Let your BLE ideas fly with the Adafruit Feather 32U4 Bluefruit

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Trust us, Adafruit’s new board is un-BLE-vable! 

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Remember when we brought you a first-ever look at Adafruit’s new lineup of Feather boards back at World Maker Faire? Well, as Ladyada herself promised, the new dev boards are thin, light and ready to let your imagination fly! After having already revealed the first two members of the family — the Feather 32U4 Basic Proto and the Feather 32U4 Adalogger — the team shows no sign of slowing down. Next up: the Feather 32u4 Bluefruit.

The Feather 32U4 Bluefruit is said to be their take on an ‘all-in-one’ Arduino-compatible and Bluetooth Low Energy unit with native USB support and battery charging.

“Bluetooth Low Energy is the hottest new low-power, 2.4GHz spectrum wireless protocol. In particular, its the only wireless protocol that you can use with iOS without needing special certification and it’s supported by all modern smartphones,” Adafruit explains. “This makes it excellent for use in portable projects that will make use of an iOS or Android phone or tablet. It also is supported in Mac OS X and Windows 8+.”

Like its other siblings, the Feather 32u4 is built around the mighty ATmega32U4 clocked at 8 MHz and at 3.3V logic. This chip boasts 32K of Flash and 2K of RAM, along with built-in USB so not only does it already integrate a USB-to-Serial program and debug capabilities, it can also act like a mouse, keyboard and MIDI device.

As Adafruit notes, they’ve gone ahed and added a connector for a 3.7V LiPo and a 100mA battery charger. However, the Feather 32U4 will run just fine via microUSB.

“But, if you do have a battery, you can take it on the go, then plug in the USB to recharge,” the team adds. “The Feather will automatically switch over to USB power when its available. We also tied the battery through a divider to an analog pin, so you can measure and monitor the battery voltage to detect when you need a recharge.”

Measuring only 2.0″ x 0.9″ x 0.28” without headers soldered and weighing 5.7 grams, the Feather can be implemented in a wide range of projects. The extremely lightweight and compact board has plenty of pins (20 GPIO), with eight PWM and 10 analog inputs, four mounting holes, a power/enable pin and a reset button. What’s more, the board makes use of the leftover space for a Bluefruit BTLE module as well as two status indicator LEDs.

“The board is capable of much more than just sending strings over the air!  Thanks to an easy to learn AT command set, you have full control over how the device behaves, including the ability to define and manipulate your own GATT Services and Characteristics, or change the way that the device advertises itself for other Bluetooth Low Energy devices to see. You can also use the AT commands  to query the die temperature, check the battery voltage, and more, check the connection RSSI or MAC address, and tons more.”

With Adafruit’s Bluefruit mobile app, you can also quickly prototype your next IoT project using your smartphone or tablet as a controller. This data can be read over BLE and piped into the ATmega32U4.

Among the use cases listed by Adafruit include an HID keyboard, a heart rate monitor and a UriBeacon, to name just a few. The chip comes fully assembled and tested with a USB bootloader that enables you to seamlessly program it with the Arduino IDE.

Intrigued? Fly on over to the Adafruit Feather 32U4 Bluefruit page here. Those wishing to unleash the powers of this impressive board will only have to shell out $30. Not too shabby!

GeoThings lets you bring your outdoor IoT ideas to life

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GeoThings is an ATmega328P based, solar-powered platform for creating outdoor Internet-connected sensors and hardware.

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Has an awesome outdoor IoT project ever come to mind yet you were left unsure how to bring that idea to life? Well, one Miami-based startup has developed a powerful platform that will alleviate all the hassle and allow you to seamlessly connect your gadget to the web in no time.

Meet GeoThings — an Arduino-compatible board that comes fully equipped with GPS, solar power and wireless connectivity, enabling you to monitor, control, automate and explore countless things outside all from the comfort of your home, office or even on the go.

Measuring only 1.5” x 1.7” x  0.4” in size and weighing less than an ounce, this super compact board boasts ultra-low power consumption. With an ATmega328P at its core, built-in 2G/3G and GPS with antenna, a USB port for programming and charging, a microSD socket and a 1000mAh battery, all housed inside a rainproof case.

Not only compatible with Arduino, GeoThings supports more than 200 different sensors. And thanks to its solar capabilities, you can run these sensors comfortably without ever worrying about recharging or batteries.

What’s more, you can easily integrate your device with the GeoThings API, as well as develop your own app either using of the platform’s open source libraries or its accompanying app, GeoApp. Simply connect any sensor to the web and observe your data in real-time.

“Our GeoThings Cloud Platform is our online tool that allows you to work with our REST API and mobile apps, interact with IFTTT, etc. It enables you to see your geo data over the web,” the startup notes.

Each GeoThings unit comes preloaded with a global SIM card as well as three months of their basic data plan (1MB/month). Those requiring more data can select an affordable package from one of the platform’s carrier partners.

As to what you can create with GeoThings, the sky is the limit. Some sample use cases already include tracking your pets and receiving a message if they wander off, monitoring your garden soil and turning on the irrigation system when dry, keeping tabs on your swimming pool and activating the filter, as well as securing your car and receiving an alert if tampered with.

“GeoThings works with all outdoor things. Small, almost invisible, solar powered, GPS-powered and mobile chip linked. It easily attaches to cars, trucks, gardens, boats, pets, wildlife, helium balloons, floating devices, waterproof,” the team explains. “Remote travel projects are thrilling and easy. Mountains, wind, pollution, stratosphere, birds, trees, trips, sea, travel… project kits are easy to assemble and launch.”

From analyzing air pollution and radiation to detecting water leaks and traffic congestion, GeoThings does it all. The question is: Are you ready to bring your outdoor IoT idea to life? If so, check out the platform on Kickstarter, where its team is currently seeking $190,000. Delivery is slated for April 2016.

Tiny Arcade is the world’s smallest arcade cabinet

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Tiny Arcade lets you relive the golden age of video games with an arcade cabinet that fits in the palm of your hand.  

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The golden age of arcade video games spanned from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s. During that time period, these machines became fixtures in ice cream shops, bowling alleys and bars throughout the world. However, it wasn’t before long that this form of entertainment suffered a decrease in popularity with the advent of home-based gaming consoles.

Truth be told, there’s nothing quite like the experience of playing a game in an arcade. And so, Ken Burns and the Tiny Circuits team decided to relive those glory days by shrinking a cabinet down to just a few inches tall.

The aptly named Tiny Arcade lets you play a number of retro-inspired games, each of which can be downloaded completely free online. Its creators hope to have over 20 classics available when the unit begins to ship, and being open source, you’ll be able to develop and release your own as well. What’s more, the palm-sized device allows you to convert any MP4 movie using a free utility to the TinyScreen format, put them on a microSD card, plug it in and then watch your video at 30 FPS with sound.

The gadget is based on the TinyScreen+ — an Arduino-compatible board that features an ATSAMD21G18A 32-bit MCU, built-in USB for charging and reprogramming, and an OLED screen all crammed into a package no larger than a quarter. Aside from that, there’s an analog joystick and two push buttons for playing the games, an integrated speaker for audio, a 140mAh lithium battery, and a microSD expansion slot.

“Even though the Tiny Arcade is built around the Arduino platform, don’t worry if you’re not a programmer. There is no need to download any special software or do any soldering with the Tiny Arcade, you can use it without any special knowledge,” Burns explains. “The Tiny Arcade can load games on the fly off a microSD card, a menu is provided at power up that shows a preview of all of the games available on the microSD card, choose one and it gets loaded in a second and you’re playing away. No need to reprogram the Tiny Arcade over USB.”

Tiny Arcade comes in two forms: either fully-assembled or in a DIY kit. The latter can be easily built in a matter of 10 minutes — no soldering or special tools necessary. The circuit boards snap together, while its acrylic or 3D-printed enclosure can be assembled like a jigsaw puzzle. There’s also a basswood case, which unlike the others, will need to be glued.

Those wishing to decorate their cabinets can do so with the two sheets of stickers included with each kit. Just peel them off and affix them to your Tiny Arcade, or print your own artwork for a more personal touch. You can even paint your own designs on the basswood model.

Ready for a retro arcade cabinet right in the palm of hand? Head over to Tiny Arcade’s Kickstarter campaign, where the Tiny Circuits crew is currently seeking $25,000. Delivery is expected to get underway in March 2016.

KeyDuino is like an Arduino with built-in NFC

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KeyDuino lets you replace keys with your smartphone, NFC ring or any proximity card.

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For a while, near field communication (NFC) was being heralded as the future of the Internet of Things. From mobile payments to digital signage, the possibilities of were endless. Now, French engineer Pierre Charlier and his team are hoping to bring the contactless form of technology to Arduino projects with a development board called KeyDuino.

Based on the ATmega32U4, the KeyDuino shares pretty much the same form factor and DNA as the Arduino Leonardo, and will work with most shields. The board was initially conceived as a method of touch-and-go access control, such as unlocking your car door or opening a private drawer in your room, but has since transcended well beyond just entry. Case in point, the Maker recently devised an NFC-enabled infinity coffee table, magic gift box and even an easy-to-read smart meter, all of which can be activated by simply tapping your phone.

“KeyDuino will be the bridge that helps you wirelessly interact with your environment, drive motors, unlock strikes, control relays, read from a temperature sensor and all thanks to built in NFC connectivity, right out of the box,” Charlier explains.

In addition to some nifty projects, KeyDuino is also a fantastic way to teach yourself or others about NFC. That’s why Charlier has developed an Android app to streamline and establish peer-to-peer communication. Now with that app, for example, you can control every pin or receive an analog mesure from the KeyDuino without any contact.

Currently live on Kickstarter, the team is hoping that the KeyDuino will help spur NFC adoption and usher in an era where phones, smart rings and proximity cards replace those old-fashioned metal keys. (Hence its name.)

Intrigued? The board’s creators are seeking $10,723 and expect to begin shipping in Februray 2016.

Pixel is an Arduino-compatible smart display

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The Pixel combines a 32-bit ARM Cortex M0+ microcontroller with a color OLED display and microSD.

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The brainchild of Boston-based startup Rabid Prototypes, the Pixel is an open source smart display that combines an Arduino-compatible MCU, a color OLED screen and microSD.

The Pixel — which recently made its debut on Kickstarter — is built around the mighty Atmel | SMART SAM D21 operating at 48MHz and packing 32K of RAM, along with a 1.5” 128×128 pixel OLED screen and a microSD slot. Measuring only 1.8”x 1.8” in size, the compact board is extremely versatile and can be employed to create wearables, attach sensors, display data or play retro games.

When it comes to programming, if you’re familiar with Arduino, you can configure your Pixel. Simply plug the Pixel into your PC using a microUSB cable, select which board you want to program, and hit the upload button in the IDE when you’re ready. The Pixel ships with the Arduino/Genuino Zero bootloader already installed.

What’s more, the Pixel is compatible with the Arduino’s SPI and SD libraries. Communication with the display and microSD card are both handled through the SPI bus, which is broken out on a set of pads for a surface mount header.  The ATN pin replaces the reset pin on this header and acts as the CS pin for the microSD. As the Rabid Prototypes crew points out, pins 7, 8 and 9 (ORST, ODC, OCS) are utilized to control the display.

The Pixel is even compatible with Adafruit’s graphics library, which provides functions for blitting images, drawing primitives like lines and circles, and includes bitmapped font support as well.

Lastly, if you ever need to modify the fuses or bootloader, the Pixel features an SWD header which can be used with the Atmel-ICE development tool. On the final version of the board, this will be a through-hole header, so you can connect the ICE by inserting a pin header into its ribbon cable.

Interested? Head over to the Pixel’s Kickstarter campaign, where Rabid Prototypes is currently seeking $5,000. Looking ahead, the team will make the unit entirely open source by releasing its schematics and PCB layout, thereby giving Makers the ability to freely modify the design and integrate it into their own boards. Delivery is slated for January 2016.

This MIDI synth lets you create chiptune music

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Obscrua is an Arduino-compatible MIDI synth for creating Nintendo, C64 and Amiga-style chiptunes.

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A chiptune refers to a genre of synthesized electronic music which was commonly found in vintage computers, consoles and arcade machines. As its name would imply, the tunes themselves were made by the sound chips within these early gaming systems and microcomputers, with an integrated waveform generator playing an integral role in the process. From Space Invaders to Gun Fight, one cannot help but love the nostalgic 8-bit beats packed inside those classic arcade cabinets.

Not to mention, who could forget the routine of pulling out their Mario Bros. cartridge, blowing into it, slipping it back in, and once successful, being welcomed by its catchy theme song? Well, those looking to spark up some nostalgia will surely get a kick out of the Obscura, an Arduino-compatible synth that allows you to create your own NES, Commodore 64 and Amiga-style chiptune music by simply connecting a MIDI device. What’s nice is that no programming is required — this monophonic MIDI synth comes preprogrammed with software that packs 16 preset patches.

If this all sounds vaguely familiar, that’s because its creators Arcano Systems recently revealed a similar MIDI chiptune synth on Kickstarter. Taking into consideration the outpouring of feedback and suggestions they received from its early backers, the team decided to rewrite the software to incorporate many of their ideas. Among those upgrades included the ability to configure the synth with the Arduino IDE using only a USB cable, eliminating the need for an AVR-ISP unit or an FTDI cable. This called for a change in hardware as well.

Unlike its predecessor that was based on an ATmega328, the new and improved Obscura is instead built around the mighty ATmega32U4 — the same MCU at the heart of the Arduino Leonardo. The latest synth has gone through a pair of hardware revisions and 12 software versions, with its latest iteration featuring a USB serial monitor mode that is activated by holding down both preset patch control buttons during boot-up. Additionally, this mode lets users view the serial data output from their MIDI machine on either a PC or Mac for debugging and hacking purposes.

“The software for the Obscura is not merely a port of the Arcano Chiptune Synth software, but was written from the ground up and uses wavetable synthesis to generate waveforms, whereas the Arcano MIDI NES Chiptune Synth generates waveforms on the fly using a series of logic statements,” the Arcano Systems crew explains.

Now, users with some programming experience will be able devise their own custom software for Obscura using the Arduino IDE. And thanks to the Arduino Leonardo’s native USB capabilities, the Obscura can be configured to appear as a USB mouse, keyboard or HID, enabling interesting possibilities of unique MIDI-PC interface applications.

Unlike many other MCU-based synthesizers which use PWM to generate weak, noisy and low-quality audio signals, the Obscura employs an auxiliary digital-to-analog converter chip with true 8-bit quantization to produce a clear, high-quality sound. The Obscura is USB-powered and doesn’t require a special wall adapter with a barrel-jack type connector. The simple user interface consists of two patch control buttons, a reset button and a 7-segment LED display. Meanwhile, audio is emitted through a standard 1/8” (3.5 mm) stereo audio jack.

So, are you ready to recreate some of your favorite 8-bit music? Head over to the synthesizer’s Kickstarter page, where Arcano Systems is currently seeking $2,000. Delivery is expected to get underway in February 2016. (And kudos to the team for a rather creative campaign video!)

Watch this low-cost, Arduino-compatible bot draw on its own

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This group of Makers built a 3D-printed, Arduino-compatible robot that can draw and write.

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Dating back to the late 1940s, turtle robots have been employed for computer science and mechanical engineering training. These low to the ground gadgets were later perfected by Seymour Papert, co-inventor of the Logo educational programming language in the 1980s. Papert’s models had carried out assigned drawing functions using a small retractable pen set into or attached to the robot’s body.

Well, the MakersBox crew decided to take this concept and apply it to a 3D-printed, Arduino-compatible doodling robot of their own, which was originally conceived as part of a recent 10-hour workshop for ChickTech.org. Their device, equipped with a pen in the center of its body not unlike its predecessors, works by wheeling around a sheet of paper as it simultaneously draws shapes.

The bot is based on an Adafruit Pro Trinket 3V (ATmega328), along with a pair of steppers, a driver, a micro servo and four AA batteries for power. The Makers also created eight different 3D-printed parts, which included the chassis, wheels, pen holder and stepper bracket.

The robot itself is programmed using a set of commands relating to its position on a piece of paper. The Trinket can be configured to move the robot backwards and forwards, rotate it in both directions, as well as raise and lower the pen so it’s not always drawing. Intrigued? Check out the Makers’ entire project here, or simply watch it in action below!

Light up the night with this LED Burberry skirt

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Maker Guido Burger hacked a Burberry skirt with pico-Platinchen to give it a NeoPixels makeover.

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A while back, Guido Burger introduced us to his board, the pico-Platinchen. The super small (only 20mm in diameter), Arduino-compatible button features a built-in BNO055 sensor (SAM D20) along with an ATmega328P at its core. Since then, the Maker has found several new and innovative implementations of the technology, particularly around wearables. Remember this ring? How about these smart socks? Adding to that list of projects is his recent hack of a Burberry skirt for Maker Faire Berlin.

For this endeavor, Burger’s goal was to make the electronics easily removable, washable and expandable, while also dramatically reducing the necessary power to run 200 LEDs. He began the process with a CAD design of a fabric frame that would hold the NeoPixel strips in place. In the final project, the skirt’s top layer of fabric was comprised of a laser-cut repeating circle pattern, which allowed just enough light from the LEDs to seep through, giving it a nice blur effect.

The pico-Platinchen enabled the high-end skirt to react to motion with its 9DOF sensor. Aside from that, the Maker decided to add a last-minute BLE module to sense whenever a smartphone or beacon was in close proximity — surely a colorful way to keep an eye on those around you during a night on the town! Normally Berger would operate the controller with a coin-cell battery, but for this wearable chose to go with a pair of AAA batteries instead. This provided the necessary 3V, along with an estimated runtime of four to five hours.

Intrigued? Check it out!

Connecting a paper notepad to the Internet of Things

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This notepad and pencil use conductive ink to control a Think With Google app.

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London-based branding agency MultiAdaptor has designed a paper notepad and pencil that employs conductive ink to control an app for Google’s digital marketing business. The goal of the project was to raise awareness of Think With Google in the creative community by inspiring them to engage with the service’s content in unique fashion. And what better way to do this than by plugging a piece of paper into the Internet?

In order to make the notepad, industrial designer Roland Ellis developed a special (and quite possibly the world’s first) conductive bookbinding glue that connects an Arduino-compatible board (which appears to be an ATmega32U4 based MaKey MaKey) to printed pages without having to use cables or any other parts. Conductive ink was screen-printed onto the paper, which is activated using a standard graphite pencil.

“The digital experience is also designed to reflect the Google brand — something simple and helpful, but playful and innovative, too,” the MultiAdaptor crew explains. “The audience is time-poor, so we made it faster to discover what’s relevant to them, by creating a bespoke ‘edit’ of content with a few ticks or clicks.”

To get started, users plug the notepad into their desktop via a provided USB cable, visit the Think With Google website and check off two options from a list of statements using the pencil, such as “increase brand awareness” or “drive sales.” The interface focuses primarily on four different types of content: deck-ready stats, thought-leading articles, Google business tools and inspiring video content. From there, a user selects the platform that they want to leverage, which includes search, video, mobile and display. Content matching their selection is then shown in a dashboard titled My Edit. From there, users can share a link to their edit or virtually ‘rip’ off a page from the pad and create a new one. Aside from that, the dashboard can be accessed independently and the presentation-friendly interface can be employed in an office environments or at an event.

So far, 1,000 notepads have been printed, assembled and in the process of being shipped to agencies throughout the UK and Italy. Intrigued? Head over to the project’s official page, or watch its overview video below.

Play Tetris on this tiny, Arduboy-powered device

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Thanks to this awesome little gadget, you can say goodbye to productivity! 

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Tetris is arguably one of, if not, the most popular video games of all-time and has been played on pretty much every platform possible, from the NES to graphing calculators to mobile phones. Now there’s another, and much more productivity killing, way to play the iconic game. Introducing the Tetris MicroCard, a fingertip-friendly device that’s no larger than a business card.

If it looks vaguely familiar, that’s because the aptly name Tetris MicroCard is powered by and shares a resemblance to the wildly popular Arduboy — a wallet-sized 8-bit gaming system for Makers. Once again open source, the tweaked gadget is based on an ATmega32U4 and powered by an internal rechargeable battery that can last for roughly six hours. Like the Arduboy, the Tetris MicroCard features a microUSB port that can be used for refueling as well as for uploading your own open source apps.

Although it comes equipped with an officially licensed version of Tetris, the tiny console is also fully programmable with Arduino — meaning you can add other games if you’d like. The Tetris MicroCard boasts an OLED display with six control buttons positioned on both sides, as well as a speaker with a mute function, which will surely come in handy when playing in a meeting, in your cubicle or even in class.

It should be noted, however, that the vertically-oriented device and its screen were specifically designed for optimal Tetris playing, so some of the codes available may not be ideal for the unit’s unique layout. And unlike with its sibling Arduboy, creator Kevin Bates (who we’ve come to know so well) has decided to bypass Kickstarter altogether and make the Tetris MicroCard available for pre-order. With a price tag of $49, it’ll make for a perfect grab bag item, a stocking stuff, or a “just because” purchase! Delivery is expected to get underway sometime this spring.