The Waveshare ESP32-H2-DEV-KIT-N4-M is a development board based on the ESP32-H2, available for only $6.65 on Aliexpress, but you’ll also find it on Amazon and Waveshare’s official store. This is a significant price drop compared to last year’s official Espressif ESP32-H2-DevKitM-1 board, which was priced at $10 without including shipping costs and with a similar design.
In 2021, Espressif Systems introduced the ESP32-H2 to the world. However, it wasn’t until 2023 that they released their first development board. Since then, there haven’t been many products built around this new module. Some exceptions include the Olimex ESP32-H2-DevKit-LiPo, LILYGO T-Panel, and the ESP Thread Border Router/Zigbee Gateway board, all of which feature the ESP32-H2 chip.
Waveshare ESP32-H2-DEV-KIT-N4-M specifications:
- Wireless module – ESP32-H2-MINI-1
- MCU – Espressif Systems ESP32-H2 32-bit RISC-V microcontroller at up to 96 MHz with 320 KB SRAM, 128 KB ROM, 4 KB LP memory, Bluetooth 5.2 LE/Mesh, and 802.15.4 (Zigbee/Thread/Matter) radios.
- Storage – 4MB flash storage
- PCB antenna
- Dimensions – 13.2×16.6×2.4 mm
- USB – 1x USB Type-C ports with CH334 USB HUB controller and CH343 USB to UART converter
- I/Os
- 2x 15-pin headers with 19 programmable GPIOs, 2x UART, 3x SPI, I2C, I2S, Remote Control Peripheral, LED PWM, Full-speed USB Serial/JTAG Controller, GDMA, MCPWM…
- Compatible with the pinout of the ESP32-H2-DevKitM-1 development board
- Misc – Power LED, RGB LED, Boot and Reset buttons
- Power Supply
- 5V via USB Type-C port
- 5V to 3.3V LDO
- Dimensions – 51.60 x 25.40 mm
The official ESP32-H2 devkit from Espressif features two USB-C ports: one port connects to the ESP’s full-speed USB 2.0 Host port, and the other connects to a USB to UART converter. Waveshare simplified this setup by including a USB HUB controller IC on the board, effectively combining the two USB connections into one.
You can check out Espressif’s documentation to find more hardware details and get started guide with the ESP-IDF framework. Waveshare also provides its own Wiki page to get you started with the ESP-IDF using VS-Code and ESP32 Arduino Core 3.0.0 using the Arduino IDE.
The module comes in two variants one with soldered headers and another without soldered headers. As mentioned at the start of the article, the module can be purchased on Aliexpress, Amazon, and Waveshare for $6.65 and up.
Debashis Das is a technical content writer and embedded engineer with over five years of experience in the industry. With expertise in Embedded C, PCB Design, and SEO optimization, he effectively blends difficult technical topics with clear communication
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You can actually get a C6 for almost the same price, that is why there isn’t much interest in these H2’s
I see two uses for the H2. Matter light bulbs using Thread. And as a co-processor to the C6 to build a Thread border router. Nordic Semi has long dominated this market.