Wemos introduced the first low cost ESP32 board with LOLIN32 board going for $6.90 plus shipping in April, but the company is now back with a new Lite version of the board switching ESP-WROOM-32 module with their own design around ESP32 Rev 1 chip (with various silicon bug fixes), and a lower $4.90 price tag to which you need to add ~$2 for shipping.
Wemos LOLIN32 Lite is also smaller, so we’ll lose some of the pins (mostly extra power pins), but the I/Os look the same:
- SoC – Espressif ESP32-DOWD6Q Rev 1.0 dual core Tensilica Xtensa LX6 processor with WiFi and BLE
- Connectivity – 802.11 b/g/n WiFi + Bluetooth LE
- I/Os via 2x 13-pin headers with digital I/Os, analog inputs, UART, I2C, SPI, VP/VN, DAC…
- 3.3V I/O voltage
- Breadboard compatible
- USB – 1x micro USB port for power and programming/debugging
- Misc – Reset button
- Power – 5V via micro USB + battery header for Lithium battery (charging current: 500mA max)
- Dimensions & Weight – TBD
The board sold on Aliexpress is pre-loaded with micropython firmware, but you could also change that to Arduino, or other supported firmware. The Wiki has limited information for now.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
Support CNX Software! Donate via cryptocurrencies, become a Patron on Patreon, or purchase goods on Amazon or Aliexpress
can I charge a 18650 battery (ex notebook) or phone battery (lithium ion) with it (of course doing some soldering first)? or it is only for some special battery with the connector.
It depends on the charging voltage, if this charger has the right voltage for your cell (or slightly lower, with a capacity penalty…) then it should be safe. If the charger has a higher voltage than the cell you would overcharge, and thus overheat your cell. If soldering and comparing specs is yours you should be good for an experiment.
@itchy n scratchy
Well, I don’t have datasheet for the battery, I disassembled a notebook battery.
But I think lithium ion is 3.7V and is safe to charge up to 4.2V.
And ESP32 is 3.3V voltage then it may be the right battery.
So I charge it and touch the battery, no heat.
Seem fine.
It is very nice to have microcontroller that run on battery and while keeping it alive, can be charged.
Got a Chinese clone (looks the same, missing part of the silkscreen — trademarks and brands, primarily). Charges up to 4.19 volts (± a bit), should be safe for a typical Lithium-ion 3.7V battery.