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Linux 5.14 Release – Main changes, Arm, MIPS, and RISC-V architectures

Linus Torvalds has just announced Linux 5.14 release which happens to almost coincide with the anniversary of the initial announcement of the “small” project on August 25, 1991, about 30 years ago. Here’s Linux 5.14’s announcement: So I realize you must all still be busy with all the galas and fancy balls and all the other 30th anniversary events, but at some point you must be getting tired of the constant glitz, the fireworks, and the champagne. That ball gown or tailcoat isn’t the most comfortable thing, either. The celebrations will go on for a few more weeks yet, but you all may just need a breather from them. And when that happens, I have just the thing for you – a new kernel release to test and enjoy. Because 5.14 is out there, just waiting for you to kick the tires and remind yourself what all the festivities are […]

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Turing Pi V2 mini-ITX cluster board takes four Raspberry Pi CM4 or NVIDIA Jetson SoMs

The Turing Pi V2 is a mini-ITX cluster board that builds on the  Turing Pi mini-ITX cluster board taking up to 7 Raspberry Pi Compute Modules introduced in 2019, but instead supports up to four Raspberry Pi CM4 (Compute Modules 4) or NVIDIA Jetson Nano/TX2 NX/Xavier NX SO-DIMM system-on-modules. The Turing Pi 2 board is equipped with two Mini PCIe sockets, two Gigabit Ethernet ports, two SATA III ports, four USB 3.0 ports, a 40-pin GPIO header, and a 24-pin ATX connector for power. Since board-to-board connectors – as found in Raspberry Pi Computer Module 4 – are not ideal for density, the company went with a design including 260-pin SO-DIMM connectors plus CM4 adapter boards, a design that allows them to also integrate other SoMs like the NVIDIA Jetson SO-DIMM modules. Turing Pi V2 specifications: SoM interface – 4x 260-pin SO-DIMM slot for up to four Raspberry Pi CM4 […]

Khadas Edge2 Arm mini PC
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SolidRun LX2162A SOM packs 16 Cortex-A72 cores, 32GB DDR4 onto a 58x48mm module

SolidRun LX2162A SOM is a compact (58x48mm) system-on-module based on NXP LX2162A 16-core Cortex-A72 networking processor and equipped with up to 32GB DDR4 RAM that’s 25% of the size of the company’s earlier COM Express Type 7 computer-on-module based on NXP LX2160A 16-core Arm Cortex A72 communication processor and found in ClearFog CX LX2K networking board. The much smaller size has been made possible by replacing the SO-DIMM sockets with soldered RAM, and switching from LX2160A to LX2162A SoC with similar features, but offered in a 23x23mm package that is nearly one quarter the size thanks to a reduction of the number of SerDes and PCIe interfaces, and manufacturing with a 16nm FinFET process technology. LX2162A SOM specifications: SoC – NXP Layerscape LX2162A communication processor with 16x Cortex A72 cores clocked at up to 2.0 GHz (option for the 12-core LX2122A, or 8-core LX2182A) Memory – Up to 32GB DDR4 […]

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MinCab is the smallest Raspberry Pi CM4 carrier board ever

Carrier boards for Raspberry Pi CM4 modules are all over the place for routers, NAS, industrial gateways, and more. Here’s another one with the Minimal Carrier Board for Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4, or MinCab, that powers the RPi CM4 module via a USB Type-C port. That’s about all it does, although you would also be able to access some GPIOs, 5V,  3.3V, and GND signals via pads on the carrier board. Specifically, eight GPIOs are accessible with IO14, IO15, IO2, IO3, IO4, IO12, IO13, and IO18. Ivan Kuleshov explains this can be useful for Smart Home systems for instance, but it could be anything that requires WiFI and/or Bluetooth connectivity, a powerful Linux capable processor (as opposed to something like ESP32), and a few I/Os. The MinCab might be a good alternative to the upcoming (and delayed) Raspberry Pi 4 Model A for people wanting to use Broadcom BCM2711 […]

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Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 mini router keeps cool with aluminum alloy cover

There are many hardware platforms based on Raspberry Pi CM4 system-on-module, but in most instances, only the baseboard is provided, and you have to handle mounting and/or make an enclosure by yourself. One of those boards was Seeed Studio’s “Dual Gigabit Ethernet Carrier Board for Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4”, which as the name implies, offers two Gigabit Ethernet ports, as well as two USB 3.0 ports, and a micro HDMI port for video output. I say “was” because the company has now designed a PC/ABS case with an aluminum alloy cover acting as a heatsink to keep the RPi CM4 module cool. Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 mini router’s specifications: SoM – Raspberry Pi CM4 with up to 8GB RAM, 32GB eMMC flash, dual-band WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5.0 module; replaceable by any Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 Storage – MicroSD card slot (only accessible with RPi CM4Lite module) […]

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Boardcon EM3566 Linux SBC is powered by a Rockchip RK3566 System-on-Module

Another day, another platform based on Rockchip RK3566 quad-core Cortex-A55 AIoT processor with Boardcon EM3566 SBC powered by a Rockchip RK3566 based System-on-Module (SoM). The single board computer comes with up to 2 to 8GB  LPDDR4 RAM, 4GB to 32GB eMMC flash, SATA and NVMe SSD support, HDMI, MPI DSI, and eDP display interfaces, Gigabit Ethernet, as well as expansion options through M.2 and mPCIe sockets. CM3566 RK3566 System-on-Module Let’s check out CM3566 CPU module which offers the following specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3566 with a quad-core Cortex-A55 processor @ up to 1.8GHz, Arm Mali-G52 2EE GPU with support for OpenGL ES 1.1/2.0/3.2. OpenCL 2.0. Vulkan 1.1, 0.8 TOPS AI accelerator, 4K H.265/H.265/VP9 video decoder, 1080p100 H.265/H.264 video encoder. System Memory – 2GB LPDDR4 (up to 8GB) Storage – 4GB eMMC flash (Up to 32GB) 186 castellated holes with signals for Storage – 2x SDMMC, SATA Display – LVDS/MIPI DSI, […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs
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ROCK 3A SBC brings M.2 slots for NVMe SSD, WiFi 6 to Raspberry Pi form factor

Radxa ROCK 3A is a single board computer powered by Rockchip RK3568 quad-core Cortex-A55 processor that closely follows Raspberry Pi 3 Model B form factor like the early Rock Pi 4 SBC, but with a twist. By switching from a Rockchip RK3399 to a Rockchip RK3568,  the board loses some CPU and GPU performance, but gains extra I/Os with enabled the company to add an additional M.2 slot with PCIe to ROCK 3A board, meaning it’s now possible to attach one NVMe SSD and another M.2 module like a WiFi 6 M.2 card. ROCK 3A preliminary specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3568 quad-core Cortex A55 processor at up to 2GHz, with Mali G52 GPU, 0.8TOPS NPU System Memory – 2GB, 4GB, 8GB LPDDR4 3200MT/s, up to 1560MHz Storage Pluggable eMMC module MicroSD card slot M.2 M key socket for NVMe with PCIe 3.0 x2 lanes 4MB SPI flash with support for […]

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EdgeBox-RPi4 industrial controller offers RS485, RS232 interfaces, isolated DI/DO

OpenEmbed EdgeBox-RPi4 is an industrial controller based on Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 fitted with up to 4GB RAM, 32GB eMMC flash, and a 2.4/5GHz WiFi & Bluetooth 5.0 wireless module. The controller exposes isolated RS485 & RS232 serial interfaces, as well as isolated digital inputs and outputs through a 16-pin terminal block, and provides Gigabit Ethernet and optional WiFI and 4G LTE connectivity options. EdgeBox-RPi4 specifications: SoM –  Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 (CM4) with Broadcom BCM2711 quad-core Cortex-A72 processor running up to 1.5GHz in either two default configurations: 1GB RAM, 8GB flash, no wireless module 4GB RAM, 32GB flash, dual-band WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5 module Storage – M.2 socket for NVMe SSD up to 2TB (See expansion) I/O interfaces via 16-pin terminal block Industrial-grade isolated 2x DI (Digital Inputs), 2x DO (Digital Outputs) Industrial-grade isolated RS485 interface RS232 interface Connectivity Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 port Optional WiFI 5 […]

Khadas VIM4 SBC