The Emlid Neutis N5 Module

Based around an Allwinner H5 quad-core 64-bit Arm Cortex-A53 processor, with a Mali 450 MP4 GPU, the new Emlid Neutis N5 is a tiny module aimed directly at pro makers and hardware startups.

The Neutis module is just 41 × 29.5 × 4.3 mm, which is not that much larger than a standard SD card, and has 8 GB of eMMC flash and 512 MB of DDR3 RAM. It has has both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 dual-mode BLE with an on-board antenna and a U.FL connector for optional external antenna.

Interestingly, the module includes a dedicated “tamper-resistant” chip for storing cryptographic keys, hashing, and random number generation. Unfortunately there isn’t any information about the hardware they’re using here, and as we know already random numbers are hard.

The module has firmware support for over-the-air updates, and the supported version of Linux the board is shipping with is based on Yocto build system and comes with Linux kernel based on the current mainline version.

There’s also a development board for the Neutis which breaks out all the peripheral interfaces on standard ports and 0.1-inch pitch pins. The board has 2 × USB ports, an HDMI port, a 3.5 mm jack A/V out, a micro SD card slot, and a 10/100M Ethernet port.

UPDATE: The Neutis N5 module and developer kit are now available on Emlid’s online store for $49 and $229, respectively. Those interested in the board can save 10% using the code devkit10off at checkout. Units are expected to begin shipping in late August.