[poll; updated] eMMC vs. uSD; modular eMMC

[thatgui]

So we're agreed that T4b's comment cannot currently be disproven? I didn't realize that's what you meant by the "now what".

Yes and No - Yes that there is a high probability that there is not an insignificant group of people here that prefer the real hardware. But no in the context of the argument I may have (or not) with T4b: "people still using 20 year old machines" as an argument that is significant in the context: replaceable internal memory.Hope this comes out the right way

 

[SNESFAN]

It's not worth arguing anymore because a really solid solution has been found, but for the sake of argument....

16GB may be seen as obsolete in 2 years, whereas the SoC cortex a-15 will probably stay relevant for about 5 I'm guessing (I feel 5 year upgrade cycle is acceptable for desktop/laptops) the pyra may or may not be functional in 20 years but for a general purpose computer I wouldn't see average people in this niche actively seeking/using it past a quarter of that.

Memory capacity is constantly doubling year over year where processing power seems to be more general increase with every architecture change every couple years. The processor relevance will outlive the storage capacity comparatively. Will 16GB be enough to house the OS in 5 years? I believe that's almost a given, but if you look at how tiny 512mb seems today, that's what it's going to be like. The cortex a-8 doesn't seem *THAT* slow on the other hand. Push yourself forward 5 years and make some guesses.

now if there was a pin compatible drop in upgrade for the CPU/SoC a user could theoretically do, I'd say go with that, but I don't think one exists. Whereas for storage space one does exist. If the modular design of the pyra included the storage as well as the SoC, I'd say hell with it and leave the nand on there and when you upgrade your SoC you can upgrade your storage at the same time.

 

[WizardStan]

If the modular design of the pyra included the storage as well as the SoC,

It will(that's an implicit statement he's making that the storage and RAM are on the SoC module but I do remember he explicitly stated it as well, I just can't find remember where)

 

[SNESFAN]

I did ask him specifically what all hardware would be on these replaceable modules, if schematics would be released and if the connection between the boards were an already existing standard or one made in house and if there was any information on this supposed data/power interconnect. No response yet.

It's a lot of info to ask for, but I feel knowing this information beforehand, at least generally would be useful to have as a community.

 

[kimsam]

Chances are we'll go for a 16GB eMMC. Replace the number 200 with 16 in the above, or even 32. Does it still make sense?

You don't need that much space, no one installs the entire repository..  I AM running debian wheezy armhf on the omap5432 dev board.. I've installed a ton of things on it and still only using ~4GB and that is including about 1GB of test videos.

 @Sarcasm Dispenser would you please tell me how to install debian to omap5432. I'v tried to do it without succes.


Thanks in advance

 

[TrashyMG]

 @Sarcasm Dispenser would you please tell me how to install debian to omap5432. I'v tried to do it without succes.
Thanks in advance

Well I got a debian image from GTA04 and EvilDragon, however I did have some success with this Tutorial.. although it gives you a bare minimum system: http://eewiki.net/display/linuxonarm/OMAP5432+uEVM

 

[Exophase]

I did ask him specifically what all hardware would be on these replaceable modules, if schematics would be released and if the connection between the boards were an already existing standard or one made in house and if there was any information on this supposed data/power interconnect. No response yet.

It's a lot of info to ask for, but I feel knowing this information beforehand, at least generally would be useful to have as a community.

Definitely SoC, RAM, PMIC, and apparently storage. May also contain the wifi/BT combo chip, since that's about 100 pins if they're going with something like WiLink 8.

A standard interface makes no sense, it'll have to be something tailored to the Pyra's daughter board peripherals.

 

[SNESFAN]

I did ask him specifically what all hardware would be on these replaceable modules, if schematics would be released and if the connection between the boards were an already existing standard or one made in house and if there was any information on this supposed data/power interconnect. No response yet. It's a lot of info to ask for, but I feel knowing this information beforehand, at least generally would be useful to have as a community.

Definitely SoC, RAM, PMIC, and apparently storage. May also contain the wifi/BT combo chip, since that's about 100 pins if they're going with something like WiLink 8. A standard interface makes no sense, it'll have to be something tailored to the Pyra's daughter board peripherals.

Excellent, thanks. I had a feeling it wasnt going to be a standard connection, but since they are using a modded hdmi connection in their prototype you never know. I figure measurements of the daughterboard would also be useful. But I'm hopeing all this will come in time.

I kind of hope they put WiFi/BT on the mainboard, those standards don't move very fast and lesser generations are still adequate. BT2.0 & 802.11G are still "fast enough" for most needs. Might even open the door to a ICP like device where the main controller is running in a super low power mode as a slave to a console. (A use for M4 maybe?) But 100 pin difference is a whole lot, how many pin is the 3g module going to add?

Creating something like that sounds pretty complex, but its feaseable and definitely less expensive than designing a whole device. I think the modding community will jump on this if all the needed information is released.

 

[BlackEagle]

Hello,

is there any need to use another flash card? SD is the most common medium in europe for private use.

The transfer rate is not a great aspect I think, the question would be how many would the system be able to manage if the costs fit to the use.

 

[Raik]

Probably the wrong thread here ;-)I would like to try RISC OS from emmc, but I'm afraid that if it fails, I will no longer have access to the Pyra.Can the emmc be changed? Like the Pinebook, is it socketed and easy to change? I have some Pinebook emmc modules here in the craft box.

 

[TrashyMG]

Probably the wrong thread here ;-)I would like to try RISC OS from emmc, but I'm afraid that if it fails, I will no longer have access to the Pyra.Can the emmc be changed? Like the Pinebook, is it socketed and easy to change? I have some Pinebook emmc modules here in the craft box.
View attachment 38970

Well for the most part it's in a socket, but it's soldered on the CPU board along with the RAM.

I wouldn't worry about experimenting, the SD card installer will write over anything on the eMMC if you write over it.

But if you're really concerned the MicroSD card can be used instead of the eMMC there was some intentions of having a muxing circuit to allow both to work at the same time, but not sure that worked well so from what I gathered it's either the eMMC or the MicroSD card.

 

[spud42]

nice 9 1/2 year necro...lol

 

[Raik]

I wouldn't worry about experimenting, the SD card installer will write over anything on the eMMC if you write over it.

The "problem" at this time, I will not lost my complete installation.
First step, I have made an complete backup via DD. I am a sissy