Espressif ESP32-C2 is a new WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE 5.0 chip the Shanghai-headquartered company has been working on since last year. The company claims it has better RF performance due to a smaller package reducing stray parasitics, and it will support the Matter protocol whose first version should become ratified later this year.
The first ESP32-C2 product wafers have been received by the Shanghai team in spite of the current lockdown and quarantine in Shanghai due to the COVID-19, and teams in other parts of Asia, Europe, and Singapore are working without interruption on software integration into ESP-IDF and ESP-RainMaker.
ESP32-C2 preliminary specifications:
- RISC-V core
- 272KB of memory
- Connectivity
- WiFi 4 + BLE 5.0
- Tx power
- 20 dBm (FCC limit)
- 18 dBm for 802.11N MC7 packets (72.2 Mbps)
- Receiver sensitivity – -97 to -100 dBm for 1 Mbps 802.11B packets.
- Receive current – 58 mA
- Package – 4 x 4mm package
The ROM code is said to be optimized to reduce the need for flash, but no details were provided. The Tx performance of an ESP32-C2 client device is similar to that of single antenna routers, and it can transmit as much output power as a typical router, leading to reduced transmission times and improved connection quality when several devices are in the vicinity. Espressif says those improvements will also show in the upcoming ESP32-C6 WiFi 6 and BLE 5.2 IoT chip that is now slated for launch in Q3/Q4 2022.
The announcement on Espressif blog did not mention the CPU architecture at all, but we won’t have to guess in the future since all subsequent Espressif chips, including ESP32-C2, will be based on RISC-V architecture according to a Tweet by John Lee, who also tells us to expect quad-core RISC-V chips in the not-so-distant future. Does that mean Espressif is going to manufacture router/gateway chips? I don’t know. But four cores sound overkill for a client device. We’ll see.
While the Matter protocol is often associated with low-power wireless standards like Thread and Zigbee, it also works with Ethernet and WiFi, and Espressif expects Matter WiFi to drive the early adoption of the new protocol due to the existing base despite shortcomings such as relatively high power consumption and the lack of mesh networking capabilities.
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.
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I’m glad Espressif is dropping the silly Xtensa-architecture and moving to something that a lot of other companies are using as well. There’s metric f*cktons of tools and software for working with RISC-V already and things are only progressing at a rapid pace.
Espressif has already been shipping RISC-V for 18 months in the ESP32-C3. This C2 just looks to be a cost-reduced C3 with a better radio design for more range.
Yeah, I know of the C3, but that’s still not a lot. ESP32-S3 is still new (I haven’t actually been able to buy them anywhere yet) and it’s unfortunately still using Xtensa for the main cores, for example.
They also said their Zigbee dev board ESP-H2 would arrive around Q2 2022 but looks like they’ll be missing that target too.
Others have come to market , albeit support poor. Historically Espressif have been poor at meeting their target launch times so take everything they announce with a massive pinch of salt.
I’m looking for a Wifi + BLE + Zigbee ESP chip. Other vendors want $5 for those.
$5 is a real deal nonetheless, sales of how many units though?
You need this config for some nodes in a Matter network. Silicon Labs and TI already ship it.
More Than 5.5 Billion Smart Home Matter-Compliant Devices will Ship Between 2022 and 2030
Which one for example?
Glad to here that，nice news to RISC-V