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March 11, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

Smart Home News – ESPHome 2025.2.0 Firmware, Home Assistant gets Matter certified, and (some) ChromeCast devices hit troubles

Smart Home news ESPHome Firmware Home Assistant Matter ChromeCast

When I wrote about the Home Assistant 2025.3 release last week, it was pointed out to me that ESPHome firmware had its own release on February 19th, and in other Smart Home news, Home Assistant got Matter certified, and some ChromeCast devices temporarily stopped working which impacted video/audio streaming and integration with Google Home. Let’s have a quick look at all three pieces of news. ESPHome 2025.2.0 firmware ESPHome 2025.2.0 was released on February 19 implements audio components improvements with support for new components/hardware for better support of Espressif’s S3-Box products, new speaker components for advanced functionality when using Voice Assistant, a new speaker media player component for announcements and music streams, and a mixer speaker component to combine the two streams. The new release also supports alpha-blending images when using LVGL, and the Online Image Component was updated to add support for both BMP and JPEG image formats. It […]

March 10, 2025March 10, 2025 by Debashis Das - 3 Comments

ESP32-S3 based AC voltage controller/dimmer features a knob with integrated display

Makerfabs has recently introduced Matouch 1.28-inch ToolSet_AC Dimmer an open-source ESP32-based AC voltage controller for dimming lights or adjusting motor speeds using phase-cut dimming. Built around an ESP32-S3 wireless MCU, it features a 1.28” capacitive touch display (240×240), and a UI designed with LVGL/Squareline and the Arduino V2.3.4 IDE. The device relies on a BT139 Triac and a zero-cross detection circuit for precise AC voltage control, along with an onboard relay to enable a full AC on/off switch. With an integrated AC-DC module providing 5V @ 0.6A, it can operate within an input range of AC 100-240V, 50Hz-60Hz, with a maximum load of 10A at 240VAC. Designed for home and industrial applications, it can control lighting environments and electrical appliances while being open-source for customization and integration into various automation projects. Matouch 1.28-inch ToolSet_AC Dimmer specifications: SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 CPU – Xtensa® Dual-core 32-bit LX7 Microprocessor with up to 240MHz […]

March 10, 2025March 10, 2025 by Sponsored Post - No Comments

NextPCB offers free ESP32-S3 PCBA prototypes for original designs (Sponsored)

NextPCB has started offering free PCBA prototypes for PCB designs based on the ESP32-S3 wireless microcontroller following a similar offer for free Raspberry Pi RP2040/RP2350 PCBAs launched in January 2025. The Chinese PCB/PCBA manufacturer’s new “accelerator campaign” targets developers, makers, and researchers who developed their own PCB based on the ESP32-S3 microcontroller. They can get two free PCBA prototypes for the original design. Slots are however limited, and NextPCB will select 20 projects for sponsorship. If selected, you’ll get the following: Free Prototyping – Get 2 free PCBA units, including PCB fabrication, components, assembly, and worldwide shipping (valued up to $500 US). Technical Support – Get expert assistance with manufacturing engineering, design guidance, certification, and production. Personalized Assistance – Receive dedicated one-on-one support throughout your manufacturing journey. The company will prioritize business projects, but hobbyist designs that contribute to the open-source community and showcase interesting applications using ESP32-S3 will also […]

March 10, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

Hidden proprietary Bluetooth HCI commands in ESP32 microcontroller could pose a security risk

Security is hard. Just as Espressif Systems announced PSA Level 2 for the ESP32-C6 microcontroller, Spain-based cybersecurity company Tarlogic published their findings about a hidden Bluetooth functionality that can be used as a backdoor in the previous generation ESP32, and gave a presentation in Spanish at Rootedcon 2025. Specifically, they found hidden proprietary Bluetooth HCI (Host Controller Interface) commands used to read & write controller memory, and typically used for debugging. However, they could also facilitate supply chain attacks, the concealment of backdoors in the chipset, or the execution of more sophisticated attacks. Tarlogic initially called it a “backdoor”, but some disputed the claim (more on that later), and the company eventually issued an update downgrading it to a “hidden” feature: We would like to clarify that it is more appropriate to refer to the presence of proprietary HCI commands—which allow operations such as reading and modifying memory in the […]

March 7, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

ESP32-C6 is the first RISC-V microcontroller to achieve PSA Level 2 security compliance

ESP32-C6 RISC-V MCU PSA Level 2 Certified

Arm introduced the Platform Security Architecture (PSA) back in 2017 to make Internet of Things (IoT) chips more secure. Since then we’ve seen many PSA certified products such as Silicon Labs’ EFR32FG23 (FG23) and EFR32ZG23 (ZG23) Cortex-M33 microcontrollers with PSA Level 3 certification. But as announced in 2017, PSA is architecture-agnostic, and the security architecture has gone beyond just certifying Arm microcontrollers, as shown by Espressif Systems who just announced that the ESP32-C6 RISC-V wireless microcontroller was now PSA Level 2 certified. The ESP32-C3 RISC-V MCU also achieved PSA certification earlier, but at the lower Level 1. The PSA-L2 certification was mostly made possible thanks to the ESP-TEE (Trusted Execution Environment) firmware that provides hardware-enforced isolation to enhance security for operations such as cryptographic key management, secure boot verification, and firmware updates. Espressif also reminded us of ESP32-C6’s hardware security features in the announcement: Physical Memory Protection (PMP) and Access […]

March 7, 2025March 7, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 3 Comments

Seeed Studio launches Wi-Fi HaLow mini PCIe module for Raspberry Pi, add-on board for XIAO boards

Seeed Studio has launched two 900 MHz WiFi HaLow modules for long-range, low-power communication based on Quectel FGH100M-H: the Wio-WM6180 Wi-Fi HaLow mini-PCIe module designed to be installed in hardware such as OpenWrt routers or even Raspberry Pi SBCs, and the Wi-Fi HaLow module for Seeed Studio XIAO designed to take XIAO boards with Espressif, Raspberry Pi, or Nordic Semi microcontrollers. These solutions can be useful for Smart Home devices, industrial automation, Smart City infrastructure, Smart Agriculture, and environmental monitoring systems. The most typical use cases are WiFi HaLow cameras with up to one kilometer range. Wio-WM6180 Wi-Fi HaLow mini-PCIe Module Specifications: Quectel FGH100M-H Wi-Fi HaLow module compliant with IEEE 802.11ah standard. Chipset – Morse Micro MM6108 Wi-Fi Frequency Band – 902–928 MHz Operating mode – Access Point (AP) or Station (STA) Modulation – OFDM, BPSK, QPSK, 16QAM, 64QAM Data Rate – Up to 32.5Mbps link rate Range – Up […]

March 3, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

ESP32-C2 v2.0 wireless SoC adds 20 KB of additional SRAM, 100 KB of extra flash

Espressif ESP32-C2 (ESP8684) has been updated to v2.0 with 20 KB of additional SRAM, 100 KB of extra flash, with some improvements in terms of erase and program performance. The ESP32-C2 was first unveiled in April 2024 with limited details, and launched in October of the same year as the ESP8684 SiP combining ESP32-C2 die with 4MB flash, as well as a few ESP8684 modules and the ESP8684-DevKitM-1 development board. The ESP32-C2 is meant to be a cost-down version of the ESP32-C3 with less RAM and peripherals, and the ESP32-C2 v2.0 slightly improved on that with parts adding X to the name: ESP8684H2X (2MB flash) and ESP8684H4X (4MB flash). Modules and devkit names are also impacted, albeit not shown yet in the screenshot below. The part names had to be updated because chip revision v2.0 and previous chip revisions are not software-compatible, so Espressif had to update the ordering codes […]

February 28, 2025March 8, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 13 Comments

ESP32-S3 infrared thermal imaging camera module offers 80×62 resolution, 45° and 90° wide angle versions

Waveshare has launched an ESP32-S3-based thermal imaging camera module based on the same 80 x 62 infrared camera found in its Thermal-45/90 camera Raspberry Pi HAT and Thermal-45/90 USB camera. The thermal camera module is offered with two field of views, namely 45° for the basic version and 90° for the wide angle variant, twenty solder pads with GPIOs, UART, and I2C for expansion, a USB-C port for power and programming, and a 2-pin header to connect a battery if required. Waveshare “ESP32-S3 IR thermal imaging camera module” specifications: Wireless Module ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 MCU – ESP32-S3 dual-core Tensilica LX7 up to 240 MHz with 512KB SRAM, up to 8MB PSRAM Storage – 16MB flash Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE 5 Thermal Camera – Meridian Innovation MI0802 Resolution – 80 × 62 Field of View (FOV) 56°(D) x 45°(H) x 34°(V) (Baisc version) 122°(D) x 90°(H) x 67°(V) (Wide angle […]