At first glance the GenBook RK3588 looks like a pretty typical notebook. It has a 14 inch FHD display, a reasonably compact design, and a set of ports that includes HDMI, USB Type-A and USB Type-C. But open up the chassis and you’ll find a modular laptop that’s designed to be upgradeable, repairable, and customizable.
The heart of the system is a GenM5 system-on-a-module (SoM) with a Rockchip RK3588 processor and up to 32GB of RAM. There’s support for expansion boards that bring functionality like 5G connectivity. And the GenBook RK3588 is an open hardware project: the developers offer schematics, a bill of materials, and other documentation. The GenBook RK3588 will launch soon through an upcoming Crowd Supply crowdfunding campaign.
If all of this feels kind of familiar, that’s because we’ve seen this modular laptop before: it first launched nearly as year ago when it was known as the Cool Pi ARM Notebook, or Cool Pi CM5. You can currently pick one up from AliExpress for as little as $350.
But according to a recent post in the Cool Pi forum, the GenBook RK3588 doesn’t just have a new name. Among other improvements, the new model features an updated system-on-a-module with LPDDR5X memory (up from LPDDR4X), a higher capacity battery, power consumption improvements, a TPM module and better support for a number of Linux distributions. Mainline Linux kernel support is said to be coming this month as well.
Since both the Cool Pi and GenBook-branded laptops are modular, it’s likely that you could also update the original by replacing the SoM, battery, and software. But since it seems like the upgrades are pretty modest, the GenBook RK3588 is most likely to appeal to new customers than folks who already have the original.
Still, the modular design means that if Cool Pi (or a third-party) ever release a new SoM with a different processor, increased memory or storage, or other features worth upgrading for, you would have that option. That helps set this laptop apart from the vast majority of notebook computers that have shipped in the past three decades, most of which do not support processor upgrades. There are some notable exceptions though, like the MNT Reform and Framework Laptop. But given that the GenBook RK3588 is launching through crowdfunding, it’s probably safer to think of it as a small-scale project that’s closer to MNT’s line of products than Framework’s.
Still, it’s a pretty interesting looking platform. The GenM5 SoM will be available with 8GB or 32GB of RAM and features 64GB of eMMC storage built-in. There’s also an ES8336 DAC (digital to analog audio converter) an dan Mobile PCI Express-style interface for connecting to the computer’s motherboard.
Other features include a PCIe 3.0 x4 interface with support for an M.2 2280 solid state drive, a user-replaceable Realtek RTL8852BE WiFi 6/Bluetooth 5.2 wireless card, a 38 Wh battery, stereo 1.2 watt speakers, a webcam that can be physically disconnected by flipping a switch, and a set of ports that includes:
- 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-C (with DisplayPort Alt Mode)
- 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A
- 1 x HDMI
- 1 x 3.5mm audio
- 1 x DC power input (9V – 20V)
There’s also a 50-pin FPC connector with support for PCIe 2.0 x1, USB 3.0 or SATA 3.0 connections (you can use two out of three at the same time), Gigabit Ethernet, SDMMC 3.0, up to two additional USB 2.0 host interfaces, and UART, SPI, I2C, and GPIO pins.
Cool Pi says its optional 5G WWAN expansion board connects to the mainboard using this FPC interface, and the company is “investigating other boards to add PCIe, low-speed encryption chips, or an FPGA.”
The GenBook RK3588 laptop measures 323 x 220 x 20mm (12.7″ x 8.7″ x 0.8″) and weighs 1.5 kg (3.3 pounds)
Cool Pi says Debian 11 is the default operating system, but that the notebook should also support other Linux-based operating systems including Ubuntu and Armbian, as well as Android 14.
via Hacker News
Source: bing.com
