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How to repair/replace a WiFi antenna in a mini PC

In this short tutorial, we’ll show how to repair/replace a WiFi antenna in a mini PC. We’ll use GEEKOM A8 Mini PC as a test device because one of its WiFi antennas is attached to the top plastic cover, and it may potentially get damaged when the user opens the case to change or upgrade the SSD or memory sticks. This happened to us during the teardown of the GEEKOM A8 mini PC as shown in the image below.  While WiFi still works with one antenna, the performance is quite better when two antennas are connected so we decided to repair the mini PC. We asked a few local shops, but they would only sell WiFi modules with antennas and none would just sell the antennas themselves. But luckily, such WiFi antennas can easily be purchased online in pairs. The first time, we purchased a WiFi antenna pair from Shopee […]

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ACEBOTT QE007 review – An ESP32-based Smart Home STEAM education kit for 8+ years old kids

ACEBOTT QE007 ESP32-based Smart Home Starter Kit is a STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Maths) education platform that involves story reading, assembling a wooden house with various electronics sensors wired to an ESP32 board, and learning about electronics concepts (such as voltage and current) and coding with the Arduino IDE through an 18 lesson course. ACEBOTT has various STEAM education kits, and the company sent us the QE007 “IoT Smart Home Starter Kit” for evaluation and review. So I’ll go through an unboxing, report my experience with the assembly process, and the Arduino tutorials by going through some of the eighteen lessons. ACEBOTT QE007 unboxing The kit comes in a nice-looking retail that reads “ACEBOTT Explorer Series QE007” and “ACEBOTT IOT Smart Home Started Kit”. The front of the package also highlights its a STEAM education kit designed for 8+ years old kids. The bottom side gives the backstory […]

Khadas Edge2 Arm mini PC
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UP Xtreme i14 SBC offers Intel Core Ultra 5/7 Meteor Lake SoC, up to 64GB LPDDR5 for robotics and AIoT applications

AAEON has launched the UP Xtreme i14 SBC based on a choice of Intel Core Ultra 5/7 Meteor Lake SoCs, up to 64GB LPDDR5, M.2 PCIe sockets and a SATA port for storage, 2.5GbE and GbE interfaces, four 8K capable video output ports (HDMI, DP, and USB-C), a MIPI CSI camera interface, and more. The 14th Intel Core Ultra 5/7 SoC features up to 16 cores, Intel Arc graphics, and an Intel AI Boost NPU that deliver up to 32 TOPS combined and make the UP Xtreme i14 board especially suitable for applications such as Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMR), Smart Retail, and AI-assisted healthcare imaging. UP Xtreme i14 specifications: Meteor Lake-H/U SoC (one of the other) Intel Core Ultra 7  165H 16-core (6P+8E+2LPE) processor @ 1.4 / 5.0 GHz with 24MB cache, Intel 8Xe LPG graphics @ 2.3 GHz, Intel AI Boost NPU; TDP: 28W Intel Core Ultra 7 155H […]

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Fibocom FG370 dual-band WiFi 7 and 5G cellular module targets 5G FWA routers

Fibocom FG370 is a compact module that combines WiFi 7 and 5G cellular connectivity designed for 5G FWA routers for the home, SMB (Small and Medium-sized Business), and industrial applications. Based on the MediaTek T830 quad-core Arm Cortex-A55 SoC, the FG370 supports 5G NR sub-6GHz, two 10Gbps USXGMII interfaces, and dual-band BE7200 WiFi 7 achieving an MLO (Multi-link operation) speed of up to 7.2Gbps. Note this is not the first “FG370 announcement” from the company, as global operators have used the 5G-only FG370 since October 2023, and the company introduced the FG370 with 5G and tri-band BE19000 WiFi 7 at MWC2024. The company has unveiled a mid-range variant of the FG370 module with 5G and BE7200 at Computex 2024. The company has yet to release a datasheet for the 5G + WiFi 7 variants, but for reference, here are the Fibocom FG370 (5G-only) specifications: (North American version) SoC – MediaTek […]

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The S5 Trekker is a compact Meshtastic communication device for hikers and preppers

The S5 Trekker Bravo and the S5 Trekker Mini are two Meshtastic-enabled radios designed by SpecFive LLC, a team of engineers based in the United States. Both devices are based on the Heltec Wireless Tracker from Heltec Automation. The Wireless Tracker integrates Espressif’s ESP32-S3 system-on-a-chip, a 160 x 80 TFT LCD, a SemTech SX1262 LoRa chip, and a Unicore UC6580 GNSS chip. The MiniTrekker is much lighter than the Trekker Bravo and features a built-in attachment hook for connecting it with other gear. Both radios are built to be durable enough to resist the rigors of outdoor exploration. They come pre-flashed with the open-source Meshtastic software and are ready to be used out of the box. The S5 Trekkers are intended to be used when hiking, trekking, and partaking in other outdoor activities that take one away off the well-trodden path. It is also useful for setting up a reliable […]

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PiWings 2.0 is a tiny drone based on Raspberry Pi Pico and ESP8266 WiFi module (Crowdfunding)

SB Components’ PiWings 2.0 is a small drone combining a Raspberry Pi Pico with an ESP8266 WiFi module (ESP-12E) for wireless connectivity, and designed for STEM education and drone enthusiasts. The PiWings 2.0 board supports up to six motors and four servos, includes a 6-axis IMU for auto-leveling, and features I2C, SPI, UART, and GPIO expansion ports for custom sensor and/or actuator support. The drone itself is offered with three, four, or six rotors. PiWings 2.0 key features and specifications: Microcontroller board – Raspberry Pi Pico with Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex-M0+ microcontroller, 264KB SRAM Wireless module – ESP-12E (ESP8266) WiFi module for iBus support Motor Drivers – 6 channels (3A DC) Servo Motors – 4 channels USB – 1x micro USB port (on Raspberry Pi Pico) Expansion – I2C, SPI, UART, GPIO ports Sensor – On-board 6-axis IMU (MPU6050) for auto-leveling Misc – 4x RGB LEDs Power Supply 3V […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs
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Orange Pi 3B V2.1 SBC has been revamped with better WiFi 5 connectivity, M.2 2280 NVMe/SATA SSD socket

Shenzhen Xunlong Software has introduced the Orange Pi 3B V2.1 SBC with an M.2 socket that supports 2280 NVMe or SATA SSDs, and a new Ampak AP6256 WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 5 wireless module replacing the Allwinner AW859A-based CDTech 20U5622 module in the first revision of the board. The Orange Pi 3B SBC was first introduced in August 2023 as a Rockchip RK3566 SBC with Raspberry Pi 3B form factor and support for M.2 2230 and 2242 NVMe or SATA storage. The new Orange Pi 3B V2.1 supports longer M.2 2280 SSDs at the cost of being slightly bigger than a credit card (89×56 mm) and offers better WiFi 5 connectivity. Orange Pi 3B V2.1 specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3566 CPU – Quad-core Cortex-A55 processor @ up to 1.8 GHz GPU – Arm Mali-G52 2EE GPU with support for OpenGL ES 1.1/2.0/3.2, OpenCL 2.0, Vulkan 1.1 NPU – 0.8 TOPS […]

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NiCE5340 SoM packs Nordic nRF5340 MCU, Lattice iCE40 FPGA, and 11 sensors into a tiny 29x16mm form factor

Stefano Viola’s NiCE5340 SoM is built around a Nordic Semi nRF5340 Bluetooth SoC, an iCE40 FPGA, 11 sensors, a battery charger, and various other peripherals in a 29×16 mm form factor. The nRF5340 used in the SoM is a low-power, dual-core Arm Cortex-M33 SoC with Bluetooth 5.4, Bluetooth LE (BLE), Thread, Zigbee, and other proprietary protocols. Meanwhile, the Lattice iCE40 FPGA features 3520 logic cells, 80 Kbits of embedded Block RAM, I2C, and SPI blocks, and many other features that make it suitable for applications like environmental monitoring, health tracking, and others. Previously, we have written about Unexpected Maker NANOS3, TinyS3, FeatherS3, and ProS3 boards, and ESP32-S3 4G dev board which all fall under the tiny and compact board category but this is the first time we have seen an MCU board with so many features built into a module of that size. Stefano Viola’s NiCE5340 SoM Specification ICs Nordic […]

Khadas VIM4 SBC