tinyVision.ai has recently released the second-generation ot its open-source hardware pico-ice FPGA development board, upgrading the Raspberry Pi RP2040 to the newer RP2350B along with dedicated user LEDs and buttons for both the MCU and the FPGA. The Pico2-Ice also exposes the RP2350B’s HSTX interface through a 22-pin connector, while keeping the same Lattice iCE40UP5K FPGA.
The onboard iCE40UP5K FPGA features 5.3k LUTs, 1 MB SPRAM, and 120 KB DPRAM, along with 4MB SPI flash and 8MB low-power PSRAM. The board also exposes all RP2350 pins and 32 FPGA GPIOs via 2.54mm pitch headers in Pmod format. It includes two RGB LEDs and two pushbuttons (separately mapped to the MCU and the FPGA), and integrates onboard 3.3V/1.2V regulators for power. These features make this board suitable for exploring HDLs, embedded systems, and FPGA programming with open-source tools.
Pico2-Ice specifications:
- Microcontroller – Raspberry Pi RP2350B MCU
- CPU – Dual-core Arm Cortex-M33 processor @ 150MHz
- Memory – 520KB internal RAM
- Storage – 8KB OTP
- Package – QFN-80; 10×10 mm
- FPGA – Lattice UltraPlus iCE40UP5K FPGA with 5.3K LUTs, 1Mbit SPRAM, 120Kbit DPRAM, 8x multipliers with all pins brought out
- Memory & Storage
- MCU – 16 MB QSPI flash
- FPGA – 4MB QSPI Flash, 8MB low-power QSPI SRAM
- USB – USB Type-C Host/Device port for power and programming
- Expansion
- 2x 2.54mm pitch 40-pin headers with RP2350 and FPGA IOs (Total 80 pins)
- Optional 4x PMOD connectors for the FPGA and the MCU connected to the above headers
- Misc
- 2x RGB LEDs (one MCU, one FPGA)
- 2x pushbuttons (one MCU boot, one FPGA)
- Power Supply
- 5V via USB-C port
- Onboard 3.3V and 1.2V regulators, can supply 3.3V to external circuits
- Dimensions – 63.4 mm x 27.94 mm (4-layer PCB)
- OSHWA certifications – US002140
The pico2-ice development board supports MicroPython and C SDKs, as well as open-source FPGA toolchains (Yosys, nextpnr, IceStorm), enabling easy programming of both the RP2350B MCU and iCE40UP5K FPGA. More information is available on the company’s wiki page and GitHub repository.
Previously, we have seen many interesting products built around the iCE40UP5K FPGA, including the Signaloid C0-microSD programmable system-on-module (SoM) in a microSD card form factor, and the NRFICEÂ Bluetooth FPGA board designed for edge computing and IoT applications. Back in 2020, tinyVision.ai also introduced Vision FPGA SoM, which was built around the same FPGA.
The pico2-ice board can be purchased directly from the company’s store for $49.99 without PMOD connectors, or $53.99 with pre-soldered connectors.
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Via Hackster.io
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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