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October 20, 2025October 20, 2025 by Debashis Das - 2 Comments

LILYGO T-2CAN upgrades TTGO T-CAN485 with ESP32-S3, dual Isolated CAN Bus

LILYGO T 2CAN ESP32 S3 dual CAN development board top

LILYGO T-2CAN is an updated version of the earlier TTGO T-CAN485, with a more powerful ESP32-S3 MCU and two isolated CAN bus interfaces. Like its predecessor, it is designed for vehicle diagnostics, industrial CAN monitoring, and wireless CAN-to-cloud gateways. The board features an ESP32-S3 MCU with 16MB Flash and 8MB PSRAM, along with two MCP2515 CAN controllers supporting CAN V2.0B at up to 1 Mb/s. It also offers Qwiic connectors and a 26-pin GPIO header (unpopulated) for expansion, and supports both USB Type-C (5V) and DC (12–24V) power inputs. Additional features include BOOT and RESET buttons, an external antenna connector, and onboard debugging via USB. LILYGO T-2CAN specifications: ESP32-S3-WROOM-1U wireless module SoC – ESP32-S3 dual-core Tensilica LX7 microcontroller @ up to 240 MHz with 2.4 GHz 802.11n WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE connectivity Memory – 8MB PSRAM Storage – 16MB SPI flash IPEX antenna connector Industrial control interfaces via 2x […]

August 26, 2025August 25, 2025 by Debashis Das - No Comments

LILYGO T-Circle-S3 – An ESP32-S3 devkit with 0.75-inch circular touch display, microphone and speaker

The LILYGO T-Circle-S3 is a circular touch display development board built around the ESP32-S3 MCU and designed for smart gadgets, IoT devices, and wearable applications. The board integrates Wi-Fi 4, Bluetooth 5.0, a MEMS microphone, a 3W Class-D audio amplifier with speaker support, an RGB LED, six rear GPIO pins, a Qwiic interface, and USB-C for charging. The board is very similar to the Waveshare RP2350-LCD-1.28, with its round display design, but it does not support wireless connectivity and audio. It also resembles SB Components’ Dual Roundy (ESP32-S3), but compared to that, the T-Circle-S3 is smaller and features a touch display, a microphone, a speaker amplifier, and an RGB LED. LILYGO T-Circle-S3 specifications: Wireless SoC – ESP32-S3R8 CPU – Dual-core Tensilica LX7 @ up to 240 MHz with vector instruction Memory – 512KB SRAM, 8MB PSRAM Storage – 384KB ROM Wireless – 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 and Bluetooth LE Storage […]

August 12, 2025August 24, 2025 by Debashis Das - 3 Comments

LILYGO T-LoRa Pager is an ESP32-S3 handheld with support for text messaging, AI motion detection, and NFC

LILYGO T Lora Pager (LoRa + ESP32 S3 Handheld AIOT Programmable Development Device)

LILYGO T-LoRa Pager is an ESP32-S3-based IoT handheld device that comes in an old pager form factor but relies on LoRa for text messaging, GNSS for positioning, NFC for contactless communication, and features AI-assisted motion detection with a BHI260AP IMU sensor. The device also includes a 2.33-inch IPS display (480×222), a QWERTY keyboard, a rotary encoder, an audio codec, a microSD slot, a battery management system, and a wireless charging pad. These features make this device suitable for portable, remote sensing, asset tracking, field communication, and edge AI projects, where GNSS, LoRa, and/or NFC functionalities are required. LILYGO’s T-LoRa Pager specifications: Wireless SoC – Espressif Systems ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core 32-bit LX7 processor running at 240 MHz Memory – 512 KB SRAM, 8 MB PSRAM. Storage – 16 MB Flash Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.x Storage – microSD card slot for external storage Display – 2.33-inch IPS display (ST7796), […]

August 5, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 4 Comments

ESP32 Bus Pirate open-source firmware works on off-the-shelf hardware

ESP32 Bus Pirate is an open-source firmware inspired by the original Bus Pirate from Dangerous Prototypes, which turns off-the-shelf (ESP32-S3) hardware into a multi-protocol hacker’s tool. It supports sniffing, sending, scripting, and interacting with various digital protocols (I2C, UART, 1-Wire, SPI, etc.) via a serial terminal or web-based CLI. It’s been tested on Espressif ESP32-S3-DevKitC-1 development board, M5Stack Cardputer, M5StickC Plus2, Atom S3 Lite, M5Stamp S3, and LILYGO T-Embed (CC1101) boards. ESP32 Bus Pirate firmware highlights: Interactive CLI via USB serial – For faster performance and high responsiveness Web interface (over WiFi) – No cable needed to the host, works from any web browser Supported Modes HiZ (default) – High-Z is a safe mode where all outputs are disabled and all power supplies are turned off I2C (scan, glitch, slave mode, dump) SPI (flash, SD card, slave mode) UART / Half-Duplex UART (bridge, read, write) 1-WIRE (ibutton, temp sensor) 2-WIRE […]

July 19, 2025July 19, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 16 Comments

MeshCore is a lightweight alternative to Meshtastic LoRa-based off-grid messaging

While Meshtastic is by far the most popular off-grid messaging solution relying on LoRa radios, MeshCore offers an alternative as a lightweight C++ library and firmware designed for multi-hop packet routing and made for developers who want to create resilient, decentralized communication networks that work without the internet. The project’s GitHub repository provides some high-level differences compared to the Meshtastic and Reticulum projects: MeshCore provides the ability to create wireless mesh networks, similar to Meshtastic and Reticulum but with a focus on lightweight multi-hop packet routing for embedded projects. Unlike Meshtastic, which is tailored for casual LoRa communication, or Reticulum, which offers advanced networking, MeshCore balances simplicity with scalability, making it ideal for custom embedded solutions., where devices (nodes) can communicate over long distances by relaying messages through intermediate nodes. This is especially useful in off-grid, emergency, or tactical situations where traditional communication infrastructure is unavailable. MeshCore key features: Multi-hop […]

June 17, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 12 Comments

ESP32-S3 development board integrates SI4732 AM/FM radio receiver

LILYGO T-Embed SI4732 is an ESP32-S3 development board with an AM/FM radio, a TFT display, a rotary encoder, a built-in microphone, and a microSD card slot powered through a USB-C port or LiPo battery. As its name implies, it’s based on the earlier LILYGO T-Embed battery-powered WiFi and BLE controller with a display and rotary encoder, but also adds a Skyworks SI4732 AM//FM/SW/LW radio receiver to the mix. LILYGO T-Embed SI4732 specifications: Wireless module – ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 module SoC – ESP32-S3 CPU – Dual-core Xtensa LX7 processor @ 240 MHz with vector extension for AI/ML Memory – 512 KB SRAM, 8 MB PSRAM Storage – 16MB flash Wireless – 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE PCB antenna Storage – MicroSD card slot Display – 1.9-inch IPS color TFT LCD with 320 x 170 resolution (ST7789V SPI driver) Audio – 2x microphones, 8 Ohm @ 1W speaker Radio – Skyworth […]

June 12, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - 2 Comments

LILYGO MySondy GO LoRa32 board tracks radiosondes (weather balloons) with a 433MHz LoRa module

“LILYGO MySondy GO LoRa32” is a small ESP32-PICO-D4 board with a 433 MHz LoRa module and a 0.96-inch OLED designed to track (RS41) radiosondes, which are units attached to weather balloons used to collect meteorological data like temperature, humidity, and atmospheric pressure. It looks to be an older TTGO T3 board with a 433 MHz LoRa32 module from the company preloaded with the MySondo firmware that allows hobbyists in the amateur radio and weather enthusiast communities to track weather balloons and potentially recover them. LILYGO MySondy GO LoRa32 specifications: SiP – Espressif Systems ESP32-PICO-D4 system-in-package with ESP32 dual-core Xtensa processor @ 240 MHz, 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.2 dual-mode, 4MB flash LoRa module – LORA32 RF Transceiver – Semtech SX1268 connected over SPI to the ESP32 SiP Frequency – 433 MHz (The T3 board has options for 868 and 915 MHz, which I suspect are not suitable for radiosondes) Tx […]

April 25, 2025 by Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft) - No Comments

LILYGO T-Echo Lite – A 1.22-inch e-Paper display board with nRF52840 SoC, LoRa transceiver, GPS

LILYGO T-Echo Lite is a small Nordic Semi nRF52840 board with a 1.22-inch e-Paper display, a Semtech SX1262 LoRa transceiver, and an L76K GPS module, that’s especially suitable for Meshtastic off-grid messaging firmware. It looks like it could even serve as the base for a Meshtastic watch. The T-Echo Lite is a lightweight version of the earlier T-Echo that ships with a larger 1.54-inch e-paper display. Three Lite versions are available: T-Echo Lite Core – Castellated module with nRF52840, LoRa, power, and battery management T-Echo Lite Base – A breakout board for the Core module with battery and solar panel connectors, Qwiic connector, USB port, an interface for a 1.22-inch e-paper display, and an optional GPS expansion header T-Echo Lite Main Unit – Complete solution built around the Base version, a 1.22-inch e-paper display, and an acrylic enclosure. The L76K GPS module is still an option. T-Echo Lite specifications: LILYGO […]