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Unexpected Maker FeatherS2 Neo by Unexpected Maker

Introducing the FeatherS2 Neo - The Blingy RGB ESP32-S2 based development board in a Feather format!

Features & Specifications

  • 32-bit 240 MHz single-core processor
  • 4 MB SPI Flash
  • 2 MB extra PSRAM
  • 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi - 802.11b/g/n
  • 3D Antenna
  • 700 mA 3.3 V LDO regulator
  • Optimised power path for low-power battery usage
  • LiPo battery management
  • Power (red), Charge (orange) & IO13 (blue) LEDs
  • 5x5 RGB LED matrix + User controller power
  • 22x GPIO
  • VBAT voltage sense on IO2
  • VBUS detection om IO34
  • USB-C
  • RGB LED (PWR 39, DATA IO40)
  • QWIIC/STEMMA connector
  • Feather format

Onboard 5x5 RGB Matrix? Really?

Yeah, why not! Getting compelling information out of a single RGB LED can be a real challenge, so with a 5x5 matrix, you can scroll text, show icons or even display cool animating patterns!

The RGB Matrix is powered from its own 3.3V LDO, that defaults to the off state, so there is no current draw if you put the FeatherS2 Neo into deep sleep. Turning the power on is as simple as setting IO4 HIGH.

You can find out more about the FeatherS2 Neo at unexpected maker.

Purchase

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CircuitPython 9.2.8

This is the latest stable release of CircuitPython that will work with the Unexpected Maker FeatherS2 Neo. Use this release if you are new to CircuitPython.

Release Notes for 9.2.8

DOWNLOAD .UF2 NOW DOWNLOAD .BIN NOW
Modules included in this download _asyncio _pixelmap adafruit_bus_device adafruit_pixelbuf aesio alarm analogbufio analogio array atexit audiobusio audiocore audioio audiomixer audiomp3 binascii bitbangio bitmaptools board builtins builtins.pow3 busdisplay busio busio.SPI busio.UART canio codeop collections countio digitalio displayio epaperdisplay errno espcamera espidf espnow espulp fontio fourwire framebufferio frequencyio getpass gifio hashlib i2cdisplaybus io ipaddress jpegio json keypad keypad.KeyMatrix keypad.Keys keypad.ShiftRegisterKeys keypad_demux keypad_demux.DemuxKeyMatrix locale math max3421e mdns memorymap microcontroller msgpack neopixel_write nvm onewireio os os.getenv paralleldisplaybus ps2io pulseio pwmio qrio rainbowio random re rgbmatrix rotaryio rtc sdcardio select sharpdisplay socketpool socketpool.socketpool.AF_INET6 ssl storage struct supervisor synthio sys terminalio tilepalettemapper time touchio traceback ulab usb usb_cdc usb_hid usb_midi vectorio warnings watchdog wifi zlib

Included frozen(?) modules: neopixel

Features: Feather-Compatible, Battery Charging, Wi-Fi, STEMMA QT/QWIIC, USB-C, Breadboard-Friendly

CircuitPython 10.0.0-beta.2

This is the latest development release of CircuitPython that will work with the Unexpected Maker FeatherS2 Neo.

WARNING: On Espressif ESP32-S2 and ESP32-S3 boards with 4MB flash, CircuitPython 10.0.0-beta.0 and later require TinyUF2 bootloader version 0.33.0 or later. Older TinyUF2 bootloaders don't provide enough room for the firmware and cannot load it. See the Release Notes for more details, and see Update UF2 Bootloader below.

Alpha development releases are early releases. They are unfinished, are likely to have bugs, and the features they provide may change. Beta releases may have some bugs and unfinished features, but should be suitable for many uses. A Release Candidate (rc) release is considered done and will become the next stable release, assuming no further issues are found.

Please try alpha, beta, and rc releases if you are able. Your testing is invaluable: it helps us uncover and find issues quickly.

Release Notes for 10.0.0-beta.2

DOWNLOAD .UF2 NOW DOWNLOAD .BIN NOW
Modules included in this download _asyncio _eve _pixelmap adafruit_bus_device adafruit_pixelbuf aesio alarm analogbufio analogio array atexit audiobusio audiocore audiomixer audiomp3 binascii bitbangio bitmapfilter bitmaptools board builtins builtins.pow3 busdisplay busio busio.SPI busio.UART canio codeop collections countio digitalio displayio epaperdisplay errno espcamera espidf espnow espulp fontio fourwire framebufferio frequencyio getpass gifio hashlib i2cdisplaybus io ipaddress jpegio json keypad keypad.KeyMatrix keypad.Keys keypad.ShiftRegisterKeys keypad_demux keypad_demux.DemuxKeyMatrix locale lvfontio math max3421e mdns memorymap microcontroller msgpack neopixel_write nvm onewireio os os.getenv paralleldisplaybus ps2io pulseio pwmio qrio rainbowio random re rgbmatrix rotaryio rtc sdcardio select sharpdisplay socketpool socketpool.socketpool.AF_INET6 ssl storage struct supervisor synthio sys terminalio tilepalettemapper time touchio traceback ulab usb usb_cdc usb_hid usb_midi vectorio warnings watchdog wifi zlib

Included frozen(?) modules: neopixel

Features: Feather-Compatible, Battery Charging, Wi-Fi, STEMMA QT/QWIIC, USB-C, Breadboard-Friendly

Absolute Newest

Every time we commit new code to CircuitPython we automatically build binaries for each board and language. The binaries are stored on Amazon S3, organized by board, and then by language. These releases are even newer than the development release listed above. Try them if you want the absolute latest and are feeling daring or want to see if a problem has been fixed.

Previous Versions of CircuitPython

All previous releases of CircuitPython are available for download from Amazon S3 through the button below. For very old releases, look in the OLD/ folder for each board. Release notes for each release are available at GitHub button below.

Older releases are useful for testing if you something appears to be broken in a newer release but used to work, or if you have older code that depends on features only available in an older release. Otherwise we recommend using the latest stable release.

BROWSE S3 BROWSE GITHUB

Install, Repair, or Update UF2 Bootloader

Latest version: 0.35.0

The UF2 bootloader allows you to load CircuitPython, MakeCode, and Arduino programs. The bootloader itself is not CircuitPython. On Espressif boards, the UF2 bootloader is called TinyUF2. If the TinyUF2 bootloader is installed, you can check its version by looking in the INFO_UF2.TXT file when the BOOT drive is visible (FTHRS2BOOT, MAGTAGBOOT, HOUSEBOOT, etc.)

In general, it is not necessary to update TinyUF2 at every version change. You can read the release notes on GitHub to see what has been changed. Update if you've been told about a necessary change or a bug fix.

Note: CircuitPython 10 and later, on Espressif boards with 4MB flash, requires TinyUF2 0.33.0 or later. The flash partition layout has changed (details).

If TinyUF2 has never been installed on the board, or it was removed by erasing or overwriting the flash, it must be installed in order to flash .uf2 files onto the board. But you don't need the TinyUF2 bootloader to upload .bin files. They can be uploaded using the built-in ROM bootloader, with the Adafruit WebSerial ESPTool or esptool.py.

Warning: Installing the TinyUF2 bootloader will erase everything that was previously on the board. Save any files in CIRCUITPY for which you don't have backups.

There are several ways to install the TinyUF2 bootloader on your board. Check to see if your board's manufacturer provides specific instructions. For Adafruit boards, consult the Factory Reset page in the Learn Guide for your particular board (example).

The easiest way to install TinyUF2 is to use the OPEN INSTALLER button (see above, in the CiruitPython sections). You can also use the Adafruit WebSerial ESPTool, or esptool.py, as described in the Factory Reset page.

  • If you are not using the OPEN INSTALLER button, download the combined.bin file using the DOWNLOAD BOOTLOADER combined.bin button below. (If you use OPEN INSTALLER, it will do the download itself.)
  • First, place board in ROM bootloader mode:
    • Plug board into a USB port on your computer using a data/sync cable. Make sure it is the only board plugged in, and that a charge-only cable is not being used.
    • Press and hold the BOOT button (sometimes marked "B0").
    • Press and release the RESET button (sometimes marked "RST").
    • Release the BOOT button. This starts the ROM bootloader.
  • Then proceed with OPEN INSTALLER or one of the other tools.
  • After the TinyUF2 firmware installation is complete, press the RESET button on the board. A new drive BOOT drive should be visible in your file browser.

    • After installing TinyUF2, enter the UF2 bootloader by double-clicking the RESET button. On boards with an RGB status LED, you usually tap reset once, wait for the LED to turn purple, and tap again before the purple goes away. On other boards, consult the board documentation.

    If you are updating TinyUF2, look at INFO_UF2.TXT to verify the new version of TinyUF2, by checking the version number. Then you will need to copy the CircuitPython.uf2 file to the BOOT drive.