Direct Insight debuts SODIMM-sized, ARM-based computer-on-a-module
By Donald Melanson 
posted December 5th 2009 12:21PM
posted December 5th 2009 12:21PM
Well, it may not exactly be the computer everyone's been pining for, but those that have dreamed of an ARM Cortex-A8-based computer on a SODIMM module now finally one to call their own. That comes in the form of Direct Insight's new TRITON-TX51, which outdoes the Nokia N900 with an 800MHz Cortex-A8 processor, along with Freescale's i.MX515 system-on-a-chip, 128MB DDR400 RAM, 128MB of NAND flash, and a touchscreen controller that can drive screens at resolutions up to 1,280 x 768. You'll also get some other things nice to have on a computer like a 10/100 ethernet controller and a USB 2.0 interface, and even a reasonably capable PowerVR graphics engine that can do OpenGL ES 2.0 and hardware 720p decoding for MPEG-4/H264 video. Look for this one to land sometime next month for €150 (or just over $220).
@iPhoneMessenger
your joke wasn't even funny whats was with all the "haha"?
@iPhoneMessenger
I hope you're happy, you Engadget breaker.
http://i47.tinypic.com/2lbp844.png
800GHz Cortex-A8 processor. Holy hell. DO WANT. Come on Big En, you can do better.
@p0p0 Vroom.
@p0p0 I am going to wait for 1000 ghz
@p0p0 Now who can put this in a phone and price it around $300?
800GHz Cortex-A8 processor ..... wow
At 800GHz, this will undoubtedly play Crysis. Sign me up!
@hemmy no the memory bandwith is still pessimal... so proformace is about the same unless you are calculating PI
"which outdoes the Nokia N900 with an 800GHz Cortex-A8 processor"
And a Flux Capacitor
what is the purpose of a device such as this?
@(Unverified)
Cell Phones. Other small electronic devices.
@kevin949 In this case, it's embedded development. Basically, stuff where you need a fast (fast is subjective) CPU in a sealed box. Set-top boxes, navigation units, BR players, and the like.
@uncola
Thin clients.
lol according to pandora developers they have overclocked samples to 900+mhz so yeah most all the cortex parts go that fast its just a matter of what it is set to run at although the FPU may have problems at higher speeds.
Personally I think the beagleboard is the best deal for a cortex board for the time being.
P
I read "SODIMM-ized" the first time...
Best.
@Dragod
well. with 800Ghz, i would feel SODIMM-ized too.
RAM-med?...
@Dragod For those who still dont get it.
SOD IMM -ized, haha
Glad to see that Direct Insight finally worked out that spintronics stuff...
and magic.
want.
Can we get 256MB please?
Eh, post some news about Snapdragon instead.
http://www.gumstix.com/
This seems like Gumstix....except the gumstix is even smaller
@zaxour Gumstix switched to TI chips when Intel stopped making XScale ARM and the supply ran out.
I'm confused. At first I thought that this was something being aimed at cell phone manufacturers, but the standard interface and non-bulk price leads me to believe that this is actually being offered to consumers. In that case, what the hell are you supposed to do with them?
@Chefgon No, they're probably being offered to hobbyists, in this case, but they're a development platform. Buy one, develop your software for the chip while you design some hardware, and then your software will be ready to go when you get your real hardware back from China.
The SODIMM form factor is so that you can use the same baseboard (which has all the I/O ports) for multiple generations (or even architectures, IIRC) of CPU.
@Chefgon
I work for a small company that makes industrial equipment. We just bought some of their slower modules for a new handheld product we are working on. We'll probably only ship around 200 units a year so these are perfect.
I'm still waiting for something like this powered by Snapdragon.
Please?
@TT
Snapdragon != magic. Enough with the Snapdragon obsession.
@Abe
int main()
(
string awesome
cout
oops it cut off my post it was a programming joke cause i saw you use !=
The makers of such devices should take a moment to look at the calendar and realize you can't do with 10(haha)/100(old) networking, just get some gigabit going already geez, but at least with hardwired connections you can have a slow link without taking the rest down like the wifi many devices have.
@Wwhat
I struggle to think what benefit gigabit ethernet would be with hardware like this.
well 100 mbit is megabit, so that's slow EVEN for a device like this, I mean you use it for something, and the networking is there to use it in networking applications why else would there be networking, and if you need it for something that is networked faster is better, and if you make it 800MHz you do so because developers/users need more speed, and why would they need more speed on a CPU but not modern speeds on a network? And even most advanced routers with gigabit networks have slower CPU's so 800MHz can certainly do stuff with a fast networks we learn from that.
@Wwhat
I really don't see a need for a device like this to be sending more than 10-12 MB per second over the network. Its just not likely.
Don't get me wrong, it would be cool if they could squeeze a 1Gb connection on there. But when making something that small, space is at a premium, and the faster network connection is an easy sacrifice (that also keeps cost down)
umm, it's 800Mhz not 800Ghz. Unless we are being punk'd by Donald
Good concept. Let's wait for Dual Channel.
Intel would like to have a word with you about that chip your discussing, breaking a few NDAs!!
YOU + ARE = YOU'RE
I think there's enough room for an a/g wifi chip in that upper left corner.
Imagine a Beowulf cluster of these...
A good example of where gigabit networking would be better than 100Mbit.
Hard to break an NDA with Intel by discussing an ARM processor.
10 second battery life.
Awesome! I'm building an industrial device for work that uses some of their slower modules, and I wanted to use something more powerful to make myself an amazing phone... Looks like i found it! :)
And yeah, the device is gonna be amazing. 800x480 capacitive touch screen with a machined aluminum case. No joke, it will be awesome. :)
-Taylor
SODIMM Hussien.
@Hotrod
weaPUNS of mass destruction?
"800GHz Cortex-A8 processor"
You wish. Great Scott.