GigaDevice GD-xD-W515-EVAL board features GD32W515 Cortex-M33 MCU, a fingerprint scanner, and an LCD module

GigaDevice GD-xD-W515-EVAL is a new “all-in-one” Cortex-M33 evaluation kit comprised of a GD32W515 mainboard, a fingerprint board, and an LCD board powered by either a battery or the Mini-USB interface of the GD-Link programmer.

The devkit is mainly used to evaluate various chips from the company, namely the 180 MHz GD32W515PIQ6 Cortex-M33 microcontroller, the GD25Q128E SPI NOR flash, the GSL6157 capacitive fingerprint Sensor, the GD30BC2416 battery management IC, and the GD30LD1002 power management chip.

GigaDevice GD-xD-W515-EVAL board specifications:

MCU – Gigadevice GD32W515PIQ6
- Core – Arm Cortex-M33 microcontroller clocked at up to 180 MHz with Arm TrustZone support
- Memory – 448KB SRAM
- Storage – 2048KB flash
- Wireless – 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 (802.11b/g/n), but somehow not used in the development board…
- I/Os – Up to 43x GPIOs, 3x USART, 2x I2C, 2x SPI, USB 2.0 FS, I2S, etc…
- Package – QFN56
Storage – 128Mbit SPI NOR Flash (GD25Q128E)
Display – 0.96-inch color IPS display module with 160×80 resolution
Audio – Built-in microphone
Sensors
- Fingerprint scanner using Gigadevice GSL6157 capacitive fingerprint sensor
- Temperature sensor
Programming/Debugging
- GD-Link debugger (JTAG/SWD) via mini USB port and GD32F103C8T6 microcontroller
- Serial console via micro USB port and CH340E serial chip
Misc – Vibrator, battery charging LEDs, 4x user LEDs, capacitive touch key (connected to MCU’s TSI interface)
Power Supply
- 5V via mini USB port
- 2-pin connector for LiPo battery and battery charging management up to 1.5A via Gigadevice GD30BC2416
- Switch for battery or USB power selection

GD-xD-W515-EVAL Block Diagram — Block diagram

There aren’t any spare I/Os on the evaluation kit to connect your own peripherals meaning all I/Os are used for the internal functions of the board which are suitable for Smart Home HMIs, smart door locks, portable devices, etc…

The Arm Keil v5.29 IDE is used for embedded software development and the “GD32AllInOneProgrammer” (actual name: GigaDevice GD-Link Programmer) is used to flash the firmware to the board through the built-in GD-Link programmer. A user guide and project folder are available for the evaluation board, but you need to wait for approval from the company before downloading it. It took two days to get approval for the user guide in my case, bearing in mind that I asked during the Golden Week holiday in China.

The company did not provide pricing for the board, but you can get one for free by requesting one on the product page. I’d assume they’ll only send one if you have a relevant project with a minimum expected production volume.

Thanks to TLS for the tip.

Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)

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.