Waveshare ESP32-S3 Mini Development Board, Based On ESP32-S3FH4R2 Dual-Core Processor, 240MHz Running Frequency, 2.4GHz Wi-Fi & BT 5, Castellated Module, Suitable for SMD Applications

My current favorite S3 mini board is the SeeedStudio XIAO but that board has horrendous RESET/BOOT switches on board. They will work perhaps twice and then die, usually short circuited. SO, I have been on the lookout for a replacement. This Waveshare board matches the XIAO in most respects, it has Flash (4MB) and PSRAM (2MB), both less than the Xiao but it has real BOOT/RESET switches. It is slightly bigger but provides 4 extra GPIO pins. I want to love this board but there are two problems that bother me. Let me start by mentioning that I have tested 4 of these modules and all behave the same.The first problem is admittedly minor, it is the fact that the board is not supported within PlatformIO. I hate the Arduino IDE so I just specify the Adafruit ESP32-S3 Feather board (with PSRAM). This seems to work so far.Much more importantly, this board has difficulty connecting to WiFi. The tiny ceramic antenna just isn't enough, especially if you build the board into a case. When trying to connect to my AP, just 30ft line-of-sight away... I get the following messages 100% of the time:[ 2891][V][WiFiGeneric.cpp:362] _arduino_event_cb(): STA Disconnected: SSID: XXXX, BSSID: XX, Reason: 2[ 2891][D][WiFiGeneric.cpp:1039] _eventCallback(): Arduino Event: 5 - STA_DISCONNECTED[ 2898][W][WiFiGeneric.cpp:1061] _eventCallback(): Reason: 2 - AUTH_EXPIREThis is common with some ESP32 boards and can indicate poor RF design and/or low antenna gain.One diagnostic "trick" is to lower the WiFi transmit power to the minimum: WiFi.setTxPower(WIFI_POWER_8_5dBm);When I did this I saw better (but still poor) WiFi connectivity, which is why I suspect the RF design may be lacking. The Seeed uses an external antenna via an on-board IPEX1 connector. The antenna it comes with is not great but I have had better luck with antennas that have higher gain. It is great to have that option and Waveshare desperately need to do this too. As the picture shows I tried soldering a short wire antenna (62.5mm) to one end of the ceramic antenna on the board. A nasty hack but it typically improves WiFi strength by 10dB indicating the need for either a better antenna or RF design.I have huge respect for Waveshare and their quality is usually excellent. I really like the features of this board and it is very nice to use as long as you don't need solid WiFi. Unlike the Xiao this board makes an amazing number of GPIOs available. In addition to the 18 pins on the edges of the board the reverse side has 16 (very tiny) solder pads for otherwise wasted GPIOs, handy in a pinch. I like the crenellated solder joints and of course the real buttons and the RGB LED. It's just a shame about the WiFi.

Rien à redire , top

Qualidade boa

Ich kann von den ESP32-S3 nicht genug bekommen. Klein, aber trotzdem alles da, was man benötigt.wenn man die GPIO Pins auf der Unterseite nicht benötigt, kann man das Modul auch einfach flach auf eine Platine auflöten.

Veramente fantastico, piccolo leggero e mantiene tutte le funzionalità dell'arduino classico