CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

August 11, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Chart confirms higher level of Raspberry Pi restocks

Earlier this month, we noted that Raspberry Pi supplies were improving mostly from tweets from Eben Upton who provided data about shipped boards since the beginning of the year. But there are also third-party data that confirm this since RPILocator provides statistics for restocks of Raspberry Pi hardware from approved resellers. The chart below shows weekly data of restocks since January 2022 until today, and we can clearly see a jump in restocks in recent weeks, especially for the Raspberry Pi 4, so there’s no need to steal old boards from discarded scooters anymore 😉 The ramp-up really started on week 25 (June 19-25) and peaked on week 28 (July 10-16) possibly to fill back orders, and restocks have been going down in recent weeks but still at a higher level than previously. While the improvement is mostly visible for the Pi 4, the Raspberry Pi 3 and Raspberry Pi […]

August 10, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

myCobot Pro 600 Raspberry Pi 4-based robot arm supports 600mm working range, up to 2kg payload

Elephant Robotics has launched its most advanced 6 DoF robot arm so far with the myCobot Pro 600 equipped with a Raspberry Pi 4 SBC, offering a maximum 600mm working range and support for up to 2kg payloads. We’ve covered Elephant Robotics’ myCobot robotic arms based on Raspberry Pi 4, ESP32, Jetson Nano, or Arduino previously, even reviewed the myCobot 280 Pi using both Python and visual programming, and the new Raspberry Pi 4-based myCobot Pro 600 provides about the same features but its much larger design enables it to be used on larger areas and handles heavier objects. myCobot Pro 600 specifications: SBC – Raspberry Pi 4 single board computer MCU – 240 MHz ESP32 dual-core microcontroller (600 DMIPS) with 520KB SRAM, Wi-Fi & dual-mode Bluetooth Video Output – 2x micro HDMI 2.0 ports Audio – 3.5mm audio jack, digital audio via HDMI Networking – Gigabit Ethernet, dual-band WiFi […]

ArmSoM CM5 - Raspberry Pi CM4 alternative with Rockchip RK3576 SoC

August 10, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Radxa ROCK 5B SBC goes fanless with metal case

The Radxa ROCK 5B was one of the first Rockchip RK3588 SBCs, and when we reviewed the developer edition of the board in July 2022 it came with an heatsink and 5V fan that was always on. That’s probably fine for testing, but many people will prefer a fanless solution. It turns out a metal case turning the ROCK 5B SBC into a fanless device has been available since the end of last year, but I’ve only come across it today. The black part is made of metal and the front and back plates are made of green plastic. As with all cases, there are always questions about compatibility with accessories, and for metal cases in particular, whether it’s actually used to cool the processor. Since it’s been around for many months, other users have already tested it out including Radxa forum’s user Deadmeat user who confirmed the SSD and […]

August 10, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Raspberry Pi CM4-powered outdoor gateway supports GbE, WiFi 5, Bluetooth 5.0, 4G LTE, LoRaWAN, and GPS connectivity

EDATEC ED-GWL2110 is an IP24-rated outdoor gateway based on Raspberry Pi CM4 and supporting Gigabit Ethernet, WiFi 5, Bluetooth 5.0, 4G LTE cellular, LoRaWAN, and GPS connectivity, as well as Power over Ethernet (PoE). The weatherproof gateway also comes with two microSD cards for the OS (CM4 Lite) and data, an HDMI 2.0 output port, a serial console, and features such as an RTC with backup battery, a watchdog, an ATECC608 secure element, and a user-programmable RGB LED. EDATEC ED-GWL2110 specifications: SoM – Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 SoC – Broadcom BCM2711 quad-core Arm Cortex-A72 processor @ up to 1.5GHz with VideoCore VI GPU System Memory – 1GB, 2GB, 4GB, or 8GB RAM Storage – Optional 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB eMMC flash Wireless – Optional WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.0 Storage – Dual micro SD card slot for OS (Raspberry Pi CM4 Lite) and data Video Output – 1x HDMI […]

August 9, 2023August 9, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

Intel Downfall (Gather Data Sampling) vulnerability impacts AVX2/AVX-512 workloads

After vulnerabilities like Spectre and Meltdown were discovered in 2018, Intel processors have more vulnerabilities with the Downfall attacks that target the Gather instruction part of AVX2/AVX-512 and impact 6th generation Skylake up to 11th generation Tiger Lake processors introduced as far back as 2014. It does not affect more recent processors, and as somebody who has just purchased a laptop based on a 13th Raptor Lake processor, I guess I can breathe a sigh of relief until the next vulnerability is discovered, but people using hardware with older Intel processors will have to update the OS and suffer from a performance impact, at least for tasks leveraging AVX2 or AVX-512. The website about the Downfall vulnerability explains: Downfall attacks targets a critical weakness found in billions of modern processors used in personal and cloud computers. This vulnerability, identified as CVE-2022-40982, enables a user to access and steal data from […]

August 9, 2023August 9, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Raspberry Pi Pico to Arduino Uno adapter relies on “FlexyPins” for castellated holes

Raspberry Pi Pico Arduino UNO adapter FlexyPins

Solder Party’s “Raspberry Pi Pico to Uno FlexyPin Adapter” transforms the Raspberry Pi Pico into an Arduino UNO without soldering the board directly or using headers, but instead relying on FlexyPins flexible pins to attach the Pico board to the adapter using its castellated holes. The end result is basically the same as for the WisdPi ArduPico board, except the Raspberry Pi Pico is soldered to the main PCB on the latter, but it can be easily removed from the Solder Party’s Uno adapter board to be replaced with another compatible model, e.g. Raspberry Pi Pico vs Pico W. The FlexyPins can be used with any board or module with castellated holes, but it’s obviously especially useful for castellated modules without through holes, for example, to easily program a bunch of ESP32 modules. You’ll first need to get a few FlexyPins as shown below. Then solder them to a compatible […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs

August 9, 2023August 9, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Tiny mini PC with four 2.5Gbps Ethernet ports ships with Intel Processor N100/N200 or Core i3-N305 CPU

The “M1 Pocket Mini Soft Router” is a tiny Intel Alder Lake-N OEM mini PC with four 2.5Gbps Ethernet ports that is powered by a Processor N100, Processor N200, or Core i3-N305 CPU and sold by various brands such as Kingnovy or Tuofudun Topton. The pocket-sized computer comes with up to 16GB DDR5 memory, up to 1TB NVMe SSD, and features HDMI 2.0 and DisplayPort USB-C video outputs, two USB 3.0 ports, as well as a microSD card slot and a 3.5mm audio jack. M1 mini PC specifications: Alder Lake-N SoC Intel Processor N100 quad-core processor @ up to 3.4 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 24EU Intel UHD graphics; TDP: 6W Intel Processor N200 quad-core processor @ up to 3.7 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 32EU Intel HD graphics; TDP: 6W Intel Core i3-N305 octa-core processor @ up to 3.8 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 32EU Intel UHD Graphics; TDP: 15W […]

August 8, 2023August 9, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

DIN-Rail mountable industrial 4G LTE router takes 9V to 36V DC power input

Waveshare WS-431E is an industrial-grade 4G LTE router with three Ethernet ports, WiFi 4, wall and DIN-Rail mounting options, and support for a wide power input range between 9V and 36V DC. The router is said to be based on two Qualcomm chips without further details provided, support various VPN protocols, and be suitable for networked medical equipment, Smart Agriculture, Smart Cities, robots, and security monitoring applications. Waveshare WS-431E specifications: SoC – “Dual Qualcomm chips” for WiFi and 4G LTE Networking Ethernet 1x 10/100Mbps Ethernet RJ45 WAN port (can be configured as LAN) with auto MDI/MDIX, 1.5KV electromagnetic isolation protection 2x 10/100Mbps Ethernet RJ45 LAN ports with auto MDI/MDIX, 1.5KV electromagnetic isolation protection 2.4 GHz 802.11b/g/n WiFi 4 2×2 MIMO up to 300 Mbps, and 500-meter LoS range 4G LTE cellular 4G TDD-LTE – B38/40/41 4G FDD-LTE – B1/3/7/8/20/28A 3G WCDMA – B1/8 2G GSM/EDGE – B3/8 Nano SIM card […]