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Raspberry Pi CM3+ based Iono Pi Max industrial controller comes with an impressive number of I/Os

As the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 is only expected for next year, companies are still launching products based on Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3+ (CM3+), and Sfera Labs has just introduced Iono Pi Max industrial computer powered by a Raspberry Pi CM3+ system-on-module. Housed in a DIN rail enclosure, the Linux controller offers Fast Ethernet, three USB ports, isolated CAN and serial boards, some analog I/Os, a relay, as well as a real-time clock (RTC), integrated UPS, and more. Iono Pi Max specifications: SoM compatibility Iono Pi Max 3+ – Already fitted with Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3+ (Lite, 8GB, 16GB, or 32GB eMMC version) Iono Pi Max Solo – Barebone model compatible with Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3, CM3 Lite, CM3+ 8GB/16GB32GB, and CM3+ Lite MCU – Microchip SAME54 Cortex-M4F microcontroller with 1 MB flash, 256 KB RAM connected to the Raspberry Pi module via I2C, USB and […]

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Testing Hercules OTT Realtek RTD1395 4K Android STB Development Board

This is a guest post by Promwad, a software and hardware product development company with DTV & STB development expertise and know-how. Recently, they received a package from Realtek, their partner in Taiwan. There was a Realtek RTD1395 development board inside – Hercules 32-bit OTT – with 2 GB RAM and pre-installed Android 9 OS. Promwad team tested what it’s capable of and how it can be used by hardware and software engineers who design new TV set-top boxes and develop embedded software. Hercules OTT board is an Android IPTV box that plays videos of any formats with a maximum resolution of 4K. Streaming services such as Youtube, Netflix, etc. are supported via Dash and HLS. Also, the board supports other Android apps, including audio/video calls and conferencing. Realtek introduced RTD1395-based boards back in 2018. IP and cable TV operators used them in their subscriber devices. The RTD1395 chip with […]

Khadas Edge2 Arm mini PC
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ODYSSEY-X86J4105 SBC Review with Ubuntu 20.04 – Raspberry Pi & Arduino Headers Tested

We’ve already reviewed ODYSSEY-X86J4105 SBC with Windows 10. When combined with Re_Computer enclosure it’s a typical Intel Gemini Lake mini PC but with a twist: Arduino and Raspberry Pi header. The latter works fine in Windows, but at the time, the Raspberry Pi header does not. So Linux is our only option. I’ve now had time to install and test Ubuntu 20.04 on ODYSSEY-X86J4105 single board computer. I did not install Ubuntu on the internal eMMC flash where Windows 10 resides, but instead on a 128GB M.2 SATA SSD. I’ll first run some usual command to check system information, then run benchmarks, and check whether all features are working before focusing the review on the Arduino and Raspberry Pi headers. ODYSSEY-X86J4105 Ubuntu 20.04 System Info We can check some of the information from the system in the terminal:

An Intel Celeron J4105 processor with 8GB RAM and the rootfs […]

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Odyssey Blue J4105 Windows & Linux Mini PC Comes with a 128GB SSD, an Arduino Compatible MCU

We recently reviewed ODYSSEY-X86J4105 SBC by Seeed Studio with Windows 10, and installed it to the Re_Computer case to convert it into a mini PC. Besides being a standard Intel Gemini Lake SBC, the board also comes with an Arduino MCU and header, as well as a 40-pin I/O header so it can be an all-in-one Arduino development platform, or be used for advanced robotics projects. Both the board and case had to be purchased separately, and Windows 10 was pre-installed on the internal eMMC flash. But now, Seeed Studio has started to offer Odyssey Blue J4105 mini PC with ODYSSEY-X86J4105 SBC pre-installed into Re_Computer case and fitted with a 128GB SSD for increased storage capacity and better performance. Odyssey Blue J4105 mini PC specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron J4105 quad-core processor @ 1.5/2.5 GHz (Turbo) with 12EU Intel UHD Graphics 600 @ 250-750 MHz; 10W TDP System Memory – […]

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RAK2287 Mini PCIe LoRaWAN Concentrator Module Supports up to 500 Nodes per km2

RAK Wireless launched its first Mini PCIe LoRaWAN concentrator module in 2018 with RAK833 mPCIe card featuring Semtech SX1301 LoRa baseband chip. It was soon followed by RAK2247 mPCIe with a very similar design but some tweaks to increase its maximum transmission power and range, and improve thermals and stability with the addition of a heatsink. The company has now introduced a new version with RAK2287 Mini PCie LoRaWAN concentrator module being mostly inspired by RAK2247 module but replacing Semtech SX1301 by Semtech SX1302 LoRa transceiver that’s suppose to reduce current consumption (and heat), lower the BoM cost, and able to handle a higher amount of traffic. The new mini PCIe card also adds u-blox ZOE-M8Q GPS system-in-package to provide GNSS functionality. RAK2287 key features and specifications: LoRa Connectivity Semtech SX1302 LoRa Transceiver with 2x SX1250 Tx/Rx front-end Tx power – up to 27dBm Rx sensitivity – down to -139dBm […]

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Linux 5.8 Release – Main Changes, Arm, MIPS, and RISC-V Architectures

Linus Torvalds has just released Linux 5.8: So I considered making an rc8 all the way to the last minute, but decided it’s not just worth waiting another week when there aren’t  any big looming worries around. Because despite the merge window having been very large, there really hasn’t been anything scary going on in the release candidates. Yeah, we had some annoying noise with header file dependencies this week, but that’s not a new annoyance, and it’s also not the kind of subtle bug that keeps me up at night worrying about it. It did reinforce how nice it would be if we had some kind of tooling support to break nasty header file dependencies automatically, but if wishes were horses.. Maybe some day we’ll have some kind of SAT-solver for symbol dependencies that can handle all our different architectures and configurations, but right now it’s just a manual […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs
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M.2 and Half-size mPCIe Cards Support Real-Time Ethernet and FieldBus Networks

Hilscher cifX M.2 and half-size mini PCIe cards powered by the company’s NETX 90 network-on-chip multi-protocol Cortex-M4 SoC bring real-time Ethernet and FieldBus to compatible systems. The tiny cards are designed for PC-based devices such as IPC’s, HMI’s and robots, and support various firmware for PROFINET IO-Device, EtherNet/IP Adapter, EtherCAT Slave, or OpenModbus/TCP. The company claims its cifX M.2 (A+E key) and half-size mini PCIe cards are the smallest multiprotocol PC cards on the automation market with a size of 22×30 mm and 30×26.8 mm respectively. The cards also support extended temperature from -20°C to 70°C and offer one hardware platform for all real-time Ethernet slave protocols. Besides PROFINET IO-Device, EtherNet/IP Adapter, EtherCAT Slave, and OpenModbus/TCP, Hilscher will provide support for CC-Link IE Field Basic and Ethernet POWERLINK Slave in new firmware available in Q4 2020, and OPC UA and MQTT functionalities are planned for future releases. The cards are […]

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Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 Coming Next Year with PCIe/NVMe Support

The Raspberry Pi 4 features a Broadcom BCM2711 processor with Cortex-A72/A53 cores that makes it competitive against other SBC’s based on Rockchip RK3399 or Amlogic S922X/A311D processors. The new processor also happens to have a PCIe interface, but it’s not exposed on the board since the interface is used by VIA VL805 PCIe USB 3.0 controller for the four USB 3.0 ports on the little computer. At the time, we expected the PCIe interface to be exposed in future Raspberry Pi boards or a Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4. But some people did not feel like waiting and instead hack the Raspberry Pi 4 SBC to access the PCIe interface. That hack is clearly not for everyone though… But based on a recent interview of Eben Upton with Tom’s Hardware we got pretty much confirmation that the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 will be coming next year, and expose PCIe […]

Khadas VIM4 SBC