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September 11, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 19 Comments

Intel Atom x5-Z8350 mini PC sells for $88.90 shipped

More Intel Atom x5-Z8350 hardware is being discounted with Unisound T7 II mini PC selling for $88.90 including shipping, which follows last month’s Atom x5-Z8350 single board computers sold for $50 to $64. As we’ll see below, the mini PC’s specifications are similar to the ones for the SBC’s, but the advantage here is that you’ll get an enclosure, a power supply, and an HDMI cable, plus the usual mostly useless user manual and warranty card. T7 II mini PC specifications: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8350 “Cherry Trail” quad-core processor @ 1.44 GHz / 1.92 GHz (Burst frequency) with Intel HD 400 graphics @ 200 / 500 MHz System Memory – 2 GB DDR3L Storage – 32 GB eMMC flash, full-size SD card socket Video Output – HDMI 1.4 port up to 4Kp30, 1080p60 Audio – 3.5mm audio (mic+headphone) jack, and digital audio via HDMI Connectivity Gigabit Ethernet 802.11 b/g/n […]

August 9, 2021August 12, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 15 Comments

Intel Atom x5-Z8350 SBC sells for as low as $50 shipped

UP Core is an Intel Atom x5-Z8350 SBC that was introduced in 2017 with 1 to 4GB RAM, 16GB to 64GB eMMC flash storage, and just two ports, namely for HDMI and USB 3.0. The main advantage of the board is its small size (66×56.5 mm). The board is now on backorder for $129 in 2GB/32GB configuration on the official UP Shop, but somehow an Aliexpres store is currently selling 999 pieces of a “Mini Z8350 2G Add 32G Atom Motherboard” that looks exactly like the UP Core board, for $63.99 including shipping (and a heatsink). Note the seller is relatively new, having registered in May 2021 with only 7 followers, so there may be risks involved. Mini Z8350 motherboard specifications (taken from UP Core specs): SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8350 “Cherry Trail” quad-core processor @ 1.44 GHz / 1.92 GHz (Burst frequency) with Intel HD 400 graphics @ 200 […]

January 3, 2021March 1, 2021 by Ian W MORRISON (Linuxium) - 42 Comments

Rock Pi X Review – An Atom x5 SBC running Windows 10 or Ubuntu 20.04

The ROCK Pi X is the first x86 SBC (single board computer) from Radxa and resulted from repeated enquiries about running Windows on their earlier ROCK Pi 4. The ROCK Pi X comes in two models (Model A and Model B) with each model having either 1GB, 2GB, or 4GB of RAM and either 16GB, 32GB, 64GB, or 128GB of eMMC storage. Additionally, the Model B includes WiFi and Bluetooth together with supporting Power over Ethernet (PoE) although this requires an additional HAT. Both Seeed Studio and Radxa provided samples and in this review, I’ll cover some performance metrics from both Windows and Ubuntu and also discuss the thermals. Rock Pi X Hardware Overview The ROCK Pi X is similar in size to a Raspberry Pi board… but with slightly different ports and port locations even when compared to the Raspberry Pi 4. It is physically slightly larger than its […]

October 2, 2020October 2, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 17 Comments

Windows 10 capable Rock Pi X SBC Launched for $59 and Up

Radxa unveiled Rock Pi X intel SBC powered by an Intel Atom x5-Z8350 processor over a year ago with a starting price of just $39 making one of the cheapest Windows 10 single board computer together with Atomic Pi, but the latter is not super convenient to use. What’s new is that you can now buy Rock Pi X SBC, but not quite for $39 since the board has been redesigned, and instead, you’ll find the 4GB RAM/32GB eMMC flash model (Rock Pi X B4E32) for $75 on Seeed Studio, but if you can do with 2GB RAM and 16GB flash storage, AllNetChina has stock for $59 plus shipping. Those are the so-called model B boards with WiFi and Bluetooth, as well as support for an optional PoE module. Rock Pi X model B specifications: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8350 “Cherry Trail” quad-core processor @ 1.44 GHz / 1.92 GHz […]

April 28, 2020May 13, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

NANOTE 7″ 2-in-1 Mini Laptop with Intel Atom X5 Processor to Launch for $185 in Japan

Mini laptops have been a thing for the last 2 or 3 years thanks to companies such as GPD and OneNote. However, most of the models rely on fairly powerful and expensive low-power processors from Comet Lake and Amber Lake families, and that may be fine if you want a versatile, ultra-portable machine as your main driver, but not everybody wants to spend $700-$1,000 on this type of device. In the recent past, we’ve seen a couple of cheaper Intel Cherry Trail mini laptops such as Pretech F700mi and Peakago. But the former does not appear to be for sale, and the latter was offered for $269 and the company decided to upgrade it to an Intel Celeron N4100 processor. Peakago is still not available, as Indiegogo backers are still waiting for their perks. So if you’re looking for an entry-level mini laptop NANOTE appears to be a better option as […]

February 14, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 33 Comments

CNX Software is 10 Years Old – Top 10 Posts of the Last Decade

Around 10 years ago, I decided it might be a good idea to have an online presence. At the time, I just thought I would write from time to time, and I had no idea it would eventually become my main activity. My very first post was on February 14, 2010 about software development tools such as CVS and Bugzilla. That means today is the 10th anniversary of CNX Software website! So I thought it might be fun to look at the most popular posts of the last ten years. I only installed Google Analytics sometimes in 2011, but it should not affect the results since I did not have many readers at the time, and the post that really started to bring more visitors, and made me switch from a $1 monthly hosting plan to a VPS, was “74 USD AllWinner A10 Android 4.0 Mini PC” published in May […]

February 10, 2020February 10, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

GOLE F7 Windows 10 Tablet Review – Part 2: Barcode & QR Code Scanner, NFC, and Ruggedness

GOLE F7 is a waterproof, shock resistant, rugged tablet running Windows 10 Pro 64-bit. The company sent us a sample together with a charging dock, and you can check out “GOLE F7 Rugged Tablet Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Charging Dock” to find out more about the hardware interface and other physical features of the tablet. I’ve now spent more time with the tablet and tested some of the features such as Barcode scanner and NFC reader. I’ve only done minimal testing of the usual Windows 10 benchmarks since the Intel Atom x5-Z8350 processor powering the tablet has been around for many years, and we have previous mini PC’s reviews showing the performance of the platform in Windows 10 with MINIX NEO Z83-4 Pro or even the previous GOLE F10 model. Instead, I’ve focused on the differentiating features including the ruggedness of the device. GOLE F7 System Info Windows […]

January 22, 2020January 22, 2020 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

GOLE F7 Rugged Tablet Review – Part 1: Unboxing and Charging Dock

GOLE F7 is a rugged Windows 10 Pro tablet with a 10.1″ touchscreen display, an Intel Atom x5-Z8350 Cherry Trail processor, and “triple-proofed” with resistance to shocks, waterproofness, and dustproofness (see full specs). The tablet also comes with various features that can be useful to industrial use cases. The company sent me a sample fitted with 4G, a QR and bar code scanner, and a fingerprint print, as well as a separate charging dock. I’ll first have a look at the device and its hardware features in the first part of the review before trying it out with Windows 10 Pro in the second part that will focus on special features and ruggedness. The tablet comes with a rubber cover to protect all sides. All ports are covered to make the tablet dust-and-waterproof, and I could easily pull those to reveal USB, Ethernet and a COM port on one side… […]