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Neptune Pine SmartWatch Phone Powered by Snapdragon S4 Dual Core Processor

More and more companies are jumping on the smartwatch bandwagon. Neptune Computer, a Canadian based startup, has just launched a Kickstarter campaign for the Pine, a watchphone running Android 4.1.2, and featuring a Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 dual core SoC. On the surface it looks very similar to SGPAX S5 smartwatch which also features a dual core processor (Mediatek MT6577), and a SIM card slot, and runs Android 4.0. Neptune Pine, however, comes with features and improvements which may make the 3 to 4 month “kickstarter wait” worth it: a larger 2.4″ detachable screen, larger internal storage, dual camera support, a larger battery providing up to 5 days in standby mode, and an IP67 rating that certifies the device to be dustproof and waterproof at depth of less than 1 meter. Neptune Pine specifications: SoC – Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Dual-Core Processor @ 1.2Ghz System Memory – 512 MB RAM Storage – […]

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Free Online Courses & Workshops For ARM Cortex-M Microcontrollers

STMicroelectronics and Digikey are co-sponsoring an EE Times University online training course entitled “Fundamentals of Microcontrollers (MCUs): Hands-On Workshop”. The first two 45-minutes sessions will be theoretical and provide and overview of micro-controllers, and explain methods to select an MCU for a given project. The first 1,000 persons based in the US or Canada, who attended the first 2 sessions, will receive a free STM32F4 Discovery Board (ARM Cortex M4). The three next sessions, conveniently taking place about a week later, hopefully after you’ve received your board, will be an actual workshop with STM32F429 Discovery Board. Here’s the detailed schedule for the training: December 2, 2013, 12PM (Eastern Time) –  Session 1 – Introduction to Microcontrollers Common microcontroller architectures Pipelining Peripherals: Timers, Communication, Analog December 3, 2013, 12PM (Eastern Time) – Session 2 – Selecting the Right Microcontroller 10 Steps to Selecting a microcontroller What to look for in a […]

ArmSoM CM5 Raspberry Pi CM4 alternative with Rockchip RK3576 SoC
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How to Flash Rockchip RK3066 / RK3188 Firmware in Linux

Rockchip provides 2 tools to update the flash: RkBatchTool – Used to upgrade firmware with a single file RkAndroidTool – Used to flash the NAND flash with image corresponding to particular partition, e.g. system.img. kernel.img, boot.img. recovery.img. etc… One problem is that the company only provides these tools for Windows, so if you’re using a Linux based operating systems, you’d have to run a Windows XP or 7 virtual machine in VirtualBox or VMWare, which is an inconvenience, and requires a license in theory. To work around this issue, I’ve tried to use ReactOS, an open source operating systems compatible with Windows XP, but although the USB drivers appeared to install properly, RKAndroidTool failed to recognized my device (MK908). But a member of Mini PCs community informed me about a tool called RkFlashKit, written in Python and using GTK, that can flash firmware to Rockchip RK3066 and RK3188 devices in […]

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$90 JynxBox M1 Pure Linux XBMC Network Media Streamer

After The Little Black Box (TLBB), there’s now another ARM based media player that comes pre-installed with XBMC Linux: Jynxbox M1 Pure Linux. The device is based on AMLogic AML8726-M1 single core Cortex A9 processor @ 800MHz, and comes with 2GB flash, Wi-Fi and Ethernet connectivity, HDMI output, and more. Jynxbox M1 Pure Linux specifications: SoC – AMLogic AML8726-M1 single core Cortex A9 @ 800MHz with ARM Mali-400 GPU System Memory – N/A (but likely 512 MB) Storage – 2 GB Nand Flash + micro SD/SDHC memory slot (Up to 32GB) Video Output – HDMI 1.3 Audio Output – HDMI Video container formats – AVI, RM/RMVB, MKV, WMV, MOV, MP4, WEBM, DAT(VCD format), VOB(DVD format), MPEG, MPG, FLV, ASF, TS, TP, 3GP Audio formats – MP3, WMA, WMV, APE, OGG, FLAC, AAC, etc… Connectivity – 10/100M Ethernet + 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi USB – 3x USB 2.0 host ports Misc – […]

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Linaro 13.10 Release with Linux Kernel 3.12 and Android 4.3

Linaro has just posted a blog entry to announced Linaro 13.10 was available for download. This is normally supposed to occur on the last Thursday of the month, but it’s possible the release occurred on scheduled, and the blog post was late, or it may have been delayed because of Linaro Connect US 2013. You can access a summary of the event together with slides and videos of the sessions and keynotes when available. This release includes the Linux Kernel 3.12-rc5 (staging), Kernel 3.10.14 (LSK), Android 4.3.1, and Ubuntu Linaro 13.10 (still based on Raring). Android has been ported and updated to 4.3.1 from AOSP, and the OS can now boot using UEFI. More work has been done on ARM 64-bit (aka ARMv8 or Aarch64) for Android, the Linux kernel, and tools such as uprobes, o-profile, and ftrace. Some new hardware platforms I may have missed before have popped up […]

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The VERVE Connects Sensors Your Computer for Gaming, Monitoring, and More

The VERVE is a little box that connects to one of the USB port of your Windows or Mac OS X computer (Linux support coming in 2014), and supports up to 7 sensors. It is available as part of a kit for $99 on Kickstarter. The kit includes the VERVE, a mini USB to USB cable, seven “sensors” (A force sensor, a push button, a light sensor, a potentiometer, a motion sensor, a magnet sensor, and a touch sensor), two banana clips for the touch sensor, seven cables to connect the sensors to the VERVE unit, and 5 extension blocks. Once the VERVE unit is connected to your computer, and the needed sensors are connected to the VERVE, you can launch the VERVE application to visualize the sensors data in real-time, and assign a mouse or keyboard action based on the sensor’s data level as shown below. There’s also an […]

Rockchip RK3568, RK3588 and Intel x86 SBCs and SoMs in 2025
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Ubuntu for Raspberry Pi May Be Available Soon (Sort of)

Since the Raspberry Pi was launched many people have asked, and still ask, if/when Ubuntu will be available for the Raspberry Pi. As Canonical decided to only provide support for ARMv7 and higher architecture, for optimal performance and user experience on recent hardware, and Raspberry Pi is powered by Broadcom BCM2835 processor based on ARMv6 architecture, this did not happen, and instead a version of Debian called Raspbian became popular, and is still the main OS used by most people. But a team of developers in the UK has recently decided to give it a try and launched a flexible Indiegogo campaign in order to purchase enough Raspberry Pi boards and required accessories (power supplies, SD cards, cables…) to setup a build farm for Ubuntu 12.04 LTS, Ubuntu 13.10, and Ubuntu 14.04. They plan to acquire at least 32 Raspberry Pi boards for their build farm. But don’t get too […]

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MSC Q7-MB-EP4 Is a QSeven Starter Kit Powered by Freescale i.MX6

MSC Embedded, a company specialized in the design and manufacturing of embedded boards, has recently announced MSC Q7-MB-EP4, a complete Starterkit for the company’s Qseven modules based on Freescale i.MX6 Solo, Dual or Quad processors. The starter kit comes with a suitcase comprise of a heatspreader with heatsink, a 12V power supply, a cable kit (SATA data and power cable),  a DVD, a getting started guide, and more importantly a 3.5″ Qseven carrier board (Q7-MB-EP4) with socket for Qseven modules Rev. 1.20 with the following specifications: CPU Module Interface –  Socket for Qseven Rev. 1.20 compatible modules based on the Freescale i.MX6 Storage – 1x SATA connector + mSATA Socket with support for mSATA and mSATAmini cards, MMC/SD Card, and serial EEPROM for EPI/DP extensions Standard Interfaces: 7x USB 2.0: 4x USB (Series-A Jack), 1x USB internal pin header, USB on mini USB connector, USB at Mini PCI Express socket […]

Boardcon EM3562 Rockchip RK3562 SBC with 8 analog camera inputs