Toshiba “MH3 Group (2)” Arm Cortex-M3 MCU supports firmware updates without interrupting operation

Toshiba MH3 Group 2 microcontroller

Toshiba “MH3 Group (2)” Arm Cortex-M3 microcontrollers come with a 1MB flash memory partitioned into two 512KB partitions to enable firmware updates without interrupting microcontroller operation using an area swap function to rotate to the new firmware seamlessly. The new M3H Group (2) builds upon the M3H Group(1) by expanding the code flash memory up to 1MB, and the RAM capacity from 66KB to 130KB. Both are part of the “TXZ+ Family Advanced Class” manufactured with a 40nm process, and equipped with a 120 MHz Arm Cortex-M3 core as well as various interface and motor control options such as UART, I2C, Advanced Encoder Input Circuit, and Advanced Programmable Motor Control Circuit. Toshiba MH3 Group 2 key features and specifications: CPU core – Arm Cortex-M3  @ 120 MHz with memory protection unit (MPU) Internal oscillator – 10MHz (+/-1%) Internal memory Code flash memory – 512KB to 1024KB (program/erase cycles: up to […]

Arduino UNO R4 Minima and WiFi boards launched for $20 and $27.50

Arduino UNO R4 WiFi

Arduino UNO R4 Minima and WiFi boards powered by a Renesas RA4M1 32-bit Arm Cortex-M4F microcontroller and equipped with an optional ESP32-S3 WiFI & BLE module are now available for respectively $20 (18 Euros) and $27.50 (25 Euros) on the Arduino store. The Arduino UNO R4 Renesas RA4M1 board was initially unveiled during Arduino Day with most details, but not everything as the company had hidden one part of the board which we now know is for a 12×8 LED matrix and a Qwiic connector for expansion present on the UNO R4 WiFi only. Arduino UNO R4 specifications: Microcontroller – Renesas RA4M1 Arm Cortex-M4F MCU @ 48 MHz with 32KB SRAM, 256KB flash Wireless (Arduino UNO R4 WiFi only) – ESP32-S3-MINI-1 module based on ESP32-S3 dual-core Xtensa LX7 microcontroller with 512KB SRAM, 384KB ROM, WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity, PCB antenna Display (UNO R4 WiFi only) –  12×8 LED […]

Portenta C33 is a $64 Arduino Pro board based on Renesas RA6M5 Arm Cortex-M33 MCU

Arduino Portenta C33

Arduino Portenta C33 is the latest board from the Arduino Pro family which the company dubs a “high-performance, low-price” solution based on a 200 MHz Renesas RA6M5 Arm Cortex-M33 microcontroller and equipped with a ESP32-C3 Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Low Energy module. The new board provides a cost-effective alternative to the Portenta H7 and X8 boards, but still offers wireless connectivity, a secure element for industrial-grade security, and compatibility with Portenta, MKR, and Nicla components. Portenta C33 specifications: Microcontroller – Renesas R7FA6M5BH2CBG Arm Cortex-M33 microcontroller @ up to 200 MHz with 512KB SRAM, 2MB Flash, Arm TrustZone, and Secure Crypto Engine 9 Storage – 16 MB QSPI Flash Connectivity 10/100M Ethernet PHY ESP32-C3 WiFi and BLE module USB – 1x USB Type-C high-speed port with Power Delivery support I/Os via 2x 80-pin high-density connectors, Arduino MKR headers with castellated hole, and a 5-pin I2C connector Storage – SD Card Networking – […]

Qualcomm 212S and 9205S Satellite IoT modems target remote monitoring and asset tracking

Qualcomm 212S block diagram

Qualcomm has just unveiled the Qualcomm 212S and Qualcomm 9205S Satellite IoT modems developed in collaboration with Skylo, an NTN service provider, to enable IoT devices connectivity across satellite and cellular networks for remote monitoring and asset tracking. At the beginning of the year, Qualcomm launched Snapdragon Satellite for two-way messaging on smartphones, but the company has now expanded its use of satellite data connectivity with the Qualcomm 212S and 9205S modems optimized for 5G IoT use cases relying on NTN (Non-Terrestrial Networks). Qualcomm 212S Satellite IoT modem Qualcomm 212S (QCX212S) modem specifications: CPU – Arm Cortex-M3 CPU @ up to 204 MHz Cellular connectivity Cellular Technology – Rel.14 LTE Cat-NB2, Rel.17 NB-IoT over NTN RF LTE low bands – B85, B5, B8, B18, B19, B12, B13, B17, B14, B28, B26, B20 LTE mid bands – B70, B25, B66, B4, B3, B2, B1, B23, N255, N256 Network Protocols – SSL, […]

Epi 32U4 – An Arduino-compatible USB-C development board with ATmega32U4 MCU (Crowdfunding)

Epi 32U4 Arduino USB Type-C development board

Epi 32U4 is a tiny Arduino-compatible development board based on a Microchip ATmega32U4 8-bit AVR microcontroller with just a USB-Type-C port and 23 I/O pins accessible through castellated holes that can be soldered to headers or another PCB. The board also includes some protection such as a fuse, ESD protection, a ferrite bead, and a low-pass filter for the analog reference voltage. Ping Hobbyelektronik, the developer, says it’s especially useful for compact USB keyboards, but it also has more I/O ports than a standard Pro Micro board, so it’s appropriate for a range of other projects as well. Epi 32U4 board specifications: MCU – Microchip ATmega32U4 8-bit AVR microcontroller @ 8MHz or 16 MHz with 32 KB flash, 2.5 KB SRAM, 1 KB EEPROM USB 1x USB Type-C port for power and programming USB D+ and D- lines are broken out ESD and surge protection on USB data lines and […]

Silicon Labs FG28 Sub-GHz wireless and 2.4 GHz BLE SoC supports Amazon Sidewalk, Wi-SUN, etc…

Silicon Labs FG28 block diagram

Silicon Labs dual-band FG28 Cortex-M33 SoC comes with sub-Gigahertz and 2.4 GHz Bluetooth LE radios that support long-range networks and protocols like Amazon Sidewalk, Wi-SUN, and other proprietary protocols, as well as a built-in AI/ML accelerator for machine learning inference and SiLabs Secure Vault technology. The chip looks to be an update to the sub-GHz FG25 Cortex-M33 microcontroller with an additional 2.4 GHz BLE radio, but somehow less program memory (up to 256KB) and storage (up to 1024 KB). The peripherals implemented in the chip are almost the same, as the microcontroller gains support for predictive maintenance with a small matrix vector processor for AI/ML acceleration. Silicon Labs FG28 (EFR32FG28) specifications: MCU core – Arm Cortex-M33 @ 78 MHz with DSP instructions and FPU On-chip memory – Up to 256 kB RAM data memory On-chip storage – Up to 1024 kB flash program memory AI accelerator – Matrix Vector Processor […]

Pico-Ice board combines Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU with Lattice ICE40 UltraPlus 5K FPGA

Pico Ice Raspberry Pi RP2040 Lattice FPGA board

tinyVision.ai Pico-Ice is a development board with a Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU and a Lattice ICE40 UltraPlus 5K FPGA connected through an 8-bit bus. The Arm Cortex-M0+ microcontroller provides the clock for the FPGA and can program the FPGA directly or the dedicated FPGA flash using a drag-drop of a UF2 file. Just a few days ago we wrote about the LILYGO T-FPGA board that combines an ESP32-S3 wireless MCU with a Gowin FPGA connected through a 6-bit bus, and the Pico-Ice board provides a similar option with different chips and without wireless connectivity. Pico-Ice specifications: MCU – Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex-M0+ microcontroller @ 133 MHz with 264KB SRAM with all pins exposed FPGA – Lattice UltraPlus iCE40UP5K FPGA with 5.3K LUTs, 1Mbit SPRAM, 120Kbit DPRAM, 8x multipliers with all pins brought out Memory & storage chips MCU – 4MB QSPI flash FPGA – 4MB QSPI Flash, 8MB low […]

ARIES v3.0 development board features India-made VEGA RISC-V processor

Made-in-India VEGA RISC-V board

ARIES v3.0 is an Arduino-inspired development board with the made-in-India 100 MHz THEAJS32 ASIC with the VEGA ET1031 RISC-V microprocessor, 256KB of internal SRAM, and various I/Os. Not to be confused by the recent FIVEberry RISC-V SBC made by ARIES Embedded… We first wrote about VEGA RISC-V processors designed in India in February 2022, and at the time, the government worked on five RISC-V processor designs ranging from a single-core 32-bit RISC-V microcontroller-class processor to a Linux-capable quad-core 64-bit out-of-order processor, with the entry-level THEJAS32 and THEJAS64 SoCs based on respectively VEGA ET1031 and VEGA AS1061 cores running on an ARTY A7 FPGA board. But good progress has been made since then, and they have tapped out the THEJAS32 processor and manufactured some development boards such as the ARIES v3.0. ARIES v3.0 development board specifications: MCU – THEJAS32 VEGA ET1031 32-bit 3-stage in-order RISC-V ( RV32IM) microcontroller @ 100 MHz […]

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