4 ms·

The smallest ESP32 drone you can fly with your phone Powered by XIAO ESP32S3 [video]

26 points by meilily 2y ago

s0l1dsnak3123 2y ago
This is a really cool video, I particularly liked the part where a PVC pipe was used to build an alternative chassis without a 3D printer.
- shellfishgene 2y ago
  It's also cheaper because the stl files cost ~10$ to download ;)
- meilily 2y ago
  Agree on this!
nicolaslem 2y ago
For me the really cool thing with these XIAO modules is that they support charging a lithium cell via the USB port directly without any additional circuitry. I have turned one of them into to a wireless doorbell that get recharged via USB-C.
- omgtehlion 2y ago
  About doorbells (and charging them): there exist battery-less wireless doorbells, they generate enough energy from pushing the button. I got some off aliexpress several years ago.
  - nicolaslem 2y ago
    Yes, the project does not make a ton of sense but it was for me the opportunity to learn ESP32 and have some fun. The outdoor module is constantly in deep sleep and only wakes up for a few seconds when the button is pressed. I put a 1000 mAh cell as that was the biggest capacity that fit the enclosure, that's probably way too much as in deep sleep the ESP32 barely consumes anything. The indoor module is plugged straight into a wall socket so no batteries. When someone is at the door I am notified by Michael Scott: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umDr0mPuyQc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umDr0mPuyQc (maybe I will get tired of this, for now it's still fun)
    - brokenmachine 2y ago
      Obviously it doesn't make that much difference for a fun project with a large 1000mAh battery, but <44 μA for deep sleep isn't very good. https://archive.is/2YBHS https://archive.is/2YBHS with an nrf52840 you can get <1uA. It doesn't do wifi but long range BLE can go over 2km range.
      - meilily 2y ago
        Have you tested their newest XIAO MG24, based on Silabs? It's said the power consumption is even better than the nrf52840 model.
- meilily 2y ago
  Speaking of the doorbell project, I recently found this cool piano doorbell project, a beautiful-looking and sounding doorbell that looks like a miniature piano. It has five individual, fully functional piano keys. Each key, when pressed, plays a distinct note, sampled from a real piano: https://www.hackster.io/makestreme/a-piano-doorbell-that-sounds-beautiful-b5e166 https://www.hackster.io/makestreme/a-piano-doorbell-that-sou...

26 points by meilily 2y ago

This is a really cool video, I particularly liked the part where a PVC pipe was used to build an alternative chassis without a 3D printer.

shellfishgene 2y ago
It's also cheaper because the stl files cost ~10$ to download ;)
meilily 2y ago
Agree on this!

nicolaslem 2y ago

For me the really cool thing with these XIAO modules is that they support charging a lithium cell via the USB port directly without any additional circuitry. I have turned one of them into to a wireless doorbell that get recharged via USB-C.

omgtehlion 2y ago
About doorbells (and charging them): there exist battery-less wireless doorbells, they generate enough energy from pushing the button. I got some off aliexpress several years ago.
- nicolaslem 2y ago
  Yes, the project does not make a ton of sense but it was for me the opportunity to learn ESP32 and have some fun. The outdoor module is constantly in deep sleep and only wakes up for a few seconds when the button is pressed. I put a 1000 mAh cell as that was the biggest capacity that fit the enclosure, that's probably way too much as in deep sleep the ESP32 barely consumes anything. The indoor module is plugged straight into a wall socket so no batteries. When someone is at the door I am notified by Michael Scott: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umDr0mPuyQc https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umDr0mPuyQc (maybe I will get tired of this, for now it's still fun)
  - brokenmachine 2y ago
    Obviously it doesn't make that much difference for a fun project with a large 1000mAh battery, but <44 μA for deep sleep isn't very good. https://archive.is/2YBHS https://archive.is/2YBHS with an nrf52840 you can get <1uA. It doesn't do wifi but long range BLE can go over 2km range.
    - meilily 2y ago
      Have you tested their newest XIAO MG24, based on Silabs? It's said the power consumption is even better than the nrf52840 model.
meilily 2y ago
Speaking of the doorbell project, I recently found this cool piano doorbell project, a beautiful-looking and sounding doorbell that looks like a miniature piano. It has five individual, fully functional piano keys. Each key, when pressed, plays a distinct note, sampled from a real piano: https://www.hackster.io/makestreme/a-piano-doorbell-that-sounds-beautiful-b5e166 https://www.hackster.io/makestreme/a-piano-doorbell-that-sou...