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Google Assistant SDK Now Supports Device Actions, More Languages (French, German, Japanese)

Back in May 2017, Google released the Assistant SDK that worked on Raspberry Pi 3, and other ARM boards, essentially transforming low cost development boards into Google Home equivalent. The SDK became more popular once Google’s AIY Voice Kit was launched since it offered an easy and inexpensive way to use it with Raspberry Pi 3 board. Since all you need was a Linux board with an Internet connection, a microphone, and speaker, I tried Google Assistant SDK on one of the cheapest platform available: Orange Pi Zero Set 6 Kit including Orange Pi Zero board, but also an expansion board with built-in microphone and audio output jack, and a cute little case. I added my own pair of speakers, micro SD card, and USB power supply, and after setting up the software, I was able ask question, and get answers with female voice using the demo app. At the […]

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International Black Friday & Cyber Monday Deals in 2017

Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2017 deals have started to show up on some Chinese e-retailers website, so as every year, I’ll go through a non-exhaustive list with the most popular websites. GearBest’s 2017 Black Friday event offers discount from 8% up to 15% for mobile phone, tablets & computers, and appliances. One example if Alfawise S95 TV Box with S905W/2GB RAM/16GB flash going for $29.99 shipped. They also offer coupons up to 20% or a just amount in dollars. You can purchase lucky bags with a surprise product, some flash sales will be organized, as well as a lucky draw to win Xiaomi Mi 6 smartphone. Aliexpress is ready for both Black Friday and Cyber Monday with some games to win coupons, and deals per category. I have not found any specific yet, but while the games are on, the actual Black Friday sale will only take place between […]

ArmSoM CM5 Raspberry Pi CM4 alternative with Rockchip RK3576 SoC
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HeartyPatch is an Open Source Wireless ECG Patch Powered by ESP32 WiSoC (Crowdfunding)

Smart health gadgets will soon have a bigger part to play in our lives, especially for health monitoring. It mainly started with fitness trackers, but now we are starting to see connected devices such as blood pressure monitors, including the upcoming watch like Omron HeartVue, thermometer, scales, vital sign monitoring systems, certified medical SBC‘s to allow engineers to developer their own medical applications, and even open source surgical robots. HeartPatch is one of those medical board that specifically aims at measuring ECG data, and sent it over Bluetooth or WiFi thanks to Espressif ESP32 WiSoC. HeartPatch specifications: SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32 dual core Tensilica LX6 processor with Wi-Fi/Bluetooth ECG Chip – Maxim MAX30003 analog front-end USB – 1x micro USB connector for programming, data, power, and battery charging Debugging – USB-UART bridge based on CP2104 Misc – Onboard Snap-on Buttons for disposable electrode pads, RGB LED, Battery – 450 […]

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Sonoff Wireless Switches & Light Bulbs Now Work With Google Home

ITEAD Studio Sonoff wireless switches can be controlled by voice commands using Amazon Alexa or Google Home, but so far, the latter was only possible by emulating Belkin Wemo switch in alternative open source firmwares such as ESPurna or Sonoff-Tasmota. For people who don’t want to update the firmware themselves, and instead prefer to use the stock firmware with eWelink mobile app, the manufacturer has now announced support for Google Home, on top of the already supported Amazon Alexa service. The instructions are explained in details in ITEAD’s blog post, but basically, you need to start Google Home app in your mobile, select your Google Home device, go to Home Control to add Devices, select Smart We Link, login to eWelink with your username/phone number and password, name the devices you want to control and you’re done. You should now be able to control devices or rooms with voice commands […]

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Embedded Linux Conference & OpenIoT Summit 2017 Schedule

The Embedded Linux Conference 2017 and the OpenIoT Summit 2017 will take place earlier than last year, on February  20 – 23, 2017 in Portland, Oregon, USA. This will be the 12th year for ELC, where kernel & system developers, userspace developers, and product vendors meet and collaborate. The schedule has been posted on the Linux Foundation website, and whether you’re going to attend or not, it’s always informative to check out the topics. So as usual, I’ll make a virtual schedule for all 5 days. Monday, February 20 For the first day, the selection is easy, as choices are limited, and the official first day it actually on Tuesday. You can either attend a full-day paid training sessions entitled “Building A Low Powered Smart Appliance Workshop“, and the only session that day: 14:30 – 15:20 – Over-the-air (OTA) Software Updates without Downtime or Service Disruption, by Alfred Bratterud, IncludeOS […]

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FOSDEM 2017 Open Source Meeting Schedule

FOSDEM (Free and Open Source Software Developers’ European Meeting) is a 2-day free event for software developers to meet, share ideas and collaborate that happens on the first week-end of February, meaning it will take place on February 4 & 5, 2017 this year. FOSDEM 2017 will features 608 speakers, 653 events, and 54 tracks, with 6 main tracks namely: Architectures, Building, Cloud, Documentation, Miscellaneous, and Security & Encryption. I won’t be there, but it’s always interesting to look at the schedule, and I made my own virtual schedule focusing especially on talks from “Embedded, mobile and automotive” and “Internet of Things” devrooms. Saturday 4, 2017 11:00 – 11:25 – Does your coffee machine speaks Bocce; Teach your IoT thing to speak Modbus and it will not stop talking, by Yaacov Zamir There are many IoT dashboards out on the web, most will require network connection to a server far […]

Rockchip RK3568, RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs abd SoMs
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FOSDEM 2016 Schedule – Open Source Hardware and Software Event in Europe

FOSDEM (Free and Open Source Software Developers’ European Meeting) is a 2-day event that usually takes place on the first week-end of February in Brussels, but this year it will be on January 30-31. The event brings thousands of developers, hackers, and other person interested in open source technology who present their projects and share ideas. FOSDEM 2016 schedule is now available, and There will be 557 speakers, 612 events, and 50 tracks this year including 7 main tracks: Distros, Enterprise, Hardware, Communications, Miscellaneous, Office, Systems Administration, and Virtualization. So I’ve had a look at some of the talks, especially out of  “Embedded, Mobile and Automotive” and “IoT” devrooms, and prepared my own virtual schedule although I won’t be able to attend. Saturday 10:30 – 10:55 – MIPS, the other side of the embedded by Alexjan Carraturo For many years MIPS processors have been involved in the embedded market, particularly […]

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Freaks3D is a Low Cost Portable 3D Printer (Crowdfunding)

ElecFreaks is a design house based in Shenzhen that caters to makers and startups, and started selling Arduino shields and accessories, as well as  Raspberry Pi add-on boards, before moving to robotics kits, 3D printers, and other tools in demand by electronics hobbyists. The company has now designed Freaks3D portable 3D printer, and launched an Indiegogo campaign to fund production. Freaks3D printer specifications: Technology – Fused Deposition Modeling Build Volume – 130 x 150 x 100 mm (LxWxH) Nozzle Size – Standard 400 microns Resolution – Layer: 100 microns; XY: 50 microns Filament diameter – 1.75mm Filament Material – PLA or TPU 3D Files Transfer – USB via PC, or SD card Misc – LCD Display, one button operation, printing bed does not require heating Power Supply – 12V / 8A power adapter, or 12V / 5A power bank (Not included) Dimensions –  290 x 320 x 325 mm Weight […]

Boardcon Rockchip RK3588S SBC with 8K, WiFI 6, 4G LTE, NVME SSD, HDMI 2.1...