Embedded computing is a rapidly growing field. This field has exploded with the wide adoption of smartphones and most recently, the creation of multimedia devices such as Google TV and Apple TV. For developers interested in learning more about embedded computing or working to design a new embedded device, finding cost effective hardware on which to experiment can be a challenge. The Beagle Board is one answer to this challenge.

The Beagle Board is a low cost USB powered fanless computer. It is based on the OMAP35xx architecture and used the Texas Instruments ARM-8 processor. It features OpenGL capable 2d/3d graphics and a HD video capable digital signal processor.
The device can be connected to the USB port of a PC or laptop for experimentation.One great feature of the Beagle Board is that its capabilities can be expanded by the addition of various peripherals. These expansion capabilities include support for stereo audio, an interface for SD memory cards, the ability to be powered via USB style cell phone chargers and power supplies, and DVI-D for connection to computer monitors. There are certified and third party peripherals available including a 5V power supply and an Ethernet connection. The Beagle Board also has the ability to be expanded with WiFi and Bluetooth.

If you have some electronics ability, the design schematics are available. This means that you could build your own Beagle Board or you can always purchase one from the creators’ web site. The device can be used for a variety of applications. Some of the ones mentioned on the beagleboard.org web site include multimedia player, game console, home automation, and kitchen computer. The list of software projects being developed for the Beagle Board are ripe with even more possibilities.

Among the software projects, one is particularly interesting. There is a project to create a version of Android for the Beagle Board and OMAP3 platforms. Using this project, developers could use the board to create the next generation of Android enabled devices such as set top boxes or tablet computers. There are also several Linux distributions being ported to the Beagle Board including Debian and Gentoo. Browsing the list of projects will likely inspire any number of uses for the USB powered computer.

While the Beagle Board was not developed with any commercial purpose in mind, there are a number of compatible commercial boards and platforms that you could move your project to should you decide to move into commercial production of your device. This makes it not only a powerful learning tool but potentially a powerful and inexpensive prototyping tool as well.

The Beagle Board is an exciting project that provides an extremely low-cost hardware solution for developers to learn about embedded computing. It can also potentially provide the perfect platform for prototyping the next generation of embedded devices.