Answer: Yes

As an embedded software engineer, you often deal with hardware. Debugging various protocols requires observing waveforms using oscilloscopes and similar tools. After spending too much time on software, one can get bored; playing with hardware provides a different experience, especially the feeling of creating something from scratch. With a long career ahead, it’s beneficial to try new things. A person who understands both software and hardware can manage projects better.

The blogger has worked with many boards, including microcontrollers like STC51 and STM32, and Linux boards such as Samsung S3C2440, NXP imx6ull, and Allwinner V3s, as well as Android boards like RK3399 and MT69xx.

Different platform architectures vary, and their performance can be high or low, suitable for different scenarios.

The blogger has designed and soldered many microcontroller boards, and you can refer to the following articles:

What is Considered an Embedded Full Stack?

Development Status of Sensorhub Board

However, the blogger has not yet designed boards for Linux or Android. Android boards are too challenging, costly, and there are very few individual developers working on them. But there are many Linux boards available. After research, the blogger wants to design an Allwinner V3s Linux development board for experimentation. The reasons for choosing V3s include:

1. There are many open-source projects available on Lichuang Open Source Square for reference, and Lychee Pie can also be referenced.
2. The V3s has 64MB DDR2 built-in, so there is no need to consider DDR when designing the board; just pay attention to USB and SD card.
3. Because V3s has built-in DDR, the board can be larger and only two layers; there’s no need for a four-layer board. If the main control is external DDR, then a four-layer or six-layer board is required.
4. The V3s uses LQFP packaging, which is the same as STM32, making it easy for manual soldering.
5. V3s has a single-core Cortex-A7 with a frequency of 1.2GHz, which is sufficiently high.

The V3s packaging is as follows, claw-shaped packaging, similar to STM32 packaging, which can be handled with a soldering iron:

Available reference links:

https://oshwhub.com/
https://oshwhub.com/ftwtwzy/snaillpi_copy#P1
https://oshwhub.com/fanhuacloud/v3s_lcd

https://whycan.com/index.html
https://licheezero.readthedocs.io/zh/latest/
https://www.cnblogs.com/twzy/p/15691210.html

The blogger originally used AD software for board design but later switched to Lichuang EDA, which is particularly convenient, as it eliminates the need to create component packages manually; after designing the board, purchasing components and manufacturing the board is very convenient.

Switching from microcontroller board design to Linux board design can start with a main control that has built-in DDR, treating it as a large microcontroller. Once proficient, one can choose a main control with external DDR, which requires a four-layer or six-layer board during design, along with impedance matching, following the 3W principle, 20H principle, 5-5 principle, differential routing, EMC, etc.

In fact, the Allwinner F1C200s also has built-in DDR, and there are many open-source projects available online. However, it has 64M DDR1 built-in, with a default frequency of 408MHz, and the packaging is difficult to solder, so it was passed on.

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