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HOME / PRODUCT CATEGORIES / ESPRESSIF (ESP) / SPARKFUN ESP8266 THING - DEV BOARD (WITH HEADERS)
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SparkFun ESP8266 Thing - Dev Board (with
Headers)
WRL-13804 ROHS
5
DESCRIPTION FEATURES DOCUMENTS
This is the SparkFun ESP8266 Thing Dev Board — a development board that
has been solely designed around the ESP8266, with an integrated FTDI USB-to-
Serial chip. The ESP8266 is a cost-effective and very capable WiFi-enabled
microcontroller. Like any microcontroller, it can be programmed to blink LEDs,
trigger relays, monitor sensors or automate coffee makers. With an integrated
WiFi controller, the ESP8266 is a one-stop shop for almost any internet-
connected project. To top it all off, the ESP8266 is incredibly easy to use;
firmware can be developed in Arduino and uploaded over a simple serial
interface. The ESP8266 Thing Development Board breaks out all of the
module’s pins with pre-soldered headers, and the USB-to-serial converter
means you don’t need any peripheral components to program the chip. Just
plug in a USB cable, download the Arduino board definitions, and start IoT-ing.
Why the name? We lovingly call it the “Thing” due to it being the perfect
foundation for your Internet of Things (IoT) project. The Thing does everything
from turning on an LED to posting data with phant.io, and can be programmed
just like any microcontroller. You can even program the Thing through the
Arduino IDE by installing the ESP8266 Arduino add-on.
The ESP8266 Thing Development Board is a relatively simple board. The pins
are broken out to two parallel, breadboard-compatible rows. The USB connector
sits next to an optional power supply input, and an ON/OFF switch — controlling
power to the ESP8266 — sits next to that. And LEDs toward the inside of the
board indicate power, charge and status of the IC. The ESP8266’s maximum
voltage is 3.6V, so the Thing has an onboard 3.3V regulator to deliver a safe,
consistent voltage to the IC. That means the ESP8266’s I/O pins also run at
3.3V; you’ll need to level shift any 5V signals running into the IC. If your project
requires a power source other than USB, the Thing Dev Board includes
footprints for a 2-pin JST, 2-pin 3.5mm screw terminal, or a simple 0.1"-pitch 2-
pin header. Unlike the original ESP8266 Thing, the ESP8266 Thing Dev Board
does not have a built-in LiPo charger.
The Thing Dev Board even includes a PCB trace antenna as a default WiFi
antenna. It’s cost-effective and works really well! If you need to connect a more
sensitive antenna, or need to route outside an enclosure, a U.FL connector is
also available on the board. Some soldering will be required to get the U.FL
connector functioning, but instructions can be found in the Hookup Guide we
have written for the dev board.
Note: We’ve provided a few Example Sketches to experiment with on your
SparkFun ESP8266 Thing Development Board. These sketches can be found in
the Hookup Guide in the Documents section below!
GET STARTED WITH THE ESP8266 THING DEV GUIDE
Tags
DEVELOPMENT ESP8266 ESPRESSIF HEADER IOT THING WIFI WIRELESS
SparkFun ESP8266 Thing - Dev Board (with Headers) Product Help and Resources
TUTORIALS VIDEOS SKILLS NEEDED
Customer Reviews
ESP8266 Powered
Propane Poofer
MARCH 15, 2016
Learn how Nick Poole built a WiFi
controlled fire-cannon using the
ESP8266 Thing Dev Board!
LED Cloud-Connected
Cloud
FEBRUARY 22, 2016
Make an RGB colored cloud light!
You can also control it from your
phone, or hook up to the
weather!
ESP8266 Thing
Development Board
Hookup Guide
NOVEMBER 5, 2015
An overview of SparkFun's
ESP8266 Thing Development
Board - a development board for
the Internet of Things.
Internet of Things
Experiment Guide
NOVEMBER 23, 2016
The SparkFun ESP8266 Thing
Dev Board is a powerful
development platform that lets
you connect your hardware
projects to the Internet. In this
guide, we show you how to
combine some simple
components to remotely log
temperature data, send yourself
texts and control lights from afar.
COMMENTS 4REVIEWS 5
4.4 out of 5
Based on 5 ratings:
0 of 1 found this helpful:
From bag to server in no time
about 7 months ago by Brad10 verified purchaser
It was no trouble to open the bag the Thing came in, download the Thing plugin for Arduino’s IDE, program it
via the Arduino IDE, and see it serving a “hello” message in my PC’s web browser. The library is so much
easier/better to use than the old AT command set interface to the ESP8266 - now I see why people love this
chip.
0 of 1 found this helpful:
Great!
about 6 months ago by Member #882925 verified purchaser
Very useful micro controller.
A weak ESP8266 board
about 2 months ago by Member #741077 verified purchaser
The flash size on the board was far too small. A blank Arduino sketch used up 52% of the flash. Because of the
insufficient flash size I was unable to flash firmware over the air, which is important for the product I am
developing.
You can add a battery connector to use a lithium battery, but the board lacks the capability to charge a
connected battery or easily check the state of charge.
5 star 4
4 star 0
3 star 0
2 star 1
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SparkFun Electronics ® / Niwot, Colorado / Customer Service / Site Map / Terms of Service / Privacy Policy
The reset switch is very cumbersome and a button would have been much more appropriate, because of how
often I had to hard reset the esp8266.
This board is good for tinkering but not at all appropriate for creating IoT products with potential end users.
Great for prototyping direct ESP8266 implementations
about a month ago by Member #692604 verified purchaser
Was the perfect board for me to jump from the functionality of the “bare” WiFi module
(https://www.sparkfun.com/products/13678) to the full capability of the ESP8266 with all GPIO available.
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