WeAct ESP32-C6-Mini is the cheapest ESP32-C6 board so far going for less than $4

WeAct ESP32-C6-Mini board

WeAct ESP32-C6-Mini is a small development board based on Espressif Systems ESP32-C6 WiFi 6, Bluetooth, and 802.15.4 wireless SoC that’s the cheapest we’ve seen so far selling for just $3.86 on Aliexpress. WeAct was one of the first companies to launch a third-party ESP32-C6 development board year with the price starting at just $6. I still remember the excitement around the first $5 ESP8266 WiFi 4 module when we first covered it in 2014, and ten years later, we can get a full $4 development board with a more powerful 160 MHz RISC-V microcontroller, WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, and an 802.15.4 radio for Thread, Zigbee, and Matter. WeAct ESP32-C6-Mini specifications: Wireless SoC – ESP32-C6-N4 CPU Single-core 32-bit RISC-V clocked up to 160 MHz Low-power RISC-V core @ up to 20 MHz Memory – 512KB SRAM, 16KB low power SRAM Storage – 320KB ROM, and 4MB flash Wireless – 2.4 GHz […]

Silicon Labs MG26, BG26, and PG26 Cortex-M33 AI microcontrollers offer up to 3200KB flash, 512KB RAM, 64 GPIO’s

Silicon Labs MG26 BG26 P26 Cortex M33 microcontrollers

Silicon Labs has announced the xG26 family of Cortex-M33 wireless SoCs and MCUs that consists of the multiprotocol MG26 SoC, the Bluetooth LE BG26 SoC, and the PG26 general-purpose MCU without wireless connectivity, and features double the flash and RAM of the Silicon Labs xG24 devices. The xG26 family also comes with double the number of general-purpose input/output (GPIO) pins as the xG24 to enable engineers to build more complex devices in combination with the larger flash and memory reaching up to 3200 KB and 512KB respectively and also integrates a Matrix Vector Processor (MVP) for AI/ML hardware acceleration and Math functions. Silicon Labs MG26 and BG26 wireless SoCs MG26 and BG26 key features and specifications: MCU core – Arm Cortex-M33 @ 78 MHz AI/ML accelerator – Matrix Vector Processor that is 8x faster and 6x lower power than Cortex-M33 processing, and supports an MVP Math Library for non-ML workloads […]

u-blox ALMA-B1 and NORA-B2, Bluetooth 5.4 LE modules are based on Nordic nRF54H20 and nRF54L15 SoCs

u-blox ALMA-B1 and NORA-B2 modules

Wireless communication solutions provider, u-blox has added two new modules to its Bluetooth LE portfolio with the ALMA-B1 and NORA-B2 modules built upon the latest low-power wireless nRF54 chips from Nordic Semiconductor.  Both modules come in a portable, power-efficient layout and support Bluetooth 5.4 and 802.15.4 (Thread, Matter, Zigbee). The ALMA-B1 and NORA-B2 BLE modules are powered by the low-power nRF54H20 and nRF54L15 SoCs, respectively. This enables them to provide IoT devices with sufficient processing power for edge computing and machine learning without the need for external components. u-blox claims that the ALMA-B1 module provides “more than twice the processing power of previous Bluetooth LE modules” and can replace general-purpose microcontrollers in compact solutions. Also, the NORA-B2 reportedly “consumes up to 50% less current compared to previous generations of Bluetooth LE modules,” leading to longer battery life or smaller batteries in end products. Both modules are classified as open CPU […]

ESP32-C5 beta board features 2.4GHz and 5GHz SMA antenna connectors, two USB-C ports

ESP32-C5 test board

Espressif ESP32-C5 microcontroller was announced in June 2022 as the first dual-band WiFi 6 IoT chip from the company. It’s been quiet since then, but things are about to change as the ESP32-C5 beta board’s documentation has very recently been released. The ESP32-C5 was initially announced as a dual-band WiFI 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE SoC, but the user manual for the beta board indicates that it also supports Zigbee 3.0 and Thread 1.3, so there’s an 802.15.4 in the wireless microcontroller. The ESP32-C5 board itself features two SMA connectors for 2.4 GHz and 5GHz antennas or test equipment, two USB-C  ports, two 12-pin GPIO header, Boot and Reset buttons, an RGB LED, and a 2-pin header for current measurements. ESP32-C5 beta board specifications: SoC – ESP32-C5-BETA3 CPU – Single-core 32-bit RISC-V processor @ up to 240 MHz Memory – 400KB SRAM on-chip Storage – 384KB of ROM on-chip, support […]

Arduino Nano Matter board specifications and price announced

arduino nano matter board

The Arduino Nano Matter is the product of a collaboration between Arduino and Silicon Labs. The Nano Matter board was announced in January and is powered by SiLabs’ MGM240S chip. It offers multiple wireless connectivity options such as Matter, OpenThread, and Bluetooth Low Energy. Support for the Matter standard is the Nano Matter board’s key offering. Matter is an open-source, connectivity protocol that lets smart home devices from different manufacturers interoperate seamlessly. The 45mm x 18mm board leverages dual-mode connectivity, with IEEE 802.15.4 (Thread) for mesh networking and Bluetooth Low Energy for short-range communication. It is targeted at the Internet of Things, home automation, professional automation, environmental monitoring, and climate control applications. Prospective industrial applications include machine-to-machine interoperability, machine status monitoring, and worker status optimization. Arduino Nano Matter specs: MPU – SiLabs MGM240SD22VNA MCU core – 32-bit Arm Cortex-M33 with DSP (digital signal processing) instruction and FPU (floating-point unit) @ […]

$6.99 Waveshare’s ESP32-C6-Pico Board resembles Raspberry Pi Pico board

Waveshare ESP32 C6 Pico Devlopment Board

Waveshare’s ESP32-C6-Pico and ESP32-C6-Pico-M development boards are equipped with the ESP32-C6-MINI-1 module supporting Wi-Fi 6(802.11ax), Bluetooth 5, Zigbee 3.0, and Thread 1.3, and inspired by the Raspberry Pi Pico form factor. They can be powered either through USB Type-C or an external 5V DC supply connected to the pins. Previously we have written about similar ESP32-C6-based boards like the SparkFun Thing Plus, ePulse Feather C6, and WeAct ESP32-C6 dev board. However, these boards are priced way over the $6.99 that Waveshare is offering. One exception is the DFRobot’s FireBeetle 2 ESP32-C6 board, which cuts costs by using the IC directly instead of the fully shielded ESP32-C6-MINI-1 module. Waveshare’s ESP32-C6-Pico board specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-C6-MINI-1 SoC – ESP32-C6H4 32-bit RISC-V microprocessor up to 160 MHz with 320KB ROM, 512KB HP SRAM, 16KB LP SRAM, 4MB flash Wireless – 2.4 GHz WiFi 6 with Target Wake Time (TWT) support, Bluetooth 5.3 LE and […]

ePulse Feather C6 – An ESP32-C6 development board with Adafruit Feather form factor, LiPo battery support

ePulse Feather C6

ThingPulse ePulse Feather C6 is a new ESP32-C6 development board with WiFi 6, BLE5, Zigbee, Thread, and Matter connectivity that follows the Adafruit Feather form factor and supports LiPo battery charging through a charger IC and a fuel gauge. Just like its predecessor called ePulse Feather, the ePulse Feather C6 is optimized for low power consumption but replaces an ESP32-WROVER-E-N8R8 module but an ESP32-C6-MINI-1 with a 802.15.4 radio for Zigbee, Thread, and Matter, as well as 2.4 GHz WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.3 LE connectivity. ePulse Feather C6 specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-C6-MINI-1 SoC – ESP32-C6H4 32-bit RISC-V microprocessor up to 160 MHz with 320KB ROM, 512KB HP SRAM, 16KB LP SRAM, 4MB flash Wireless – 2.4 GHz WiFi 6 with Target Wake Time (TWT) support, Bluetooth 5.3 LE and Mesh, 802.15.4 radio with Zigbee, Thread, and Matter PCB Antenna USB – 1x USB Type-C port for power/charging and programming […]

STM32WBA microcontrollers with Bluetooth LE 5.4, Zigbee, Thread, and Matter to comply with US and EU Cybersecurity regulations

STM32WBA54 and STM32WBA55 block diagram

STMicro’s new STM32WBA series, starting with the STM32WBA52, STM32WBA54, and STM32WBA55 devices, is a family of Arm Cortex-M33 wireless microcontrollers with Bluetooth LE 5.4, Zigbee, Thread, and Matter connectivity that achieved the SESIP (Security Evaluation Standard for IoT Platforms) Level 3 security certification and should make them compliant with US Cyber Trust Mark and EU Radio Equipment Directive (RED) regulations due to become mandatory in 2025. The 100MHz STM32WBA54 and STM32WBA55 microcontrollers come with up to 1MB of flash memory, support Arm TrustZone architecture isolating secure processes and storage,  and incorporate background autonomous mode, flexible power-saving states, and analog and digital peripherals found in STMicro STM32U5 ultra-low-power MCUs. STM32WBA54 and STM32WBA55 specifications: MCU core – Arm Cortex-M33 at 100MHz with FPU and DSP Memory – Up to 128KB SRAM Storage – Up to 1 MB flash Wireless Bluetooth Low Energy 5.4 Long Range (LR) capable Up to 2 Mbps Bluetooth […]

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