Arduino-programmable environmental and air quality sensor kit features ENS160 and BME280 sensors

Designed by Nova Radio Labs in the US, the Novaduino Environmental Sensor Kit is an Arduino-programmable air quality and weather monitoring solution built around the company’s own Novaduino Display Module. It provides VOCs, eCO₂, temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure data in real time, making it ideal for Smart Home experiments, classroom projects, or hobby weather-station builds.

The kit integrates a Sciosense ENS160 air-quality sensor and Bosch BME280 environmental sensor connected via Qwiic, which measures TVOCs, eCO₂, temperature, humidity, and pressure with an on-device AQI indicator. It includes the Novaduino display PCBA, 2.4-inch IPS touchscreen, buttons, rotary encoder, Feather M0 Express or RP2040 module support, headers, mechanical hardware, and optional 3D-printable enclosures (STL/F3D/STP).  Designed for learning soldering, assembly, and Arduino programming, the kit is uncalibrated and intended for educational and experimental use only.

Novaduino Environmental Sensor Kit specifications:

• Core Platform – Novaduino 2.4-Inch Display Module
  • Supported development boards – Adafruit Feather and SparkFun Thing Plus form-factor MCU boards
  • Storage – MicroSD card slot connected to the Feather module
  • Display
    • 2.4-inch 320×240 IPS TFT color display
    • Resistive touch panel
    • TSC2007 touch controller (I2C/TWI interface)
  • USB – USB-C connector for power
  • Expansion
    • 2x 40-pin board-to-board expansion connectors
    • Supports 100 × 120 mm Proto Expansion Card (KIT002)
    • Pass-through aperture for SMA or other panel-mounted connectors on expansion cards
    • I2C/TWI/QWIIC/Stemma-QT port for external sensors and modules
  • Misc
    • Up to 5x tact switches for front-panel buttons
    • 5-way navigation switch (optional)
    • Up to 2x Rotary encoder input supported
    • All switches & encoder monitored by onboard ATtiny1626 key-scan/encoder processor (I2C interface, debounced & pre-processed)
    • Power LED
    • RGB LED connected to Feather D13
    • Power-enable switch onboard
    • Controllable Backlight brightness
    • Includes light pipes for LEDs
    • Includes E-Z Lok threaded inserts + machine screws for mounting
  • Power Supply
    • 5V from USB-C port
    • Battery support via dev board
• Included development board – Adafruit Feather M0 Express (ATSAMD21) or Feather RP2040 (depending on the selected kit)
• Sensors
  • Sciosense ENS160 digital gas sensor
    •  TVOC, eCO₂, air-quality index (AQI)
    •  Detects VOCs such as ethanol, toluene, H₂, and oxidizing gases
    • 48-hour burn-in recommended for stable readings
  • Bosch BME280 environmental sensor measures Temperature, humidity, and barometric pressure
• Power – 5V from USB-C, Li-Ion/LiPo battery support
• Dimensions – TBD
• Enclosure – Optional 3D-printed case with STL, STP, and Fusion (F3D) files included in the kit

The Novaduino kit supports open-source Arduino firmware with ready-to-use examples for the display, touch, keypad, and sensors. It works with standard Adafruit libraries and can also be programmed through PlatformIO or CircuitPython, making customization easy. The Arduino sketch for the air quality monitor can be found on GitHub.

Previously, we wrote about various types of environmental sensors like the Inventia MT-718 PS, which is an IP68 industrial telemetry logger that integrates environmental sensors, cellular IoT connectivity, as well as the Nicla Sense ME, Sensy32 Board, and mikroBUS-compatible  Polverine environmental sensors. Another expansion board that could be of interest is the SparkFun ENS160/BME280 environmental combo board, which includes the two sensors used in this design in a single board rather than in two separate modules.

The Novaduino Environmental Sensor Kit is priced at $125.95 (regularly $145.95) on Tindie, where you’ll also find the user manual and schematics. Optional add-ons include a 3D-printed case, an internal USB programming cable, and a soldering service if you prefer a pre-assembled kit.

The kit includes the Novaduino Display PCBA (NRL1000014) paired with a 2.4-inch IPS LCD module and spacer, along with an Adafruit Feather M0 Express or RP2040 processor for running the open-source firmware. It comes with both ENS160 air-quality and BME280 environmental sensors connected through 100 mm Qwiic cables, plus a rotary encoder, three tact switches with caps, and the necessary headers, screws, light pipes, and 3D-printable STL files for building a complete enclosure. An optional USB programming jumper cable is also available to make firmware updates easier without opening the case.

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