We’ve got phones with that amount of RAM now so it definitely isn’t something just reserved for desktops. I tend to like getting something with plenty resources even if it’s unnecessary at the time because it often means a longer lifespan for the hardware…
Comment on Is the Raspberry Pi Still an Affordable SBC? I Don't Think So
bryndos@fedia.io 22 hours ago
16gb raspberry pi was always weird, even 8gb. It's more just a desktop pc or something at that level - the used pc market has usually been similar vfm when you factor in storage and peripherals.
The pizero2(W) is still very cheap for real raspberry pi stuff - where you just want an OS for some reason instead of esp32.
73ms@sopuli.xyz 16 hours ago
Quetzalcutlass@lemmy.world 19 hours ago
Did the Pi Pico ever make any headway in the microcontroller space? It looked interesting when it was first announced but I haven’t seen it mentioned anywhere since.
stsquad@lemmy.ml 17 hours ago
There are a fair number of third party boards based on the RP2040/RP2050 silicon. Even esphome can target it even though it originally targeted the esp32.
The silicon itself is pretty nice although the original had done problems with deep sleep.
bryndos@fedia.io 13 hours ago
I think esp32 is more commonly used. i think they're pretty similar capabilities and both dirt cheap.
I just see more projects with esp32.
a_non_monotonic_function@lemmy.world 17 hours ago
The pizero2(W) is still very cheap for real raspberry pi stuff - where you just want an OS for some reason instead of esp32.
Pi-Hole baby!
Mwa@thelemmy.club 21 hours ago
I always thought the 16gb ram ver was not worth it in my opinion
tburkhol@lemmy.world 21 hours ago
I was really intimidated by ESP32. Liked RPi, back in the 3b days, because I could comfortably sit in the python interpreter, play with sensor interfaces, and get immediate feedback of what & where I screwed up. Familiarity led me to RPi4 for libreelec and 0w for more sensors.
Recently took the plunge on some ESP32s, though, and, just…wow. I mean, I’m going through esphome, but every sensor and control I’ve checked is just a couple of lines of YAML away. And low enough power that I’m starting to think about batteries. ESP32 is still pretty intimidating for noobs, but the ecosystem that’s grown up around it is fantastic once you get over that hump.
4am@lemmy.zip 19 hours ago
Wasn’t there some kind of exploit found in ESP32s recently? Did that turn out to be nothing?
I’ve often wanted to get into them and that kind of intimidated me out of it at the time; haven’t had an opportunity to dive back in
Shadow@lemmy.ca 19 hours ago
Yes it was a overblown nothing.
tburkhol@lemmy.world 18 hours ago
I only one I know about socprime.com/…/cve-2025-27840-vulnerability-in-es… which is a bluetooth thing, presumably meaning that you’d have to be in bluetooth range to exploit it.
My paranoid concern is that I’m going to buy these $2 ESP32 boards from some unknowable Chinese company, and how could I know if there’s an extra, malicious supervisor element added. So, my ESP32 devices live in the ‘untrusted’ VLAN. They could, theoretically, discover each other and send their sensor data to some nefarious broker, but they don’t have microphones or cameras. I don’t even see how they could get enough information to discover my physical address, without cooperation from my ISP.
LeFrog@discuss.tchncs.de 17 hours ago
Just curious, what is your use case for ESPhome/ESP32? I am still not sure what people do with it.
tburkhol@lemmy.world 16 hours ago
I have a n ESP32 with a thermocouple stuffed down my (gas) oven chimney, so I can tell what temperature it actually is (about 40°F/20°C cooler than the dial).
I have one plugged into an addressable LED matrix, which has yet to get mounted, but will eventually be a closet/dressing light. There’s a few places where I’d like a ‘normal’ warm white light, with the option to switch to a blinding daylight for chores, and maybe a low-light, colorful animated nightlight.
I have a Pi-0w reading temp/humidity/CO2 in a grow tent that’s a good candidate for ESP32-ification. I have an air quality sensor plugged directly into a Home Assistant server that could go on ESP32 if I wanted it in a different location. Humidity in the bathroom, with a controller for the bathroom fan is another good candidate.
If I can come up with a good way to put them on battery, with a 6-12 month lifetime, then temperature in the attic, and on the input/output sides of the HVAC would be useful.
cynar@lemmy.world 13 hours ago
They are excellent in the hobby world. It’s generally when you need to do a bit of quick logic, an ESP32 can be dropped in to do it. E.g. change the colour of an led depending on a sensor.
They also form the core of a lot of IoT devices. Simple sensors and relays that can connect to WiFi and throw up a simple web interface. ESPhome, tasmota and WLED exist to make this extremely easy.
They are basically the hobbiest electronic multi tool. Powerful enough to do most jobs without bothering with code optimisation. Cheap enough to throw in and leave there.
bryndos@fedia.io 12 hours ago
yes as others have said. microcontroller with decent io and wifi, fairly easy to make web interfaces which is handy.
A step up from arduino and i dont think it eats too much more power if the wifi is used sparingly.
I've got a wildlife infrared camera made off a pi zero.
I reckon if i can switch that to esp32 the battery life might stretch quite a bit - or i can shrink the case to a smaller battery.
raspberry pipico would probably do similar tbf, but i bought like 10 esp32 for cheap. but i'm not quite sure how well they handle the image processing triggering.
Recently i've been making these:
https://github.com/gadec-uk/departures-board
as gifts for people who i know that live in London who i sometimes stay with. extremely useful.
There's loads of projects like this that people have done and you can just put them together for a few tens of quid and a few hours of time if you dont have to write the software.