[yash101]

To tell you the truth, I really think the cRIO is a bit overpowered. A typical microcontroller can do a multitude of things, from datalogging to high-precision motor control. The reason why I like the cRIO in FRC is because of it's networking capabilities. It is much easier to deploy a WiFi network than to deploy some general purpose radio technology. Also, the cRIO has a little bit of oomph, making it possible to do some advanced things like image recognition. However, for this, I would use a Linux SoC because those are inexpensive and even the cheapest ones are more powerful than the cRIO PPC.

I cannot wait till next year because the cRIO will have much more processing power. That will make it possible to run more intensive robot applications. I want to automate as much of the robot as in the scope of a high schooler as possible before I graduate, so it will be important for there to be a powerful enough processor to run all the required servers!

I really like how cRIO control system will be so much simpler to implement now! It was confusing and required a ton of space to place both the cRIO and the DS. It also took a decent amount of space to place the bridge.

I will have to give that to Team NI because it now really starts to be clicking in that NI has been designing products specifically for FRC. We never needed the cRIOs to be strong enough to withstand the worst of the collisions because the G-Forces hardly become that high!

One thing that I am wondering about, though, is the serial capabilities. I would really like a bit more information, more specifically:
-Logic Levels (1.8|3.3|5|6|12)
-ports -- will there be available RS232?
-UART -- Probably there. Is is easy to access?
-i2C -- Probably there. Is it easy to access?
-Any other serial bidirectional ports/protocols?

Also, how is the new Java SE VM working? Does it by chance have the java.net package?

Also, do we by chance know a bit more about the release dates? Will it be released before the season starts so the teams can learn it?