X quad core ARM Cortex-A53 @ up to 1.51GHz GPU – Penta-core Mali-450MP GPU @ 750 MHz Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 16GB eMMC flash + micro SD card slot (up to 32GB) Video Output – HDMI 2.0 up to 4K @ 60 fps, AV port Audio – HDMI, AV port (stereo audio) Video Codecs – VP9 4K @60fps, 10-bit H.265 4K @ 60 fps, H.264 4K @ 30 fps and more Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n/ac Dual Band Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.0 Interfaces – HDMI port, RJ45 port (100Mbps Ethernet), 2x USB Host, micro SD Card Slot, AV Out, DC jack […]

Posted on by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments on Mini Review of Nextion Enhanced NX8048K070 7″ Display with Enclosure for HMI Applications

Mini Review of Nextion Enhanced NX8048K070 7″ Display with Enclosure for HMI Applications

I reviewed some Nextion touchscreen a while ago. Those were 2.4″ and 5″ serial TFT displays with optional resistive touch support that could be used in standalone mode, or connected to an MCU board over UART to control external hardware. The user interface could be designed and emulated in Windows based Nextion Editor program before uploading it to the display via UART or micro SD card. ITEAD Studio has recently launched Nextion Enhanced NX8048K070 family of 7″ displays with resistive or capacitive touch panels, and support for GPIOs. The company sent me the capacitive model with enclosure for evaluation, so I’ll have a quick look at the hardware and Nextion Editor in this mini review. Nextion Enhanced NX8048K070_011C Unboxing I received it in a package from “ITEAD intelligent solutions” with basic description with Model: NX8048L070_011C with enclosure Outside dimensions : 275 x 170 x 50 mm (That’s the package dimensions) […]

Posted on by Karl Johnson - No Comments on Raiscube R2 (Prusa I3 Clone) 3D Printer Review – Part 2: 3D Print Samples, E3D Clone Installation, Tips & Tricks

Raiscube R2 (Prusa I3 Clone) 3D Printer Review – Part 2: 3D Print Samples, E3D Clone Installation, Tips & Tricks

Karl here with part 2 Exploring Raiscube R2. That is the official name by Raiscube. Gonna look at some more prints. Some mistakes I made in first part and some simple mods. Maybe not so much mistakes but an oversight. Oversight / Mistake So in the first part of Raiscube Prusa i3 review, I mentioned there were not very good instructions, and they sent a blank SD card with the kit. I was wrong. On first inspection, it looked like a factory sealed SD card but it is not. It is an 8 GB card with videos, instructions, pictures, parts list, STL, and gcode files as well as an old version of Cura. Not blank at all with about 1.5 GB of files. It didn’t include settings but if you install the latest Cura, it just takes a little tweaking to print well. Official specs from SD card Brand RAISCUBE […]