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December 27, 2023December 27, 2023 by Debashis Das - No Comments

MEMENTO is an ESP32-S3-based, CircuitPython or Arduino programmable DIY camera module

Adafruit’s new MEMENTO – Bare Board Camera module is powered by the ESP32-S3 and can be programmed with CircuitPython or Arduino. The module includes a camera with an OV5640 sensor which features auto-focus capabilities and the board includes a 1.54″ 240×240 Color TFT to display the images. Previously we have covered many ESP32-based camera modules like the TinyML-CAM, the Arduino Nicla Vision, TTGO T-Camera, and many other camera modules that feature the OV5640 sensor you can check those out if interested. Features and Specifications of the MEMENTO ESP32 Camera Module: Processing and Connectivity ESP32-S3 Module Dual-core 240MHz Tensilica processor 8 MB Flash, 2 MB PSRAM WiFi and BTLE capabilities Camera and Display OV5640 Camera Module 5MP sensor 72-degree view Autofocus JPEG encoder 1.54″ Color TFT Display with 240×240 resolution Storage – MicroSD card slot (SPI) Ports and Expansion Two Digital/Analog Stemma Ports – JST PH-3 connectors for A0, A1, power, […]

December 20, 2023December 19, 2023 by Tomisin Olujinmi - 4 Comments

Raspberry Breadstick – A RP2040-based development board in a quirky form factor

The Raspberry Breadstick is a breadstick-shaped development board that is designed for ease of use. Unlike other development boards, the Breadstick is built to fit directly on your breadboard and interface with the other electronic components in your project without the need for lengthy jumper wires. It serves to deliver a prototype that is neat, straightforward, and easy to troubleshoot. It is based on Raspberry Pi’s debut microcontroller, the RP2040, which is the same MCU chip that powers the Raspberry Pi Pico and several other boards. We recently covered the Waveshare RP2040-PiZero that comes in the Pi Zero’s form factor. The RP2040 is cheap and supports C/C++, MicroPython, and CircuitPython. The Breadstick has other interesting features such as a lineup of 24 addressable RGB LEDs with fast refresh rates, a 6-axis inertial measurement unit for collecting acceleration and rotation data, as well as 16MB of external flash storage for your […]

November 29, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

Adafruit Metro ESP32-S3 WiFi and Bluetooth IoT board comes in Arduino UNO form factor

Adafruit Metro ESP32-S3 is an IoT development board with ESP32-S3 WiFi and Bluetooth wireless SoC, 8 MB PSRAM, and 16 MB Flash that follows Arduino UNO – or Adafruit Metro – form factor. The board also comes with two STEMMA QT I2C connectors for further expansion, comes with a microSD card socket for storage, a JTAG header for advanced debugging, and supports various power options with 6-12V DC via a DC jack, 5V DC via a USB-C port, and a 2-pin connector for a LiPo battery plus the board integrates charging and battery monitoring chip. Adafruit Metro ESP32-S3 specifications: Wireless module ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 MCU – ESP32-S3 dual-core LX7 microprocessor @ up to 240 MHz with Vector extension for machine learning Memory – 8MB PSRAM Storage – 16MB SPI flash Connectivity – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5 with LE/Mesh PCB antenna Certifications – FCC/CE certification Storage – MicroSD card slot USB – 1x […]

July 30, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Robo Pico review – A Raspberry Pi Pico W-based motor & sensor control board tested with BocoBot robotic kit

Robo Pico Review Raspberry Pi Zero W robot

Cytron Robo Pico is a carrier board for the Raspberry Pi Pico (W) specially designed for robotics & IoT applications with a 2-channel DC motor driver, four servo motor ports, and seven Grove I/O connectors to connect various sensors and/or actuators. When the company asked us to review the Robo Pico board, I noticed they had a car robotic kit based on the board called the BocoBot that comes with installation videos and five tutorials including obstacle avoidance movement with ultrasonic sensors, light search, line following, and WiFi remote control. So I asked for the full kit to make the review more fun and interesting. Robo Pico board Robo Pico specifications: Supported MCU board – Raspberry Pi Pico/Pico W and compatible Motor control 2x DC Motor terminals with Motor status LEDs for each motor terminal 2x motor test buttons for each motor terminal Header to connect to 4x servos Expansion […]

July 7, 2023July 10, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

The Bee Data Logger ESP32-S3 board comes with RTC, microSD slot, and two Qwiic connectors for sensors

A few months ago, SparkFun released the “Datalogger IoT – 9DoF” no-code platform based on ESP32 with some built-in sensors, a microSD card, and two Qwiic connectors to add sensors in order to perform data logging with minimal to no coding. Smart Bee Designs looks to have shrunk the design, removing the built-in sensors in the processor, with the Bee data logger ESP32-S3 board that offers most of the same features plus a built-in DS3231 RTC and back battery for timekeeping, and the ability to leverage the vector extension in the ESP32-S3 for machine learning applications. Bee data logger specifications: Wireless module – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3-MINI-1 module CPU – ESP32-S3 dual-core Xtensa LX7 microcontroller with vector extensions with 512KB SRAM, 384KB ROM, WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity Storage – 8MB of QSPI flash PCB antenna Storage – MicroSD card slot up to 16GB capacity USB – 1x USB Type-C port […]

June 29, 2023June 28, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

ANAVI launches CircuitPython-programmable Macro Pad 12 & Arrows mechanical keyboards (Crowdfunding)

ANAVI Technology has launched two more open-source hardware mechanical keyboards based on the Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller, equipped with an OLED display, and programmable with CircuitPython: the ANAVI Macro Pad 12 with 12 keys and the ANAVI Arrows with four keys and a rotatory encoder. The new mechanical keyboards follow ANAVI Macro Pad 10 & Knobs input devices equipped with the same Seeed Studio XIAO RP2040 MCU module running the KMK firmware written with CircuitPython, but with different form factors and features. ANAVI Macro Pad 12 specifications: MCU module – Seeed Studio XIAO RP2040 with Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex-M0+ microcontroller @ up to 133 Mhz with 264KB SRAM, 2MB SPI flash, USB Type-C port Keys – 12x Gateron red, linear, non-clicky mechanical switches and transparent keycaps with yellow LED backlighting Display – OLED display connected to I2C slot (can be replaced with another I2C module) Host interface – USB […]

April 14, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

Using Pico:ed V2 board as a replacement for BBC Micro:bit

We’ve received a sample of the Pico:ed V2 board developed by ELECFREAKS and will show how to use it as a replacement for the BBC micro:bit in a project using CircuitPython. We’ve already covered the board in detail with specifications, block diagram, and pinout diagram before, and it’s basically a Raspberry Pi Pico RP2040 board with BBC Micro:bit form factor including a 17×7 Dot Matrix LED display, some buttons, a buzzer, but no wireless connectivity, relying only on USB instead. CircuitPython firmware installation on the Pico:ed V2 board The board supports C/C++, MicroPython, and CircuitPython programming languages, and for this review, we’ve decided to download the CircuitPython UF2 firmware. Press and hold the BOOTSEL button after having downloaded the firmware file… … and connect the board to your computer using a USB cable before releasing the BOOSEL button on the Pico:ed V2 board, which should then show up as the […]

April 13, 2023April 14, 2023 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 1 Comment

Challenger RP2040 board gets DWM3000 UWB module for indoor positioning, up to 10 Mbps data transfers

The Challenger RP2040 UWB board features a Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller combined with a DWM300 UWB (Ultra-Wide Band) module in the Adafruit Feather form factor and is designed for indoor positioning and ranging applications with an up to 10-centimeter accuracy, and data transfers up to 10 Mbps. The first Challenger RP2040 board was introduced in 2021 with an ESP8285 WiFi chip, iLabs (Invector Labs) shortly followed up with the Challenger RP2040 LoRa with an RFM95W LoRa module, and they also made models with NFC and cellular connectivity. The Swedish company has now just introduced their latest Challenger board with the Challenger RP2040 UWB leveraging UWB technology. Challenger RP2040 LoRa board preliminary specifications: MCU – Raspberry Pi RP2040 dual-core Cortex-M0+ MCU @ 133MHz with 264KB SRAM Storage – 8MB flash Wireless module – Qorvo DWM3000 UWB module connected via SPI Chip – Qorvo DW3110 ultra-wideband (UWB) transceiver IC, compliant with IEEE […]