HackSpace Magazine Issue 39: Adafruit Feather RP2040 #CircuitPython @HackSpaceMag @Raspberry_Pi

HackSpace magazine issue 39, pages 42-44, takes a look at boards to use the new Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller. The Adafruit Feather RP2040 is one of two announced Adafruit boards (the other being the Adafruit ItsyBitsy RP2040).

You’re almost certainly going to want to plug some extra hardware into your microcontroller to build your projects. Whether that’s sensors, displays, or actuators, it’s this extra hardware that is usually the point of microcontroller projects. There are already some great accessories for Pico, but if you want to get access to a huge range of add-ons, the best solution is to jump right into one of the biggest  microcontroller ecosystems around – Feather. Adafruit’s Feather RP2040 has the standard pinout that lets you plug in almost any Feather add-on (or Wing as they are known). These are stackable, so you can add several of them if you need lots of features for your project.

21 GPIOs are broken out, and there’s also on-board LiPo battery charging if you need your project to be
portable, and a STEMMA QT connector for adding even more hardware. There’s 4MB of flash for storing your data and programs, and like the Mini, there are both reset and boot buttons. All this means that the board is slightly wider than Pico (one row on a breadboard).

The Feather RP2040 comes set up and ready to run CircuitPython. CircuitPython includes excellent support for Adafruit (and other) hardware.

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