CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

October 12, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Windows Subsystem for Linux can be installed from the Microsoft store in Windows 11

Windows Subsystem for Linux Microsoft Store

The Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) that offered a Ubuntu Bash on Windows was first introduced in 2016, as more and more developers required a Linux environment within Windows, and Microsoft kept on improving it with, for instance, Windows Subsystem for Linux 2 released in 2019 bringing an actual Linux kernel, improved performance, and Docker support. Until now, WSL was an optional component inside of Windows, requiring you to go to the “Turn Windows Features on or off” dialogue to enable it, and restart your machine. But Microsoft has now announced you can install (a preview of) Windows Subsystem for Linux directly from the Microsoft Store as long as you run Windows 11. The change also means your WSL will be up-to-date as Microsoft pushes new features and bug fixes, and you do not need to modify/update your Windows version to get the latest changes. You’ll still need to go […]

October 12, 2021October 12, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 17 Comments

$55 Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Max supports 4K AV1 videos, Wi-Fi 6

Amazon will release new Fire TV Sticks from time to time, and most are only mildly interesting, but the Amazon Fire TV Stick TV 4K Max brings two new interesting features with 4K AV1 video playback, as well as Wi-Fi 6 connectivity which should prevent buffering for higher bitrate 4K videos. The new device builds upon the MediaTek MT8695 based Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K released in 2018, with a more powerful MediaTek MT8696 processor clocked at 1.8 GHz, more memory (2GB vs 1.5 GB), and the same 8GB of storage for the Android 9 based Amazon Fire 7 OS. Amazon claims the new stick is 40% faster, despite a frequency bump from 1.7 GHz to 1.8 GHz only, and MT8696 relies on Cortex-A73 cores Cortex-A55 cores (See comments), instead of the Cortex-A53 cores found in MediaTek MT8695, so the performance improvement probably refers to the faster GPU. Amazon Fire […]

ArmSoM CM5 - Raspberry Pi CM4 alternative with Rockchip RK3576 SoC

October 12, 2021August 26, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

Sonoff NSPanel – A 3.5-inch HMI display for home automation (Crowdfunding)

You’ll soon be able to control all Sonoff smart switches, sockets, light bulbs, IP cameras, as well as Philips lighting solutions with the Sonoff NSPanel, a 3.5-inch HMI display supporting wall installation to US or EU standards. The ESP32 based touchscreen display integrates a dual-channel wall switch, supports Amazon Alexa, Google Home, or Yandex Alice voice assistants, and if you are not at home, you can still control your appliances with eWelink app for Android or iOS. Sonoff NSPanel specifications: WiSoC – Espressif ESP32-DOWD V3 dual-core Xtensa processor @ 160 MHz with 512KB RAM, 2.4 GHz 802.11n/g/n WiFi 4, and Bluetooth 4.2/5.x Display – 3.5-inch capacitive touchscreen display with 480×320 resolution Power Input – 100-240V @ 50/60Hz up to 4A Power Output – 100-240V @ 50/60Hz up to 2A per gang, or 4A in total LED Load 110V – 150W per gang, 300W total 220V – 300W per gang, 600W […]

October 11, 2021August 14, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 11 Comments

IBASE launches 3.5-inch SBC with AMD Ryzen Embedded V2000 processor

We’ve covered plenty of AMD Ryzen Embedded V2000 SBCs in the past, but it appears IBASE IB952 might be the first 3.5-inch SBC with a Ryzen V2000 processor for the industrial and IoT markets. The board supports up to 64GB RAM, offers two SATA III ports for storage, dual Gigabit Ethernet networking, four display outputs with DisplayPort, eDP and LVDS interfaces, USB and serial ports, as well as expansion through two M.2 sockets. IBASE IB952 specifications: SoC – AMD Ryzen Embedded V2000 with Radeon Vega graphics System Memory – DDR4-2400 SO-DIMM, up to 64GB with ECC support Storage 2x SATA III ports M.2 M-Key socket for NVMe SSD Flash for AMI BIOS Video Output 1x DisplayPort 1.4 port up to 4Kp60 1x DisplayPort 1.2 port via USB-C port up to 4Kp60 1x 24-bit dual-channel LVDS up to 1080p60 1x eDP (embedded DisplayPort) up to 4Kp60 Four independent display support Audio […]

October 11, 2021February 18, 2022 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

RAK introduces Raspberry Pi RP2040 based LoRaWAN core, more Wisblock modules

RAKwireless has just launched the RAK11310 WisBlock LPWAN Module with Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU and LoRaWAN connectivity, as announced after launching 14 new WisBlock modules for IoT prototyping last July. The RAK11310 module was introduced as part of the “Just Track It RAK Autumn Launch 2021” event together with the smallest WisBlock Base Board so far, as well as 11 new Wisblock modules which bring the total to 47 modules. RAK11310 – Raspberry Pi RP2040, LoRaWAN connectivity RAK11310 specifications: RAK11300 WisDuo LPWAN Module MCU – Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex-M0+ microcontroller @ 133MHz with 246 kB RAM LoRa connectivity SX1262 LoRa transceiver Worldwide frequency coverage RAK11310L – EU433, CN470 RAK11310 – EU868, US915, AU915, KR920, AS923, IN865, RU865 LoRaWAN 1.0.2 protocol stack (supports Class A & C) I/O ports – UART, I2C, GPIO, USB through a “Wisconnector” Debugging – Serial Wire Debug (SWD) interface Supply Voltage – 2.0 V ~ […]

October 11, 2021October 11, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

M5Stack UnitV2 AI module gets USB camera and M12 camera versions

M5Stack UnitV2 is an ultra-compact Linux AI camera powered on Sigmastar SSD202D SoC with a dual-core Cortex-A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz, and 128MB on-chip DDR3 that was launched in April 2021 with a Full HD camera featuring a 68° field-of-view. M5Stack has now introduced two new models, one called M5Stack UnitV2 USB without any camera at all, instead relying on an external USB UVC camera, and the other named M5Stack UnitV2 M12 equipped with an M12 socket and shipping with both a normal focal length camera with an 85° FoV and wide-angle focal length with a 150° FoV. M5Stack UnitV2 USB M5Stack Unitv2 USB specifications: SoC – SigmaStar SSD202D dual-core Cortex-A7 processor @ 1.2 GHz with 128MB on-chip DDR3 Storage – 512MB on-chip NAND flash with around 100MB free space, MicroSD card socket Camera – N/A Audio – Built-in microphone Connectivity – 2.4GHz WIFi 4 up to 150 Mbps (RTL8188FTV), […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs

October 10, 2021October 10, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

How to fix “The device isn’t Play Protect certified” error message in Android

Android 11 Google Play Not-Play Protect certified

I’m currently testing Zidoo M6 with Android 11. The mini PC is mostly designed for industrial and commercial use cases, so it may not need to be certified by Google in order to access Google apps and services like a consumer device. But for review purposes, it can still be an inconvenience, as I got the message “The device isn’t Play Protect certified – Google apps and services can’t run on this device” when trying to use Google Play and login with one of my Google accounts. This does not look good, and Chrome, a Google app, refuses to work as well. I still tried to log in, but it just failed, returning an error telling me: “Your account wasn’t added. Try again”. That would mean I’d have to download the apps on my PC and sideload them with a USB flash drive. That’s not practical, and there’s must be […]

October 9, 2021October 11, 2021 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

Iono RP – An industrial PLC with a Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU

Raspberry Pi RP2040 MCU has been used in many boards, but I think I had seen the dual-core MCU in a PLC, or even any industrial products just yet. Sfera Labs Iono RP is a compact I/O module (PLC) with a Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller that’s programmable in C/C++ and MicroPython, or even the Arduino IDE. The DIN-Rail mountable, RP2040 based industrial PLC offers digital and analog input and output lines, power relays, and an RS-485 interface, supports power input from 12V-24V with all signals accessible through terminal blocks. Sfera Labs can also provide some optional options such as an RTC or an earthquake sensor module. Iono RP PLC specifications: MCU – Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Arm Cortex-M0+ @ 133MHz with 264kB on-chip SRAM Storage – 16MB SPI flash, optional microSD card slot Communication interface – standard RS-485 interface with electrostatic discharge protection Inputs/Outputs via terminal blocks 4x power relay […]

Boardcon Rockchip and Allwinner SoM and SBC products