CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

June 9, 2016June 9, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 6 Comments

Frosted OS is an Open Source POSIX Operating System for Cortex-M Micro-controllers

Frosted, which stands for “Free Operating Systems for Tiny Embedded Devices”, is an OS with a POSIX-compliant system call API, borrowing the Linux kernel kconfig for configuration, and currently supporting ARM Cortex M0,M3,M4, and M7 MCU including Texas Instruments Stellaris LM3S, STMicro STM32F4/F7, and NXP LPC17XX micro-controllers. The developers are focusing on IoT applications, as well as porting retro-games such as Doom. The kernel relies on libopencm3 for hardware abstraction, and the operating system can be built with GCC ARM for Frosted using the source code released under a GNU GPLv2 license. The Wiki explains how to build and run the OS on either Qemu (in a Linux computer) used LM3S target, or an STM32F4 Cortex -M4 or STM32F7 Cortex-M7 board. The team also uploaded showing a video of Doom (fdoom) running on STM32F7 board, and possibly adapted from stm32doom port. If you are interested in joining the project you can […]

June 9, 2016June 9, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

CX-V3 Android VR Headset based on Allwinner H8vr Platform Sells for $130

We’ve already seen that Allwinner intended to enter the virtual reality market with their H8vr, V9 and V10 All-in-One Android VR solutions, and at least one H8vr headset is now available for sale with CX-V3 VR headset with a full HD display, also called V3 that selling for $129.99 on GeekBuying, or as low as $99.99 if you are lucky enough to win a coupon. CX-V3 All-in-One VR headset specifications: SoC – Allwinner H8 octa core Cortex A7 processor @ 2.0 GHz with PowerVR SGX544 GPU @ 700 MHz System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 16GB eMMC flash + micro SD slot Display – 5.5″ 1920×1080 resolution Lenses 2x optical lenses that work for people with myopia under 64 mm Diameter – 43mm 100 degrees field of view (FOV) 46mm IPD (interpupillary distance) adjustment Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0 (Ampak AP6212) Audio Output – 3.5 mm […]

ArmSoM CM5 - Raspberry Pi CM4 alternative with Rockchip RK3576 SoC

June 8, 2016June 13, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 47 Comments

Allwinner H3 Boards Comparison Tables with Orange Pi, Banana Pi M2+, NanoPi P1, and H3-OlinuXino-NANO Boards

Allwinner H3 SoC has now found its way into many low cost development boards, including several Orange Pi Boards, Banana Pi M2+, NanoPi M1, and Olimex H3-OlinuXino-NANO, and it might be difficult to choose among the list of boards available, so tkaiser has written a buyer’s guide for boards supported by Armbian, with some of the key differentiating factors, and on my side, I thought it might be a good idea to draw a comparison table between the boards. Since a table with 10 boards would be hard to read, I made two tables: one with boards with 512 MB RAM + Orange Pi PC / PC Plus, and a second table with higher end boards with 1 to 2 GB RAM, and more features. But first let’s talk about Allwinner H3 SoC since it’s common to all boards. It’s a quad core Cortex A7 processor clocked at up to […]

June 8, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 36 Comments

$66 I5 Intel Mini PC Features 2GB RAM, 32GB Storage, HDMI & VGA Ports (Promo)

It would have been unthinkable a few years ago, but you can now buy a computer capable of running Windows or Linux and shipped to your door for just $65.99 (with coupon GBi5) thanks to i5 mini PC based on Bay Trail processor (not Core i5 as the name may have implied), and the usual 2GB RAM and 32GB storage combination. i5 mini PC specifications: SoC – Intel Atom Z3735F “Bay Trail” quad core processor @ 1.33 GHz / 1.83 GHz with Intel HD graphics System Memory – 2 GB DDR3L Storage – 32 GB eMMC + micro SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 1.4, and VGA Audio I/F – HDMI, 3.5mm earphone jack Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 2x USB 2.0 host, 1x micro USB OTG port Misc – Power Button, power LED Power Supply – 5V/2A Dimensions – 13.00 x […]

June 8, 2016June 8, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 23 Comments

$33 Mini M8S TV Box Comes with 2GB RAM, Amlogic S905 Processor

While there are many Amlogic S905 TV Boxes below $40, many of them only come with 1GB RAM, and if you want to get a model with 2GB RAM, you’d need to pay a little more. Mini M8S appears to be a pretty good deal, as it includes 2GB, and sells for $32.97 including shipping on eBay. Mini M8S specifications: SoC – Amlogic S905 quad core ARM Cortex-A53 @ up to 2.0GHz with penta-core Mali-450MP GPU @ 750 MHz System Memory – 2GB DDR3 Storage – 8GB flash + micro SD card slot Video Output – HDMI 2.0 Audio – HDMI, optical S/PDIF Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet, 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 4.0 USB – 2x USB 2.0 host ports Misc – IR receiver Power Supply – DC 5V/2A Dimensions – 110 x 110 x 17.5 mm Weight – 162 grams The device runs Android 5.1, and looks exactly the same […]

June 7, 2016June 8, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 10 Comments

4K VP9 Video Playback in Amlogic S905X based NEXBOX A5 Android TV Box

I’ve never been able to play 4K VP9 videos smoothly in any Android TV boxes so far. It’s possible in Nvidia Shield Android TV, but the device is relatively expensive, and hard to source in many parts of the world, and NEXBOX A5 is the first Android TV Box I own capable of handling 4K VP9 @ 60 fps thanks to Amlogic S905X processor. So I tested 3 4K Vp9 video using MoviePlayer app pre-loaded in the device: 4K Hawaii Sunset _ GoPro Hero 4 Black [email protected] – 3840×2160 resolution @ 30 fps; no audio; ~24 Mbps; Downloaded from YouTube with youtube-dl script phfx_4KHD_VP9TestFootage.webm – 3840×2160 resolution @ 25 fps; no audio; ~14 Mbps The.Curvature.of.Earth.4K.60FPS-YT-UceRgEyfSsc.VP9.3840×2160.OPUS.160K.webm – 3840×2160 resolution @ 60 fps; Opus audio; ~30 Mbps As you’ll see in the video below, the good news is that all three videos could be played relatively smoothly. The not-so-good news are that […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs

June 7, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Jide Remix Pro is a Remix OS 3.0 2-in-1 Laptop Powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 Processor

Remix OS appears to getting more and more attention, and is now found in an increasing number of hardware platforms. Jide has also been working on the new Remix OS 3.0 version based on Android 6.0 Marshmallow, and showcased it in Jide Remix Pro 2-in-1 laptop / tablet reference design powered by Snapdragon 652 octa-core processor. Jide Remix Pro specifications: SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 (APQ8074) octa core processor with 4x Cortex A72 cores @ 1.8 GHz, 4x Cortex A53 cores, and Adreno 510 GPU System Memory – 3GB RAM Storage – TBD internal storage; micro SD card slot Display – 12″ IPS display with 2K resolution (2160×1440) Camera – 8 MP rear camera; 5MP front-facing camera Audio – 2x speakers; combo audio jack Connectivity – dual band WiFi, Bluetooth 4, optional 4G-LTE with SIM card slot (replacing micro SD slot), GPS, USB – 1x USB 2.0 port, 1x USB type C […]

June 7, 2016June 7, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 19 Comments

Unboxing and Teardown of NEXBOX A5 TV Box Powered by Amlogic S905X Processor

NEXBOX A5 is one of the first Android 6.0 TV boxes based on Amlogic S905X processor capable of 4K H.265, H2.64 and VP9 video decoding. The company sent a sample for review, and I’ll start by taking pictures of the device and board in the first part of the review, before fully testing its performance and features in the second part.NEXBOX A5 Unboxing I got the device in a black package with NEXBOX logo, and “Android 6.0 TV Box” text. I received the TV box with the default cofiguration (2GB RAM / 16GB flash), but they also have a cheaper model with 1GB and 8GB flash. Some of the new feature brought by this device has shown on the bottom of the package such as VP9, Android 6.0 and HDR (High Dynamic Range) support. I don’t think I’ll be able to test the latter, since my TV does not support […]