Imagination Takes Open and Accessible Micro-computing to the Next Level

London, UK -– Imagination Technologies (IMG.L) announced that the high performance, low power MIPS Creator CI20 development board is now available for pre-order.

The MIPS Creator CI20 is an affordable micro-computer that runs Linux and Android and enables open source developers, the maker community, system integrators and others to create a wide range of applications and projects, ranging from home automation and gaming to wireless multimedia streaming.

Originally introduced in August 2014 through a limited promotional giveaway for university students, developers, hobbyists and partners, Imagination was inundated with inquiries leading to today’s announcement that the Creator CI20 is available to pre-order at $65/ £50, with units available at the end of January 2015.

Says Tony King-Smith, EVP of marketing for Imagination: “We are very excited to be taking part in the growing interest within the open source and maker communities for affordable, fully featured development platforms. Creator CI20 has been designed for people who want high performance and advanced features for their development projects and to create access at the software and hardware level to allow creativity to come to the fore.”

The development board includes a unique combination of features and specifications:

– A 1.2 GHz MIPS32-based, dual-core processor designed for superior performance and low power computing
– PowerVR SGX540 graphics offering full support for OpenGL 2.1 and OpenGL ES 2.0
– Dedicated video hardware for low power 1080p decoding at 30 fps
– A full package of connectivity options including fast Ethernet, high-speed 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0
– On-board memory:1GB DDR3 memory, 4GB flash memory and an SD card expansion slot
– High-quality audio playback
– A comprehensive set of peripherals, including GPIO, SPI, I2C, UART, etc.

MIPS Creator CI20 comes pre-installed with Debian 7. Other Linux distributions will be available, including Gentoo and Yocto, as well as a version of Debian 7 that complies with the principles of the Free Software Foundation. Users can also install the latest version of Android v4.4.

Creator CI20 also includes FlowCloud support for application development focused on the Internet of Things (IoT). FlowCloud is an exciting IoT platform from Imagination that enables users to construct solutions for a wide range of applications, including security, personal and professional health monitoring, energy management, cloud-based systems for content delivery and much more.

Imagination community quotes

Says Mike Woster, COO and VP of business development for The Linux Foundation: “We’re excited to see Linux Foundation members like Imagination Technologies contribute to the choice, affordability, power and variety of Linux development boards available today. Whether as a DIY or design platform, work like this is sure to attract more developers and help kick off new applications.”

Says Art Swift, president of the prpl Foundation: “The prpl Foundation and our member companies welcome the highly capable Creator CI20 development board. Developers in the open source community will appreciate the high performance, advanced feature set, and affordable cost of this microcomputer. It is a great example of the sophisticated hardware designs offered by the vibrant and growing MIPS ecosystem.”

Says Neil Henning, technology lead for Codeplay: “The Creator CI20 is a fast development board for a really good price that combines two technologies we are very excited about: a dual-core MIPS CPU and a PowerVR GPU. There is a real drive for more and more affordable devices like this that deliver power efficiency yet still pack a hefty punch. The new Creator CI20 micro-computer has filled the role perfectly.”

Says Yingtao Hou, VP of Chukong Technology: “Imagination provides the industry-leading PowerVR graphics processors inside many iconic smartphones and tablets. We’ve worked with them extensively on performance optimizations for games built using the Cocos2d-x engine and have been very satisfied with the tools and utilities they provide for Android or Linux. We welcome the launch of the MIPS Creator CI20 micro-computer and look forward to explore the possibilities it brings.”

Pricing and Availability

Priced at $65 (US) / £50 (Europe), the MIPS Creator CI20 is available for pre-order now from store.imgtec.com for North America and Europe, with more countries to be added shortly.

Units will be dispatched at the end of January 2015.