CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

July 17, 2016July 17, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Wanscam HW0029-4 is a Solar Powered All Weather IP Security Camera with WiFi, 3G/4G Connectivity

I’ve just watched a video on ARMDevices.net about Enlaps Tikee solar powered device designed to take timelapses over several days and transfer the pictures / video over WiFi, 3G, or 4G. The project has been fully funded on Indiegogo at the beginning of the year, and shipping is scheduled for Q4 2016. It looks like an interesting device for a niche market, but since I’ve noticed some products launched on Kickstarter already exists in one form or another in China, I’ve decided to have a look on Aliexpress, and I found Wanscan HW00269-4 solar powered camera with 3G/4G connectivity, and while it addresses a completely different need, as a 720p IP security camera, I still decided to have a closer look. Wanscam HW0029-4 specifications: SoC – Hisilicon Hi3518E ARM9 processor @ 440 MHz Storage – Built-in 16GB, expandable to 128GB Camera / video recording 1/2 1MP Star light CMOS sensor 8mm […]

July 16, 2016September 9, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Intel Atom C3000 “Denverton” Processor Targets Low Power Servers

[Update: Some pictures have been removed due to some NDA issues] Intel Atom “Avoton” server processors are the equivalent of Bay Trail processor for mini PCs, laptops and tablets, and with the upcoming release of Apollo Lake processors, Intel has a matching family codenamed “Denverton” that will be used in servers and NAS. Information about the new processors is scarce, but Anandtech spotted an early motherboard prototype last month at Computex. MA10-ST0 motherboard main specifications: SoC – Intel Atom C3000 “Denverton” processor with 4 to 16 cores @ 1.8 GHz; QKP2 code; 14nm process System Memory – 4x RDIMM/UDIMM slots for DDR4 @ 2400 MHz Storage – 4x SATA 3.0 breakout ports supporting up to 16 drives (8x shared with PCIe slot); 32GB eMMC flash Video Output – VGA Connectivity – 2x 10GbE SFP+ ports; 2x Gigabit Ethernet RJ45 ports (via Intel I210); 1x extra RJ45 port (for management?) USB […]

ArmSoM CM5 - Raspberry Pi CM4 alternative with Rockchip RK3576 SoC

July 15, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 16 Comments

Intel Apollo Lake NUC6CAYS & NUC6CAYH NUC mini PCs Specifications Released

Intel Apollo Lake is the next generation of low power processor family that should replace Braswell Celeron processors, and Fanlesstech got hold of the specifications for two upcoming “Arches Canyon” NUC6CAYS and NUC6CAYH NUCs (Next Unit of Computing) mini PCs based on the processors, as well as the 2016-2018 roadmap for the complete (consumer grade) Intel NUC family. The only differences between the two models are that NUC6CAYH is a barebone model without memory or storage, nor operating system. So I’ll just list NUC6CAYS specifications: SoC – Intel Celeron Jxxx quad core processor @ x GHz to y GHz (burst) with Intel HD graphics up to z MHz (10W TDP) System Memory – 2GB DDR3L-xxxx SO-DIMM (dual channel), upgradeable up to 8GB DDR3L-1866 Storage – 32GB eMMC flash, 2.5″ SATA3 bay for 9.5mm hard drives, SDXC slot with UHS-I support Video Output – HDMI 2.0 (4K @ 60 Hz), VGA […]

July 15, 2016July 15, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 51 Comments

Orange Pi PC Board is now selling for $8.57 Shipped (Promo)

[update: the flash sale is over] Orange Pi PC is an ARM Linux development board based on Allwinner H3 processor, that is relatively popular thanks to its low price/features ratio, and decent Linux support mostly thanks to the combined work of linux-sunxi and armbian communities. The board normally sells for $15 + shipping on Aliexpress, but GearBest appears to have a promotion for $8.57 shipped. Before you go ahead with any purchase. You’ll notice the board is shown for $9.23 in China and US-LA warehouses, but $24.35 in their European warehouse. The price (china warehouse) goes down to $8.57 once you had it to the cart. It could be a genuine promotion, but it could also be a mistake. If the latter, you’ll get a refund or possibly a voucher of the same value for future purchases. I’ve asked my contact at GearBest, but no answer yet. GearBest confirmed it […]

July 15, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Nintendo NES Classic Edition is a $60 Nintendo NES mini Replica with HDMI Output, 30 Games

Retro gaming appears to gaining momentum in 2016, with projects like Dreamcade Replay, or even PocketCHIP, and well as more powerful Windows 10 portable consoles like GPD Win (real) and PGS Portable (maybe not so real) capable of handling old sort of game emulators, and Windows games released 3 to 4 years ago. But Nintendo has decided to join the fray, and released NES Classic Edition game console, a smaller version of Nintendo NES, compatible with recent TVs thanks to its HDMI output, and loaded with 30 classic games. The full technical details about the device are not known, but the console with ship with an HDMI cable, and well as a game controller. Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Metroid, Donkey Kong, PAC-MAN, and Kirby’s Adventure are among the 30 NES games pre-installed. (Full list in the press release).Sadly, there’s no cartridge support, nor SD card slot or […]

July 15, 2016July 15, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Lepton Image Compression Achieves 22% Lossless Compression of JPEG Images (on Average)

Dropbox stores billions of images on their servers, most of them JPEGs, so if they can reduce the size of pictures it can have a big impact on their storage requirements, so the company developed Lepton image compression, which – on average – achieved 22% lossless compression on the images stored in their cloud. Compression and decompression speed is also important, since the files are compressed when uploaded and uncompressed on the fly when downloaded so that the complete process is transparent to the end users, who only see JPEG photos, and the company claims 5MB/s compression, and 15MB/s compression, again on average. The good news is that the company released Lepton implementation on Github, so in theory it could also be used to increase the capacity of NAS which may contain lots of pictures. So I’ve given it a try in a terminal window in Ubuntu 14.04, but it […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs

July 15, 2016July 15, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

PSF-A85 is a $2 ESP8285 WiFi Board for IoT and Wearables

Last month, we found out that Espressif has made a smaller version of ESP8266 targeting wearables called ESP8285, but the only development board available at the time was quite more expensive than usual at about $25. ITEAD has now released an ESP8285 module with some I/Os and an IPEX connector which they sell for just $1.99 + shipping. PSF-A85 specifications: SoC – Espressif ESP8285 Tensila WiFi SoC @ 80/160 MHz with 1MB flash Connectivity WiFi 802.11 b/g/n/d/e/i/k/r with support for STA/AP/STA+AP modes, WPA/WPA2 PSK and WEP security Antenna – IPEX connector (antenna not included) or “stamp hole interface” Expansion – 24-pin with GPIO, PWM, UART up to 460800 bps, SPI, ADC, Power Supply – 3.3 V Dimensions – 13.7 x 13.4 mm More technical information include the schematics (PDF only) and ESP8285 datasheet can be found in the Wiki, which sadly does not contain any software / getting started information, […]

July 14, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Partaker M3 is a Windows 10 Projector Powered by Intel Atom x5-Z8300 Processor

Inctel is a Chinese manufacturer specializing on Intel based mini PCs, and selling them under the Partaker and other brands. Their latest product is a little different as Partaker M3 is a projector with the guts of a Cherry Trail mini PC, and pre-loaded with Windows 10. Partaker M3 specifications: SoC – Intel Atom x5-Z8300 quad core processor with 12EU Intel HD graphics System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 32GB internal storage Projector – 1280 × 800 resolution with 16:10 and 4:3 aspect ratio; LED lamp up to 200 lumens; 2000:1 contrast ratio. “Screen” dimensions: 60 to 150″. Video – 2x HDMI, 1x VGA, 1x RCA composite, 1x component (3x RCA connectors); It’s unclear if all are inputs, or some are also outputs for a secondary display. Audio – HDMI, 2x stereo audio (RCA), built-in 2W stereo speakers Connectivity – Dual band WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 2x USB […]

Boardcon Rockchip and Allwinner SoM and SBC products