The saving grace here is that ESPs have radios and require certification which is expensive. As a result it is common for vendors to use pre-certified modules

The saving grace here is that ESPs have radios and require certification which is expensive. As a result it is common for vendors to use pre-certified modules that are provided on a modular PCB with castellated half-holes. These are relatively easy to desolder. For ESP these modules are the WROOM line.