Andes’ Voyager Development Platform is a micro-ATX motherboard based on the company’s QiLai SoC with four AX45MP 64-bit RISC-V cores and an NX27V vector processor optimized for AI workloads. The Voyager board supports up to 16GB of DDR4 via a UDIMM socket, features 16Mbit SPI Flash for boot code and an SD card socket, includes three PCIe Gen4 slots to connect external devices such as GPU card and SSD, as well as a JTAG debugger and USB to UART bridge for debugging during Linux software development. Andes QiLai RISC-V AI SoC Before looking at the board itself, let’s check the Andes QiLai SoC specifications: CPU cores Andes AX45MP-4C cluster 4x RV64GC 8-stage superscalar processors clocked at 1.6 GHz (worse) / 2.1 GHz (typ.) Support of MESI cache coherence protocol with Coherence Manager 32KB L1 Instruction and Date cache 2MB L2 cache I/O Coherence Port (IOCP) – Synchronous AXI4 (256 bits […]
Giveaway Week 2024 – Jupiter RISC-V mini-ITX motherboard
The 11th edition of CNX Software giveaway week is underway! We have seven items to give away this time around: six review samples I will send myself and one from a company offering one of its cellular IoT development kits… The contest is open worldwide, and CNX Software Thailand is also joining the fun with four additional items available to people with an address in Thailand. The first prize of this year’s giveaway is Shenzhen MILK-V Technology’s Jupiter RISC-V mini-ITX motherboard powered by a 1.8 GHz SpacemiT K1/M1 octa-core processor, equipped with 16GB LPDDR4x, and various interfaces and features such as M.2 PCIe 2.0 x2 socket for an NVMe SSD, a 4K-capable HDMI video output, two gigabit Ethernet ports, WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5 module, and more. I reviewed the Jupiter mini-ITX motherboard with Ubuntu-based Bianbu OS and an Auriga 6-Bay NAS mini-ITX chassis last August and the results were […]
UP Squared Pro 710H SBC combines Alder Lake-N CPU with Hailo-8 AI accelerator for the machine vision market
AAEON UP Squared Pro 710H is a 4×4-inch SBC and developer board designed for machine vision applications with an Intel Processor N97 or Core i3-N305 Alder Lake-N CPU and a 26 TOPS Hailo-8 Edge AI processor. The single board computer supports up to two MIPI CSI cameras via a 61-pin connector and offers expansion capabilities through a 40-pin Raspberry Pi-compatible header and three M.2 sockets for 5G, Wi-Fi, and NVMe storage support. While it’s only designed to operate in the 0 to 60°C temperature range, it does have industrial features such as 12V to 36V DC input and two RS-232/422/485 connectors. UP Squared Pro 710H specifications: Alder Lake N-series SoC (one or the other) 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 Intel Core i3-N305 octa-core processor up to 3.8 GHz with 6MB cache, 32EU Intel […]
Portwell WEBS-21J0-ASL – A rugged embedded system with Intel Atom x7000RE Nano-ITX motherboard and Hailo-8 AI accelerator
Portwell’s WEBS-21J0-ASL is a fanless, rugged embedded system with a Nano-ITX motherboard powered by an Intel Atom x7000RE Series processor and optimized for industrial IoT applications. It features two 2.5Gbps Ethernet ports, dual 4K display support (DP/HDMI), and a serial port as well as M.2 E and B Key sockets for wireless and storage expansion. Designed for harsh environments, the WEBS-21J0-ASL operates in temperatures ranging from -20°C to 60°C. The system is equipped with DDR4 SO-DIMM memory (up to 16GB and 10Gbps USB 3.2 Gen 2 ports. It has passed vibration and shock tests for durability in rugged applications making it suitable for a wide range of industrial and automation systems. The WEBS-21J0-ASL also supports optional integration with the Hailo-8 AI acceleration module delivering up to 26 TOPS of AI performance for applications requiring advanced AI capabilities. This makes it an ideal solution for robotics, medical equipment, outdoor gateways, and […]
Banana Pi BPI-M1S RK3528 SBC features HDMI 2.0, 2.5GbE, WiFi 6, and more
The Banana Pi BPI-M1S, also known as the ArmSoM-Sige1, is a low-profile single board computer (SBC) based on the Rockchip RK3528 quad-core Cortex-A53 SoC initially designed for entry-level 4K TV boxes. Contrary to the two other RK3528(A) SBCs we’ve covered, namely the Radxa Rock E20C and FriendlyELEC NanoPi Zero2 focusing on low-cost and small footprint for headless networked applications, the Banana Pi BPI-M1S integrates more features such as HDMI 2.0 for 4K video output and audio, 2.5GbE and WiFi 6 networking, and a 40-pin GPIO header for expansion. Banana Pi BPI-M1S specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3528 CPU – Quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 @ 2.0 GHz GPU – Arm Mali-G450 GPU with support for OpenGL ES1.1, ES2.0, and OpenVG 1.1 APIs VPU H.264, H.265, and AVS2 decoder up to 4Kp60 H.264 and H.265 encoder up to 1080p60 Memory – 4GB LPDDR4x Storage 32GB eMMC flash (by default) MicroSD card slot Video Output – […]
MentorPi is a ROS2-compatible, Raspberry Pi 5-based robot car with Mecanum or Ackermann chassis
MentorPi is a ROS2-compatible robot car powered by the Raspberry Pi 5, designed for AI-driven robotics and Python programming. It offers two chassis options: MentorPi-M1, which features a Mecanum-wheel chassis, and MentorPi-A1, equipped with an Ackermann chassis. Both variants come with high-performance components such as closed-loop encoder motors, STL-19P TOF lidar, 3D depth cameras, and high-torque servos. These enable precise navigation, SLAM mapping, path planning, and dynamic obstacle avoidance, making MentorPi an ideal platform for robotics tasks. The system utilizes a dual-controller architecture to optimize performance. The Raspberry Pi 5 handles AI vision processing and strategic functions, while Hiwonder’s RRC Lite expansion board manages motion control and sensor data processing. This task distribution enhances efficiency in machine vision, AI-powered navigation, and robotic control, allowing MentorPi to tackle complex AI and vision-based applications with ease. MentorPi also supports advanced features like 3D visual mapping and YOLOv5-based object detection for recognizing road […]
HiFive Premier P550 mini-DTX motherboard features ESWIN EIC7700X RISC-V AI SoC, up to 32GB DDR5, a PCIe x16 slot
SiFive HiFive Premier P550 is a mini-DTX (203 x 170mm) motherboard powered by a 1.4 GHz ESWIN EIC7700X quad-core RISC-V SiFive P550 SoC with up to 19.95 TOPS of AI performance, and equipped with up to 32GB LPDDR5 memory and a 128GB eMMC flash all soldered on a system-on-module. The motherboard itself features a SATA III connector for data storage, includes an HDMI 2.0 port for 4K video output, a PCIe Gen3 x16 slot (working at x4), two gigabit Ethernet ports, an M.2 Key-E socket to add a WiFi/Bluetooth card, up to five USB interfaces, and more. HiFive Premier P550 specifications: SoC – ESWIN EIC7700X CPU 4x SiFive Performance P550 RV64GC RISC-V cores @ 1.4GHz (up to 1.8GHz when overclocked) with Cortex-A75-class performance 32KB(I) + 32KB(D) L1 Cache 256KB L2 Cache 4MB shared L3 Cache Cache supports ECC (support SECDED) NPU (Not currently supported in software) – Up to 19.95 […]
Radxa X4 review – An Intel N100 alternative to Raspberry Pi 5 tested with Ubuntu 24.04
We already looked at the Radxa X4 kit featuring an Intel N100 SBC with a design similar to the Raspberry Pi 5 and accessories including a Radxa Power PD 30W power adapter, an NVMe SSD, and a USB-C to USB-C cable, in the first part of the review, before installing Ubuntu 24.04 on the board.
In the second part of the review, we will test Ubuntu 24.04 in more detail with some benchmarks and power consumption measurements to show how well it works (or not) compared to a Raspberry Pi 5. We will also test the 40-pin GPIO header on the Radxa X4 controlled through a Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller.