Summary of Meet ESP32, New Big Brother to IoT Board ESP8266
The ESP8266 achieved unexpected success, sparking a large maker community. Espressif Systems is now launching the ESP32 chip to follow up on this momentum. Recent releases include schematics, PCB layouts, and pinout details for beta testers. CEO Teo Swee Ann expressed gratitude for the community's rapid mobilization despite initial resource constraints.
Parts used in the ESP32 Project:
- ESP32 chip
- ESP32 module
- ESP32 boards
- Schematics
- PCB layout
The ESP8266 chip, and the boards based around it, have been the new hot new thing this past year. Overnight it became — almost by stealth — one of the leading platforms for the Internet of Things. This runaway success quickly gathered a community, and it’s possible Espressif Systems may repeat that next year with their new ESP32 chip.
About a month ago the makers of the ESP8266 started trailing their next product. But, beyond the letter to developers, there hasn’t been a lot of information available about the new chip.
However, the company recently released some documents concerning the ESP32 module, including schematics and PCB layout, and this week — with ESP32 boards arriving into the hands of beta testers — we’ve had our first peek at the pin out for the new module.
So with the beta testers now getting hands on with their boards, we sat down with Teo Swee Ann, the CEO of Espressif Systems, to talk about the breakout success of the ESP8266 and the new ESP32.
Your ESP8266 chip has been a breakout success, and a large maker community has formed around the board in a comparatively short space of time. Did you expect its success, or did it take you by surprise?
Of course we were taken by surprise, but deep down inside we were all hoping that something like this would happen. We did discuss within the company about this, for a relatively long time, before we got around to doing this. We did this, despite not having all the resources we needed in the first place, but we were glad that the community has mobilized in a very short period to time to make this right, and we are very grateful and appreciative of the many talents that contributed to the projects.
For more detail: Meet ESP32, New Big Brother to IoT Board ESP8266
- What new platform is Espressif Systems releasing after the ESP8266?
The company is releasing the new ESP32 chip. - Did Espressif expect the ESP8266 to be such a breakout success?
No, they were taken by surprise, though they hoped it would happen. - What documents concerning the ESP32 module have been released recently?
The company released schematics and PCB layout documents. - Who provided information about the ESP32 pin out?
Beta testers received the first peek at the pin out when the boards arrived. - How did the community respond to the ESP8266 project?
The community mobilized very quickly to make the project right. - Was the ESP8266 development done with all necessary resources available?
No, the team proceeded despite not having all the resources needed initially. - What does the article say about the future of IoT platforms?
Espressif Systems may repeat the success of the ESP8266 with the new ESP32 next year.
