CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

January 6, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

VIA APC Rock and Paper Boards Now Officially Support Firefox OS

VIA has just announced a partnership with Mozilla for support and development of Firefox OS for APC Rock and APC Paper platforms based on WonderMedia WM8950 single core ARM Cortex A9 SoC. Firefox OS source code and documentation for the APC boards are available on the company’s apc-firefox-os github repository. To motivate the developer’s community, the company is also offering free APCs to developers that fix specific bugs. A first version was released on the 22nd of November 2013, with the following fixes: Updated firmware package to support HDMI hotplug as the solution from VIA Switched to latest base from Mozilla and using master branch for all Mozilla repos Support multiple hardware keyboard hot plug Fixed so that Mozilla soft home button can be enabled via settings Supports Ethernet cable hot plug Enabled SNTP with Ethernet network Set default display timeout to never Fixed some orientation bug due to migration to […]

January 6, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Lenovo Introduces Nvidia Tegra based All-in-One Android Computers

Lenovo has unveiled two new Android computers just before CES 2014: N308 and ThinkVision 28, respectively powered by Nvidia Tegra 3 with a 19.5″ display and Tegra 4 with a 28″ UHD display. Lenovo N308 Lenovo N308 specifications: SoC – Nvidia Tegra 3 quad core Cortex A9 processor System Memory – 2GB RAM Storage – 8/16 GB SSD or 320/500 GB HDD, and 6-in-1 card reader Display – 19.5″ display (touch screen ??), 1600×900 resolution Connectivity – Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Webcam – Front camera for 720p video conference USB – 2x USB 2.0 ports Audio – Built-in stereo speakers, microphone, and headphone port Battery – Up to 3 hours of usage Lenovo computer cones with a keyboard and mouse, and runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean. With a 19.45″ display, it’s not really portable, so the integrated battery is probably there to allow you to move it from one room to […]

January 6, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

NVidia Announces Tegra K1 32-bit & 64-bit SoCs with a 192 Core Kepler GPU

Nvidia announced their newest mobile SoC at CES 2014, but instead of calling it Tegra 5, they went for Tegra K1, as it’s the first to feature a 192 cores GPU based on Kepler architecture, the same as used in PC graphics card. There will be several version of the chip one based on four Cortex A15 cores, one featuring a dual core Nvidia Denver CPU based on ARMv8 64-bit architecture, and Tegra K1 VCM for the automotive market. The company showcased the power of their new processor with an Unreal Engine 4 demo and the same face demo showed last year on an Nvidia GPU card, and Tegra K1 easily outperform older generations games console such as Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, at and the same time consume just about 5 Watts of power, versus 100 Watts for Microsoft and Sony consoles. The GPU in the Tegra K1 also […]

January 6, 2014January 6, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Samsung Unveils “Samsung Smart Home” and Smart Home Software Protocol (SHP) at CES 2014

2014 could be the year where home automation becomes mainstream, as after Archos Connected Home, Samsung has now announced their own “Smart Home” service enabling users to control and manage their home devices, as well as Smart Home software Protocol (SHP) to enable connectivity between Smart Home products from Samsung and other manufacturers. Your smartphone, smartwatch (Galaxy GEAR), or smart TV will be the control center of your home, and you’ll be able to manage refrigerators, washing machines, smart TVs, lights, and more. Communication between your phone and the appliance will go through the company’s cloud-based Smart Home Server. At launch, Samsung will provide three main service features as shown in the illustration above: Device Control – Mobile devices or Smart TV can be used to monitor or control home appliances via Smart Home app from nearly anywhere. Voice control is also available so you could say “good night” to […]

January 5, 2014October 19, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 14 Comments

Geniatech ATV1220 Dual Core Android TV Box with DVB-T Tuner Sells for $95 and Up

I’ve tested several Android TV boxes based on AMLogic AML8726-MX dual core processor including GBox Midnight MX2, Tronsmart Prometheus, or Jynxbox M6, that sell for about $90 to $120. Today I’ve been informed that Geniatech ATV1220 offers about the same hardware specs as the aforementioned devices, but adds a DVB-T tuner, and sells for $95 on ChinaVasion, or $99 on Mygica e-Store (Geniatech comsumer brand). Geniatech / Mygica ATV1220 Enjoy TV dual core hybrid box specifications: SoC – AMLogic AML8726-MX dual core Cortex A9 @ 1.5 GHz + Mali-400 GPU System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 4GB NAND flash + SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 1.4a, composite Audio – HDMI, stereo audio via RCA connectors. Antenna Input – Compliant with DVB-T, Frequency: TV 48.25 ~ 863.25 MHz. Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n with external antenna USB – 4x USB 2.0 host ports Misc – IR […]

January 5, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

How-to Use an Android mini PC to Edit and Print Documents, Spreadsheets, Presentations, and More

Android mini PC have come a long way, and for many use cases such as web browsing and online videos, they nearly match or even surpass the user’s experience you’ve got on a full blown PC. However, unless you’ve installed Linux on your HDMI TV stick or TV box, there were serious limitations using an Android device as a computer where you can install an office suite to create and edit text documents, spreadsheets, and presentation, and print them out. With the availability of apps such as AndrOpen Office, and the addition of printing support in Android 4.4 KitKat, it’s now possible to use Android mini PCs to create content and print documents just like in a normal PC. So if your kids need a cheap PC for their homework, you could just buy a $60 device, adding a USB keyboard and mouse, and connecting the device to an HDMI monitor. […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs

January 4, 2014 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

Popcorn Hour A-410 Linux Based Networked Media Jukebox is Now Available for Pre-order for $259

CloudMedia, previously known a Syabas, has announced the available of Popcorn Hour A410, a networked media jukebox (NMJ) powered by Sigma Designs SMP8911 dual core processor with 1GB RAM, Gigabit Ethernet, support for 2.5″ and 3.5″ SATA drives, USB 3.0, and numerous audio / video ports. It can be used as a media player, as well as a NAS (Networked Access Storage). Popcorn Hour A410 specifications: SoC – Sigma Designs SMP8911 Dual-Core 800Mhz processor (MIPS) with 512KB L2 Cache and VXP Video Processor System Memory – 1024MB DDR2 Storage – 256MB SLC NAND Flash, SD Card reader, 2.5″ and 3.5″ SATA HDD bay, and eSATA connector. Audio/Video I/Os – HDMI, Component, CVBS, Stereo Audio, optical and coaxial S/PDIF. Audio DAC – ESS Sabre Audiophile class DAC (24-bit, 192 Khz sampling rate) Video containers – MPEG1/2/4 Elementary (M1V, M2V, M4V),MPEG1/2 PS (M2P, MPG, DAT, VOB),MPEG2 Transport Stream (TS, TP, TRP, M2T, […]

January 4, 2014June 14, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

What to Expect from AllWinner, Rockchip, Mediatek, and Other Silicon Vendors at CES 2014

CES 2014 is coming soon, and it will take place on 7 – 10 January, 2014, and we can expect some interesting SoC news. Samsung suggested they will unveil their 64-bit ARM SoC (Exynos 6?) at CES 2014, Nvidia will hold a press conference to “showcase new NVIDIA Tegra mobile technologies, gaming innovations, and advanced automotive display technologies”, and Qualcomm has been quiet for now. However, several Chinese SoC vendors, namely AllWinner, Rockchip, and Mediatek, have already announced what they will showcase at CES 2014, albeit with few details. AllWinner at CES 2014 Allwinner announced will showcase their OptimusBoard based on their Ultra Octa-Core A80 SoC, as well as 4G tablets powered by Allwinner A31/A31s, and dual-SIM phablets sporting A23 dual-core. Allwinner A80 is an Octacore processor featuring four ARM Cortex A7 cores, and four Cortex A15 cores @ 2.0GHz together with an unnamed GPU offering 2x more performance over previous […]