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ClusBerry Rack houses up to four hot-swappable Raspberry Pi CM4 modules

TECHBASE ClusBerry Rack supports up to four Raspberry Pi CM4 based modules which can be added and removed on the fly thanks to a lockable mechanism that reminds me of hot-swappable drives found in NAS. Using the same ClusBerry I/O mainboards as found in the earlier ClusBerry 9500-CM4 and ClusBerry-2M industrial systems, each Raspberry Pi Compute Module 4 inside the ClusBerry Rack offer one Gigabit Ethernet port, one USB host, one micro USB service port, and an RS-232/485 serial port. TECHBASE is not the best company when it comes to describing its products, possibly because those are customizable, and in this case, they don’t show the other side of the enclosure with all ports… But based on the PDF we’ve received, you should be able to create a system with four modules offering the following features each: Optional video output – HDMI Networking – 1x Gigabit Ethernet port (option for […]

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Windows 11 can run on Arm SystemReady ES platforms like Raspberry Pi 4, Solidrun SBC’s, etc…

While Windows 11 may have some problems running some x86 machines, I previously saw Windows 11 Arm on Raspberry Pi 4 with instructions telling you to download the images from UUP Dump and flash the ISO with Windows on Raspberry Pi Imager. At the time, I did not look into details, and it seemed was some hack involved, but I’ve just been told Windows 11 could also run without modification on some SolidRun’s single board computers, namely MacchiatoBin and CN913x CEx7 evaluation board. Marcin Wojtas explains Windows 11 Pro (version 22000.168) could be installed unmodified on an Arm computer based on MacchiatoBin mini-ITX board equipped with an NVIDIA Geforce GT630 GPU (using EFI Frame Buffer), a SATA SSD, connected through Ethernet (via USB2ETH), plus a mouse and keyboard. So what’s the trick, and what do Raspberry Pi 4 and a board like MacchiatoBin have in common? Answer: Arm SystemReady ES […]

Khadas Edge2 Arm mini PC
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MutantC V4 – DIY Raspberry Pi Handheld PC adds ESP32-S2 module

Earlier this year we wrote about Mutantc V3 DIY Raspberry PI UMPC after noticing a talk about it at FOSDEM 2021 online conference. MutantC V4 is a new version of the Raspberry Pi handheld PC that is both easier to build and cheaper. The new model replaces the Arduino Pro Micro board with a more compact ESP32-S2 module and offers a Lite version with even fewer parts (notification LED, IR blaster, IMU, etc..) to make it easier to build. The new MutantC v4 shares many of the same features of the previous versions: Supported SBCs – Raspberry Pi Zero, 2, 3, 4 and compatible. Wireless module for keyboard and other controls – Ai. Thinker ESP-12K module based on ESP32-S2 single-core WiFi microcontroller @ 240 MHz with 8MB flash Display – 2.8-inch, 3.5-inch, or 4-inch “GPIO” LCD such as AdaFruit PiTFT 480×320 display Keyboard – 56-key customizable keyboard with 2x shoulder […]

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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 […]

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Raspberry Pi 4 gets IEEE1588 Precision Time Protocol (PTP) with Real-Time HAT

InnoRoute Real-Time HAT adds IEEE1588 Precision Time Protocol (PTP) to Raspberry Pi 4/3 via a Xilinx Artix-7 FPGA and three Gigabit Ethernet ports. The Precision Time Protocol (PTP) is used to very accurately synchronize clocks throughout a computer network to enable measurement and control systems. It is often found in embedded microcontrollers or processors from Texas Instruments, STMicro, and more recently, in Intel Elkhart Lake & Tiger Lake H processors. It can notably be used for Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN) and Audio Video Bridging (AVB). InnoRoute Real-time HAT specifications & key features: FPGA- Xilinx Artik-7 FPGA Some RAM Networking Gigabit Ethernet port 0 with IEEE1588/TSN signaling Gigabit Ethernet port 1 with input from Raspberry Pi 4 Gigabit Ethernet port 2 with PoE, without TSN Host interface – 40-pin Raspberry Pi header mostly for SPI and I2C interfaces used for configuration. Misc – 3x LEDs, JTAG and PMod connectors, EEPROM (for Raspberry […]

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Challenger RP2040 WiFi board marries ESP8285 with Raspberry Pi RP2040

We’ve already seen Raspberry Pi RP2040 getting WiFi connectivity with boards like Pico Wireless Pack, Wio RP2040 mini, and Arduino Nano RP2040 Connect in ways that do not always make technical and commercial sense as in many cases, the WiFi microcontroller (e.g. ESP32) is more powerful than the Raspberry Pi microcontroller. But Invector Labs’ Challenger RP2040 WiFi board does make more sense, as the company combines Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex-M0+ MCU with an entry-level ESP8285 WiFi microcontroller, and also offers LiPo battery support, all that in the Adafruit Feather form factor. Challenger RP2040 WiFi board specifications: Main microcontroller – Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex-M0+ MCU @ 133MHz with 264KB SRAM Storage – 8MB flash Network microcontroller – Espressif ESP8285 2.4GHz WiFi 4 SoC with 1MB on-chip flash pre-flashed with Espressif’s AT command interpreter, connected to the main MCU over UART at up to 921600 bps; I/Os via Adafruit Feather […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs
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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) […]

Khadas VIM4 SBC