G400 family update, introducing G400-S

Gus_Issa · 2013-07-01 12:14:47 UTC

We are pleased to preview the new G400-S, a very small (1.3x1.9 inches) System on Module (SoM), running at 400Mhz and with 128MB of DDR2 memory. It is surface-mount allowing it to work in a rough environment and saves on cost by not needing connectors.

The G400-S and G400-D share the same processor and software. G400-S differences include it being surface-mount, it has13 fewer IOs and it doesnt include the Ethernet PHY. The MAC signals on G400-S are exposed to add the proper PHY if desired. Also, the core software supports ENC28J60 SPI-Ethernet and RS21 (RS91) Redpine WiFi modules.

Key Features:
[ul]400Mhz AT91SAM9X35 CPU
128MB DDR2 RAM
4MB FLASH
TFT LCD Controller
4-bit SD Card signals
2x CAN
6x UART
2x SPI
89x IOs
12x Analog
4x PWM
2x USB Host
USB Client
Full TCP/IP with Ethernet, WiFi support
Runs Microsoft’s .NET Mico Framework with GHI’s premium libraries
RoHS compliant /Lead-free compliant.
Operating temperature: -40°C to 85°C[/ul]

G400-S is priced similarly to the older EMX SoM but it executes code up to 13 times faster and includes 8 times more RAM.

We have already developed a breakout to demonstrate and test the G400-S. We are also planning for a Gadgeteer mainboard as well. Both are still on the drawing board.

As for the G400-D, it has passed all testing and evaluation. It is moving to mass production. Both the G400-S and the G400-D will be available in volume in September 2013. Until then there are still very few beta-tester kits available at about half-off.

G400-S: https://www.ghielectronics.com/catalog/product/480
G400-D: https://www.ghielectronics.com/catalog/product/400
G400-D Beta Tester Kit: https://www.ghielectronics.com/catalog/product/436
SoM Technology: https://www.ghielectronics.com/technologies/system-on-module
NETMF Technology: https://www.ghielectronics.com/technologies/.net-micro-framework

Justin · 2013-07-01 12:16:45 UTC

Lubbly jubbly - when can i have one?

Dave_McLaughlin · 2013-07-01 12:36:59 UTC

Slow down boys!! I can’t complete my existing projects as it is!

Mike · 2013-07-01 12:53:56 UTC

Perfect for a Gadgeteer mainboard!

Gary_Beaver · 2013-07-01 13:02:48 UTC

Here is a picture of some of the different SoMs to help you visualize the size of the G400-S

dobova · 2013-07-01 14:30:40 UTC

Is there any chance to have a FEZ Spider like board with G400S ?

Gary_Beaver · 2013-07-01 14:52:41 UTC

@ dobova - We are planning on having a Gadgeteer Mainboard but it is still in the initial design phase.

dobova · 2013-07-01 15:07:35 UTC

Thanks Gary for the info …

Simon_from_Vilnius · 2013-07-01 15:08:03 UTC

Sweet! This is exactly what we were looking for!

PhilM · 2013-07-02 11:23:25 UTC

What about wifi or wired ethernet?
What kind of hardware is needed on top of it ?
The cost is higher than G120, but if it means less external hardware, this might be interesting!

Gus_Issa · 2013-07-02 12:04:38 UTC

@ PhilM - G400 needs the same external components for networking and also needs power supplies over G120 but G400 has much more processing power and a lot more RAM.

Architect · 2013-07-02 14:35:32 UTC

Me likes!

Patrick · 2013-07-02 15:51:45 UTC

When is it available?

Gary_Beaver · 2013-07-02 16:03:10 UTC

@ Patrick - September

Patrick · 2013-07-02 16:06:23 UTC

So, first I can go on holidays Get some good rest before I start a new project. Thx Gary (I think my wife is also happy with this schedule )

Gary_Beaver · 2013-07-02 16:15:18 UTC

Enjoy your holiday and we will see when you get back!

HughB · 2013-07-03 05:40:11 UTC

Looking at the data on the cpu it says [quote]The graphics LCD controller features 4-layer overlay and 2D acceleration (picture-in-picture, alpha-blending, scaling, rotation, color conversion) [/quote]
Looks pretty cool any idea if this will support higher resolution LCD screens??

giovaniluigi · 2013-07-07 23:08:03 UTC

ok guys now you’re going through the right way…

I like .NET MF, but honestly I need to say that I was very disapointed with the performance of your boards, due to the port in “low” performance MCUs…
.NET MF is a bless from Microsoft and I was asking myself why so many people using it in MCUs working under 100Mhz… It should be ported to High performance ICs like this new one. Then we really can take all the advantages.

Today I work with PIC32 for high end devices and I’m trying to move to something better.
I need to perform Real Time tasks. I need the praticity of working with a high level language and the power of having the libs to access the hardware directly.

I bought the Fez Domino, G120 and some other older boards, but my PIC32, without RTOS or anything, can beat them all.

But now I really believe that we should have an excelent development tool without compromising the performance as the IC works at 400 MHz.

I also saw some guys doing a port to Samsung S3C2416 but I think that still under development… But now that I saw your new board I’m happy again ! This time I’m sure that I’ll get what I want.

Mike · 2013-07-08 06:57:59 UTC

@ giovaniluigi - if you want real- time then stay with the PIC. MF will never be real-time regardless of the processor speed.

Cuno · 2013-07-08 07:59:20 UTC

@ giovaniluigi - if you want high performance then stay with the PIC and C. Due to the interpreted implementation of NETMF, you lose almost two orders of magnitude in speed. A few 100 MHz difference in clock frequency is thus not overly relevant in comparison.

@ Mike - NETMF is indeed not designed for real-time computing. However, it is a very controlled environment: no background OS services; we know exactly which device drivers generate interrupts; and the garbage collector will never be invoked if your code never produces garbage after the initialization phase of a program (in practice, almost no real-time programs allocate memory at run-time). We tested this with our own quadrocopter, which uses a relatively slow STM32F1 and our [em]NETMF for STM32 [/em]port. Works, ah flies, like a charm. Everything surprisingly deterministic.