Beacon EmbeddedWorks, a Compass Electronics Solutions Company, is here with its new product, the Zoom iMX-8M Mini-Development Kit. The kit features the company’s i.MX 8M Mini System on Module (SOM) at its heart. The SOM’s multicore architecture allows for the development of a diverse range of devices on a single hardware platform. The kit also includes an LCD touch panel, PC card expansions, and all necessary cables for your applications. With the power control and monitoring application, the kit is ideal for applications where reliability and regulatory compliance are essential.
Looking at its technical specifications, the Zoom iMX-8M Mini-Development Kit falls somewhere between a DevKit and an SBC. A DevKit usually is a lower power board that is focused on prototyping/development purposes. Contrary to this, an SBC contains hardware components just enough to run a complete operating system. Hence, the Zoom kit features a quad-core i.MX 8M Mini SOM with RTC and up to 8 GB RAM, making it somewhat comparable to an SBC. However, the kit features a variety of peripherals like PWM, I2C, UART with WiFi, and Bluetooth connectivities for IoT purposes. Thus, the Zoom kit has an extensive range of hardware components, all thanks to the i.MX 8M Mini SOM.
“Beacon EmbeddedWorks’ i.MX 8M SOM provides security, high-performance multimedia processing including 3D graphics and high-definition video, power-efficient processing capabilities, and wireless connectivity.” says Beacon EmbeddedWorks on the product page. “With a low stack height and compact footprint, the i.MX 8M Mini SOM is also an excellent choice for next-generation medical, military, aerospace, and industrial applications where space is at a premium.”
Technical specifications of the Zoom i.MX-8M Mini-Development Kit
The onboard i.MX 8M SOM comes with up to four ARM Cortex-A53 cores running up to 1.8 GHz, along with a Cortex-M4 core running up to 400 MHz. With a quad-core processor, you can run more tasks and accelerate CPU-intensive programs provided that your program can run in multiple threads. Additionally, there’s a GPU (GCNanoUltra + GC320) and a VPU with unknown specifications. The kit is configurable with up to 8GB of 32-bit wide LPDDR4 memory. It is also eMMC and Quad SPI NOR Flash configurable. For wireless connectivity, you get Wi-Fi 5 (802.11a/b/g/n/ac) and Bluetooth 4.2 with BLE support. This enables the kit to be used for IoT applications with ease. There’s also a gigabit Ethernet RJ45 port if you prefer a wired networking connection.
- USB: Three USB 2.0 high-speed On-the-Go
- Display: HDMI port, MIPI DSI (Up to 4 lanes)
- Camera: MIPI CSI-2 (Up to 4 lanes)
- Audio: Stereo input/output jacks, up to three synchronous audio interfaces (SAI) with support for 9 TX and 13 RX lanes
- PCIe: 1x PCIe Gen 2.0, 1- lane
- Serial I/O: Up to three UART interfaces, three I2C interfaces, and two SPI interfaces operating as either master or slave
- GPIO: Up to 87 multiplexed GPIOs supporting various peripherals such as PWMs, SDIO, UART, SPI, and I2C
- RTC: On-board ultra-low power real-time clock (RTC)
- Debug: JTAG support
The kit is fully supported by Beacon EmbeddedWork’s suite of software programs and Board Support Packages (BSPs). The supported BSPs include Android, Linux, and Windows Embedded CE. The company also includes its Wattson power measurement application for monitor and control of power usage. This is critical for battery-operated systems as it gives the flexibility to control the power consumed. Additionally, there’s a LogicLoader bootloader for the rapid start-up of the kit.
Pricing and availability
The pricing of Zoom i.MX 8M Mini Development Kit is not displayed publicly. It is available for purchase through Beacon EmbeddedWorks distributors or by contacting the company. Only the registered users get access to the Quickstart guides and in-depth specifications of the kit through their support page. You can visit the product page or the press release to learn more.
The product page is the source of all the images and technical specifications used.
Harsh Chaudhary is an engineering student currently pursuing Electrical Engineering. He’s a robotics and tech enthusiast and likes to write about stuff related to IoT and embedded systems. His vision is to use Robotics to make the life of humans easier.
