CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

June 27, 2023June 26, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Olimex ESP32-C6-EVB supports WiFi 6, BLE, Zigbee, comes with four relays, four opto-isolated inputs

Olimex ESP32-C6-EVB is an open-source hardware board based on an ESP32-C6 wireless module with 2.4 GHz WiFi 6, Bluetooth LE, and Zigbee connectivity, and offering four relays and four opto-isolated inputs, as well as further expansion via two UEXT connector. So far we had a limited amount of third-party ESP32-C6 boards, with Espressif making their own module and development board available in January, and 01Space launching a tiny ESP32-C6 board in April, a time when a lot of software work was still needed. But the ESP-IDF v5.1 with ESP32-C6 support is nearing release (now RC2), and the Olimex board may mark the start of greater availability of ESP32-C6 hardware with stable/usable firmware. ESP32-C6-EVB specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-C6-WROOM-1-N4 module with Espressif Systems ESP32-C6 single core 32-bit RISC-V processor @ 160 MHz with 2.4 GHz WiFi 6 1T1R with Target Wake Time (TWT) support, Bluetooth LE 5.0, and 802.15.4 radio for […]

June 26, 2023June 26, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

ASUS ExpertCenter PN42 mini PC with Intel Processor N100 launched for $220 and up

We’ve covered several Intel Processor N100 mini PC, mostly from smaller Chinese companies with models such as the Morefine M9, the ZX01 Plus/Topton M6S, or the Beelink EQ12 which we reviewed with Windows 11, TrueNAS, pfSense, Ubuntu, etc… But if you prefer to rely on more established brands, the MSI Cubi N ADL is an option for $289 on Amazon with 4GB RAM and 128GB storage, or the ASUS ExpertCenter PN42 fanless Intel N100 mini PC which is now listed for pre-order on B&H for $220 and up. ASUS ExperCenter PN42 specifications: SoC – Intel Processor N100 quad-core Alder Lake-N processor @ up to 3.4 GHz (Turbo) with 6MB cache, 24EU Intel HD graphics; TDP: 6W System Memory – Up to 16GB single-channel DDR4 3200MHz memory via one SO-DIMM socket Storage – 1x M.2 22080 PCIe 3.0 x4 socket for NVMe SSD Video Output HDMI DisplayPort 1.4 up to 4Kp60 […]

ArmSoM CM5 Raspberry Pi CM4 alternative with Rockchip RK3576 SoC

June 26, 2023August 28, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Linux 6.4 release – Main changes, Arm, RISC-V and MIPS architectures

Linux 6.4 has just been released by Linus Torvalds on the Linux Kernel Mailing List (LKML): Hmm. Final week of 6.4 is done, and we’ve mainly got some netfilter fixes, some mm reverts, and a few tracing updates. There’s random small changes elsewhere: the usual architecture noise, a number of selftest updates, some filesystem fixes (btrfs, ksmb), etc. Most of the stuff in my mailbox the last week has been about upcoming things for 6.5, and I already have 15 pull requests pending. I appreciate all you proactive people. But that’s for tomorrow. Today we’re all busy build-testing the newest kernel release, and checking that it’s all good. Right? Released around two months ago, Linux 6.3 brought us AMD’s “automatic IBRS” Spectre defense mechanism, additional progress on the Rust front with User-mode Linux support (on x86-64 systems only), the NFS filesystem (both the client and server sides) gained support for […]

June 26, 2023June 26, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Intel soft router offers up to eight 2.5GbE ports, Comet Lake or Whiskey Lake Core processor

Topton is offering a soft router powered by an Intel Whiskey Lake or Comet Lake processor up to the Core i7-10510U quad-core/octa-thread processor with either eight 2.5GbE RJ45 ports or four 2.5GbE RJ45 ports and two 10GbE SFP+ cages. We’ve previously written about the low-cost InuoMicro G4305L8-S2 fanless industrial PC box with eight 2.5GbE interfaces, but it is powered by an Intel Celeron 4305UE dual-core Whiskey Lake processor, and the Topton model should offer more performance with a choice of 8th or 10th generation Intel Core i3/i5/i7 Whiskey Lake or Comet Lake SoC. Specifications: SoC (one or the other) Intel Core i3-8145UE dual-core Whiskey Lake processor up to 3.90 GHz with Intel UHD Graphics 620; 15W TDP Intel Core i5-10210U quad-core/eight-thread Comet Lake processor @ 1.6 GHz / 3.9 GHz (turbo all cores) / 4.2 GHz (turbo one core), 24EU Intel UHD graphics; 6MB Cache; 15W TDP Intel Core i7-10510U […]

June 25, 2023June 25, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Using Link.ONE all-in-one LPWAN development kit with ChipStark, Node-Red, InfluxDB, and Grafana

RAKwireless has sent us a review sample of the WisTrio Link.ONE all-in-one LPWAN IoT development kit with support for LTE-M, NB-IoT, and LoRaWAN connectivity and programmable with the Arduino IDE. We’ve tested the kit with its weatherproof WisBlock Unify enclosure using LoRaWAN connectivity and open-source software packages and frameworks such as ChipStark, Node-Red, InfluxDB, and Grafana. Key features of the Link.ONE kit The Link.ONE kit we’ve received comes with a WisBlock Unify Enclosure (100 x 75 x 38 mm) and a 3,200 mAh/3.7V rechargeable lithium battery which is sufficient when the system is mostly in sleep mode and used to receive data, while not sending information too often. “Link.ONE with BOX” unboxing The following items were very tightly packed inside the box: WisTrio LTE-M, NB-IoT, and LoRaWAN development board Rechargeable lithium battery External Antenna for cellular USB Type-C cable Circular M8 female cable The enclosure is strong with the lid […]

June 24, 2023June 24, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

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

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 – […]

Rockchip RK3568, RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs abd SoMs

June 23, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

PiccoloBASIC – A BASIC interpreter for the Raspberry Pi Pico board

PiccoloBASIC is an open-source BASIC interpreter for the Raspberry Pi Pico development board that’s based on “uBASIC: a really simple BASIC interpreter” by Adam Dunkels and relying on Arm’s LittleFS fail-safe filesystem for microcontrollers. If my memory serves me well, my first computing experience was at school using a Thomson TO7 computer that we programmed with BASIC. I don’t think the language is still used in practical applications, but we can still see some BASIC projects pop up from time to time such as a BASIC interpreter for the Arduino Zero boards. Gary Sims, owner of the Gary Explains YouTube channel, has now ported a BASIC interpreter to the Raspberry Pi Pico. The project is still work in progress, but currently implemented features include: Let, if, print, for, goto, gosub String variables (let z$=”hello”) Floating point numbers and variables (let z#=1.234) Builtin functions [zero, randint, not, time] Sleep, delay, […]

June 23, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

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

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, […]