CNX Software - Embedded Systems News

May 23, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 21 Comments

Popcorn Hour A500 4K Linux Media Player Specifications, Unboxing, and Teardown

CloudMedia introduced Popcorn Hour A500 Pro last summer on Kickstarter, and as the company is about the ship rewards to backers, they has now recently introduced a lower cost version, called Popcorn Hour A500, based on the same processor but overall lower specs to bring the price down to $269. The company has sent me a review sample, so I’ll start by listing the hardware specifications, and post pictures of the device and its internals, before testing media playback capabilities later on. Popcorn Hour A500 Specifications The “non-PRO” version has less RAM, dropped the XLR connectors, and uses a cheaper audio DAC: SoC – Sigma Designs SMP8758 dual core ARM Cortex A9 processor @ 1.2 GHz with ARM Mali-400 GPU and VXP image processing engine System Memory – 1GB DDR3 Storage – 512 MB SLC NAND Flash for firmware, 1x SD card reader, internal SATA bay for 2.5″ and 3.5″ […]

May 23, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

$49 STEVAL-WESU1 Wearable Sensor Unit Reference Design is Based on STMicro STM32 MCU

STMicroelectronics STEVEL-WESU1 is a wearable open source hardware reference design and development kit comprised of a board with STM32L1 ARM Cortex-M3 micro-controller, BlueNRG-MS Bluetooth LE chip, and sensors, a battery, and a watch band. STMicro “WESU” specifications and features: MCU – STMicro STM32L151VEY6 32-bit ARM Cortex-M3 MCU @ 32 KHz to 32 MHz, 512KB flash, 80 KB SRAM Connectivity – Bluetooth 4.0 LE via BlueNRG-MS BLE network processor Sensors – 3D accelerometer + 3D gyroscope (LSM6DS3), 3-axis magnetometer (LIS3MDL), MEMS pressure sensor (LPS25HB) USB – 1x micro USB port for recharging Debugging – SWD connector for debugging and programming capability Power 100 mAh Li-Ion battery included, UN38.3 tested and certified STNS01 Li-Ion linear battery charger STC3115 Fuel gauge IC Watch strap with plastic housing included Certifications – FCC (FCC ID: S9N-WESU1), IC (IC: 8976C-WESU1), RoHS The kit can be controlled by ST WeSU app for Android and iOS, and developed using BlueST […]

ArmSoM CM5 - Raspberry Pi CM4 alternative with Rockchip RK3576 SoC

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

HawkEye I is a Compact & Lightweight COFDM / DVB-T Video Transmitter with Up to 10 km Range

Shenzhen Falco-Tech Corp has designed a small COFDM transmitter mostly useful for drones, unless you want to make you own very local TV station, that can transmit video from an HDMI camera such as GoPro Hero 4, and compatible with any DVB-T TV tuners as it sends the video unencrypted. HawkEye I DVB-T transmitter specifications: Transmission – COFDM technology Channel bandwidth – 6/7/8MHz (optional) Frequency – 200MHz-2400Mhz (optional) Forward coding – 1/2,2/3,3/4,5/6,7/8 Guard interval – 1/32,1/16,1/8,1/4 Range – Up to 1.5km to 10km SMA antenna connector Video Input – CVBS or HDMI Video Codec – H.264/H.265 encoding with hardware acceleration Resolution – SD/D1/720P/1080p Framerate – 25/30/60 fps Power Supply – 12V via 2-pin terminal Dimensions – 84 x 25 x 90mm (Aluminum case) Weight – 143 grams Operating Temperature Range – -20~60 degrees Celsius There’s no word about power consumption, so it’s unclear how it would impact fly time. I’m […]

May 23, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

HiPo S905X Amlogic S905X Android TV Box is Available for Pre-order for $40 and Up

Amlogic S905X processor adds a few features over Amlogic S905 such as 4K VP9 hardware video decoding and HDR support, but thanks to better integration including built-in 10/100M PHY and audio codec, as well as support for 2-layer PCB, products with the new processor could potentially also be slightly cheaper, all other hardware specs being equal. We can now get a first idea of the price as one company has listed HiPo S905X TV box for pre-order on Aliexpress for $39.99 with 1GB RAM/8GB flash (Type 1), and $49.99 with 2GB RAM/16GB flash (Type 2). HiPo S905X (preliminary) specifications – Type 1 & Type 2 models: SoC – Amlogic S905X quad core ARM Cortex-A53 @ up to 2.0GHz with penta-core Mali-450MP GPU @ 750 MHz System Memory – 1GB (Type 1) or 2 GB (Type 2) DDR3 Storage – 8GB (Type 1) or 16 GB (Type 2) eMMC flash + […]

May 22, 2016May 23, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 8 Comments

Project Ara Modular Smartphone is Not Dead After All, Just Not Quite as Modular as One Would Wish For

A few weeks ago, one person asked me if Project Ara, Google ATAP project aimed to design a modular phone was still going on. I did not know, but it surely did not seem good with the official website showing a black page at the time, many developers claiming they’ve yet to receive the development kit, a lack of communication, and Google ATAP latest tweet was dated December 2015. That’s until Google I/O, where a project update was given during the event, and the developer kit will be provided in Q4 2016, while a consumer version will be for sale in 2017. That’s the plan at least. If you have 10 minutes, you may want to watch the part of Google I/O 2016 video about Project Ara on YouTube. The developer phone supports up to 6 hot pluggable modules, meaning you can just insert or replace a module, and use […]

May 21, 2016May 21, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 5 Comments

Getting Started with Beaglebone Green Wireless Development Board

SeeedStudio introduced BeagleBone Green Wireless based on BeagleBone Green, but replacing the Ethernet port by a Wilink8 WiFi and Bluetooth module, and providing 4 USB ports in total. I’ve also ready taken some picture of the board, and Grove Base Cape to addition the company’s add-on boards via I2C, UART, analog, or digital interfaces. So today, I’ll report about my experience getting started with the board. First Boot of BeagleBone Green Wireless Since the board comes with a Debian image installed on the internal 4GB eMMC flash, checking out the board should be really easy. The Wiki may help, but for a first try to check the board is indeed working, you can simply connect it to a 5V power supply, or the USB port of your computer to port it up. I’m using a development machine running Ubuntu 14.04 with both Ethernet connected to my router, and a WiFi […]

Rockchip RK3568/RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs

May 20, 2016May 20, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 24 Comments

$35 NanoPi M3 Octa Core 64-bit ARM Development Board is Powered by Samsung S5P6818 Processor

A few weeks after introducing NanoPC-T3 single board computer based on Samsung S5P6818 octa-core Cortex A53 processor, FriendlyARM is now launching a cost-down version called NanoPi M3 for just $35 with 1GB RAM, and booting from a micro SD card. NanoPi M3 board specifications: SoC – Samsung S5P6818 octa core Cortex A53 processor @ up to 1.4GHz with Mali-400MP GPU System Memory – 1 GB 32-bit DDR3 Storage – 1x micro SD card slot Connectivity – Gigabit Ethernet (RTL8211E), 802.11 b/g/n WiFi and Bluetooth LE 4.0 (Ampak AP6212) with on-board chip antenna and IPX antenna connector Video Output / Display I/F – HDMI 1.4a up to 1080p60, LVDS, parallel RGB LCD Audio I/O – HDMI, 3.5mm audio jack, 7-pin I2S header Camera – 1x DVP interface USB – 2x USB 2.0 type A host ports; 1x micro USB 2.0 client port; 2x USB 2.0 host ports via 8-pin header Expansions […]

May 20, 2016May 20, 2016 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 9 Comments

Amlogic S905X Boards Showing Up for Eny Technology and Inphic TV Boxes

While NEXBOX A5 was the first Amlogic S905X TV box to be announced, it’s still not available, and others has started to show off their products such as Xiaomi Mi Box (US), and I got specs and pictures of boards for Inphic Spot i7 Pro and Eny TV box. Eny TV Box Board and Specifications That’s actually two boards before separation, and fitted with Amlogic S905X-H processors. If you look closely are the “silkscreen” however, you’ll find that it has been edited in a photo editor to add ENY_X_V0.93. I’m not quite sure why they felt they had to do this… Eny TV box specifications: SoC – Amlogic S905 or S905X-H quad core ARM Cortex-A53 @ up to 1.5GHz or 2.0 GHz with penta-core Mali-450MP GPU @ 750 MHz System Memory – 1 or 2GB DDR3 Storage – 8 or 16GB flash + micro SD card slot Video Output – […]