CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

July 22, 2022July 25, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Banana Pi BPI-W3 – An RK3588 SBC with dual Gigabit Ethernet, SATA, PCIe x4 slot

Banana Pi BPI-W3 is yet another upcoming Rockchip RK3588 SBC but with a different set of features, notably the presence of two Gigabit Ethernet ports, a PCIe x4 slot, and a SATA port, besides to more common dual HDMI output, HDMI input, USB 2.0/3.0 ports, etc… The board layout is somewhat similar to the company’s BPI-RK3588 SBC but with a system-on-module, and instead, the Rockchip RK3588 processor is soldered directly onto the board together with 8GB LPDDR4, and 32GB eMMC flash. Banana Pi BPI-W3 specifications (preliminary): SoC- Rockchip RK3588 octa-core processor with 4x Cortex-A76 cores @ up to 2.4 GHz (YMMV), 4x Cortex-A55 cores @ 1.8 GHz, an Arm Mali G610MC4 GPU, a 6 TOPS NPU, 8K 10-bit decoder, 8K encoder System Memory – 8GB LPDDR4 Storage – 32GB eMMC flash, SATA III port Video Output – 2x HDMI 2.1 ports up to 8Kp60 Input – 1x HDMI 2.0 input […]

July 21, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

XRF16 Gen3 SOM features Xilinx Zynq UltraScale+ ZU49DR RFSoC with up to 6GHz bandwidth

We’ve written about Xilinx Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoCs that combine Arm Cortex-A53/R5 cores and Mali-400 GPU with Ultrascale FPGA fabric several times over the course of a few years. But AMD-Xilinx also offers the Zynq UltraScale+ RFSoC single-chip adaptable radio platforms that support up to 7.125GHz analog bandwidth. The topic came to my attention because of an upcoming ZU49DR SoM from iWave Systems that seems to be under development but also noticed Avnet had launched a solution last year with the XRF16 Gen3 SoM featuring the same third-generation Zynq Ultrascale+ ZU49DR RFSoC with 16 RF-ADC, 16 RF-DAC channels, and 6GHz RF bandwidth. Avnet XRF16 specifications: Main chip – Xilinx Zynq UltraScale+ Gen3 ZU49DR RFSoC with Quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processing subsystem Dual-core Arm Cortex-R5F MPCore up to 533MHz 16x ADCs, 14-bit up to 2.5 GSPS 16x DACs, 14-bit up to 9.85 GSPS (10 GSPS Available) 1 GbE, PCIe Gen1/2, SATA, USB2/3 UltraScale+ […]

July 21, 2022June 12, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

OSM Size M SiP Integrates STM32MP1 MPU for industrial & IoT applications

ARIES Embedded MSMP1 OSM-compatible system-in-package (SiP) based on STM32MP1 CortexA7/M4 microcontroller for Industrial and IoT applications follows the company’s MSRZG2UL and MSRZFive OSM-compatible SiPs with Renesas Arm or RISC-V microprocessor introduced a few months ago. But instead of coming in the ultra-compact 30×30 mm OSM Size S form factor, the new MSMP1 complies with the larger 45x30mm OSM Size M form factor with a total of 476 contacts to allow for more I/Os. The SiP also integrates 512 MB to 4 GB DDR3L RAM, and 4 to 64 GB eMMC flash. MSMP1 SIP specifications: SoC – STMicro STM32MP1 single or dual-core Arm Cortex-A7 processor up to 800MHz, with Arm Cortex-M4 real-time core up to 209MHz, Vivante GPU compatible with OpenGL ES 2.0 System Memory – 512MB – 4GB DDR3L RAM Storage – 4GB – 64GB eMMC NAND Flash 476-contact LGA with Networking – Gigabit Ethernet USB – USB 2.0 Host/OTG […]

July 21, 2022August 9, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

PIX NII is a pocket-sized mini PC powered by an Intel Pentium N6005 processor (Crowdfunding)

PIX NII pocket-sized mini PC features an Intel Pentium N6005 Jasper Lake processor that should provide a nice upgrade to existing 2.4-inch mini PCs based on Gemini Lake processors such as Larkbox. The tiny computer is slightly larger (2.7×2.6 inch) than the previous 2.4-inch models, but ships with up to 16GB RAM, up to a 1TB NVMe SSD, and offers two 4K-capable HDMI 2.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet & WiFi 6 connectivity, as well as a few USB 3.2 ports, plus a 3.5mm audio jack. PIX NII specifications: SoC – Intel Pentium N6005 quad-core processor @ 2.0GHz / 3.3GHz (Turbo) with Intel UHD graphics; 10W TDP System Memory – 8GB or 16GB DDR4 RAM Storage SATA or NVMe SSD with 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB capacity (up to 520MB/s with SATA, 1,000MB/s with NVMe) MicroSD card socket Video Output – 2x HDMI 2.0 ports up to 4Kp60 Audio – 3.5mm audio jack, […]

July 20, 2022February 25, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 70 Comments

Rock 5B RK3588 SBC preview – What works, what doesn’t in Debian 11

I’ve recently received an early sample of Radxa ROCK5 Model B (aka ROCK 5B) SBC part of the “Developer Edition” batch with 16GB RAM, and already showed the hardware and it booting successfully in Debian 11.

I’ve now spent more time with the board, and as part of the “debug party” tested performance and features in Debian 11. As one would expect, some things work fine, providing excellent performance, but others still need improvements.

July 20, 2022July 20, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Qualcomm Snapdragon W5+ and W5 wearables platforms promise higher efficiency and performance

It’s been a while since Qualcomm released a new platform for wearables. More exactly, the Snapdragon 4100 platform was announced a little over two years ago, and now Qualcomm has just introduced the Snapdragon W5+ and W5 Gen 1 platforms with up to 50% longer battery, twice the performance, and 30 percent smaller size. Just like the Snapdragon 4100, the Snapdragon W5 comes with four Arm Cortex-A53 processor (SW5100), but is clocked at 1.7 GHz and manufactured with a 4nm process, while the always-on (AON) co-processor is upgraded from a Cortex-M0 chip to the QCC5100 Cortex-M55 chip manufactured with a 22nm process. Snapdragon W5+/W5 specifications: W5100 SoC CPU – Quad-core Cortex-A53 processor @ up to 1.7 GHz GPU – Qualcomm Adreno A702 @ up to 1 GHz with OpenGL ES 3.1 API support DSP – Qualcomm Hexagon DSP V66K System Memory – 16-bit LPDDR4 up to 2,133 MHz […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs

July 19, 2022February 24, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Nano-U12P – An 8K digital signage player powered by an Intel Alder Lake processor

Alder Lake processors were first formally announced at the end of 2021 with the most powerful H-Series, followed by a range of Alder Lake Edge IoT processors, and in February, Intel officially launched Alder Lake P-Series and U-Series mobile hybrid processors which I had expected to find in several mini PCs by now. But apart from ASRock iBOX 1200 Series announcement, and leaks of the NUC 12 Studio Pro, I had not really seen any. But today, I found what looks like a mini PC with the Polywell Nano-U12P, but it’s instead marketed as an 8K digital signage player with a choice of Alder Lake P-series and U-series processors. Nano-U12P specifications: SoC (one or the other) Intel Core i7-1280P 6P+8E (20 threads) processor @ 3.60/4.80GHz with Intel Xe graphics; 20/28W TDP Intel Core i7-1270P 4P+8E (16 threads) processor @ 3.50/4.80GHz with Intel Xe graphics; 20/28W TDP Intel Core i7-1260P 4P+8E […]

July 19, 2022August 11, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

CrowPi L Raspberry Pi 4 laptop review – Part 1: Unboxing and teardown

CrowPi L Raspberry Pi Education Laptop Review

Elecrow CrowPi L is an 11.6-inch laptop shell based on Raspberry Pi 4 designed for STEM education with optional electronics modules and tutorials. That’s an evolution of the CrowPi 2 laptop I reviewed in 2020 with a thinner design and more flexible since the electronics modules are optional, so it can serve the market of people just wanting a Raspberry Pi 4 laptop. The company has sent me a full “CrowPi L Advanced Kit” for review with the CrowPi L laptop fitted with a Raspberry Pi 4, as well as the Crowtail Starter Kit for Raspberry Pi. CrowPi L Advanced Kit Unboxing Let’s check out the laptop package first. Since in this design, the laptop comes with a battery, and mine already had a Raspberry Pi 4 installed, I could just turn it on immediately. Accessories include a wireless mouse, a 12V/2A power supply (with USB Type-C plug… this should […]

Boardcon Rockchip and Allwinner SoM and SBC products