Small network single board computer for 20 USD
Well, finally, I have in my hands the first fully working copy of our single board computer.
Six months of development, two months of waiting (until the first 20 copies are made and delivered to Moscow), a week of uninterrupted sex (to launch) ... And here it is - our little miracle!
')
This is not "the smallest computer in the world." And not the cheapest. And certainly not the most powerful. But it is rather small, fairly cheap and not so slow. Chip Qualcom Atheros AR9331, 64 MB DDR2, 16 MB NOR flash. WiFi, one gigabit Ethernet and up to five 100 Mbps, USB, UART, SPI, I2S, 20+ GPIO, OpenWrt on board - what else is needed for happiness? Light the LED for the first time on a team from a smartphone - are we all trying to do this?
Well, as a nice bonus - the ability to make your own pay with lotto and female students, because We will open all documentation, and we will help in the manufacture of prototypes and circulation.
The first details - under the cut.
Probably all the “electronic home-made” know about the compact and cheap Chinese routers based on AR9331 - TP LINk WR702, WR703, MR3020, etc. With their help, you can easily and inexpensively add WiFi to all kinds of home-made masterpieces ( here , here , here , here - dozens of them).
However, such a decision (to buy a router and brutally abuse it) has a number of obvious drawbacks. And we wanted to make our own board - compact, convenient and cheap. Fortunately, the datasheet on AR9331 can be found without problems, the chips themselves in China are sold “for a penny” at every corner, and the software over the years of the existence of this SoC has been worked out in detail.
As examples, we purchased several Carambola2 and EL-M150 . I’ll say right away that our board is not their clone, it’s own development. But, of course, it is difficult to come up with something original, if in fact a computer consists of three standard chips and a strapping. On the other hand, we wanted to reduce the size of the board, but at the same time "bring out" the maximum of the rich capabilities of the chip. So there is a certain compromise that you can still work on. Well, again, no one bothers us to make several options for the board (for example, one square inch board suggests itself, 25x25mm, like our good friend Vonger , our 25h35mm now).
Top row: EL-M150 on the baseplate, baseplate from the EL-M150 with soldered adapter for our board.
Bottom row: Carambola2 on the baseboard, EL-M150 separately, our board, SD card (for scale).
Of course, the first revision did not work right away. Three of our shoals and two Chinese ones were discovered (two components turned upside down during installation during 180 degrees). So with the launch had to suffer. But everything is over, and the first board successfully works continuously the second day, broadcasting a picture from a USB camera over WiFi to the tablet.
How much does it all cost?
The manufacture of 20 prototypes cost 1200 USD. On a draw of 1000+ pieces, the approximate alignment for one board is:
1. Production cost (four-layer board, parts, installation) - 12 USD.
2. Check, fill software, packaging, airport transfer - 1 USD.
3. Delivery by plane to Russia (Moscow) - 1 USD.
4. Customs clearance - 4 USD (of which the most part - 18% VAT).
The total cost of one fee in Moscow is about 18 USD. We want to make a retail price of 750 rubles.
If sent by post from Hong Kong, it will be cheaper by 2-3 dollars.
There is an option to make a “lightweight” version of the board - 32 MB RAM / 4 MB flash. It will be another couple of dollars cheaper in cost.
Will such a product be interesting in Russia? Please speak out.
PS At Kickstarter, of course, we will be leaving very soon.
Six months of development, two months of waiting (until the first 20 copies are made and delivered to Moscow), a week of uninterrupted sex (to launch) ... And here it is - our little miracle!
')
This is not "the smallest computer in the world." And not the cheapest. And certainly not the most powerful. But it is rather small, fairly cheap and not so slow. Chip Qualcom Atheros AR9331, 64 MB DDR2, 16 MB NOR flash. WiFi, one gigabit Ethernet and up to five 100 Mbps, USB, UART, SPI, I2S, 20+ GPIO, OpenWrt on board - what else is needed for happiness? Light the LED for the first time on a team from a smartphone - are we all trying to do this?
Well, as a nice bonus - the ability to make your own pay with lotto and female students, because We will open all documentation, and we will help in the manufacture of prototypes and circulation.
The first details - under the cut.
Probably all the “electronic home-made” know about the compact and cheap Chinese routers based on AR9331 - TP LINk WR702, WR703, MR3020, etc. With their help, you can easily and inexpensively add WiFi to all kinds of home-made masterpieces ( here , here , here , here - dozens of them).
However, such a decision (to buy a router and brutally abuse it) has a number of obvious drawbacks. And we wanted to make our own board - compact, convenient and cheap. Fortunately, the datasheet on AR9331 can be found without problems, the chips themselves in China are sold “for a penny” at every corner, and the software over the years of the existence of this SoC has been worked out in detail.
As examples, we purchased several Carambola2 and EL-M150 . I’ll say right away that our board is not their clone, it’s own development. But, of course, it is difficult to come up with something original, if in fact a computer consists of three standard chips and a strapping. On the other hand, we wanted to reduce the size of the board, but at the same time "bring out" the maximum of the rich capabilities of the chip. So there is a certain compromise that you can still work on. Well, again, no one bothers us to make several options for the board (for example, one square inch board suggests itself, 25x25mm, like our good friend Vonger , our 25h35mm now).
Top row: EL-M150 on the baseplate, baseplate from the EL-M150 with soldered adapter for our board.
Bottom row: Carambola2 on the baseboard, EL-M150 separately, our board, SD card (for scale).
Of course, the first revision did not work right away. Three of our shoals and two Chinese ones were discovered (two components turned upside down during installation during 180 degrees). So with the launch had to suffer. But everything is over, and the first board successfully works continuously the second day, broadcasting a picture from a USB camera over WiFi to the tablet.
How much does it all cost?
The manufacture of 20 prototypes cost 1200 USD. On a draw of 1000+ pieces, the approximate alignment for one board is:
1. Production cost (four-layer board, parts, installation) - 12 USD.
2. Check, fill software, packaging, airport transfer - 1 USD.
3. Delivery by plane to Russia (Moscow) - 1 USD.
4. Customs clearance - 4 USD (of which the most part - 18% VAT).
The total cost of one fee in Moscow is about 18 USD. We want to make a retail price of 750 rubles.
If sent by post from Hong Kong, it will be cheaper by 2-3 dollars.
There is an option to make a “lightweight” version of the board - 32 MB RAM / 4 MB flash. It will be another couple of dollars cheaper in cost.
Will such a product be interesting in Russia? Please speak out.
PS At Kickstarter, of course, we will be leaving very soon.
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/226317/
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