🔧 Tool of the Week
openocd-esp32 (prebuilt) — Espressif fork Prebuilt OpenOCD binaries targeting Espressif chips (H4/P4/S31/etc.) so you can skip building from source and get a working debug/flasher quickly. Useful if you wrestle with platform-specific OpenOCD builds or need Windows/arm64 binaries. 🔗 GitHub release — openocd-esp32 v0.12.0-esp32-20260703. (github.com)
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🛒 Deals & Finds
- ESP32‑S31 dev kits (Korvo‑1 / Function‑CoreBoard)
– Full multimedia devkits (LCD, mics, camera, GigE/USB variants) are listed on Espressif’s devkit pages — good if you want to experiment with the new RISC‑V S31 silicon. 🔗 Espressif ESP32‑S31 devkits & buy links. (espressif.com)
- Waveshare ESP32‑C6 dev kits (LCD / touch variants)
– Low‑cost RISC‑V Wi‑Fi‑6 boards with displays and example code — handy for UI, voice, or small HMI prototypes. 🔗 Waveshare product & docs: ESP32‑C6 dev kits. (waveshare.com)
- esptool (pip) — latest stable wheel
– esptool keeps getting updates (recent 5.3.x releases). If you flash ESP devices, make sure your pip esptool is current — faster, more chip support, and updated flasher stubs. 🔗 esptool on PyPI (latest releases). (pypi.org)
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🧪 Cool Build
MMU Linux on the new ESP32‑S31 A developer port of Linux (mainline with MMU support) to the ESP32‑S31 — experimental, not production, but a real proof that Sv32 MMU RISC‑V parts can run mainline kernels on tiny boards. If you like poking system bring‑ups, this repo is a practical lab. 🔗 GrieferPig — esp32-s31-linux (GitHub). (github.com)
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📚 Worth Reading
- ESP32‑S31 devkit docs (Korvo‑1, Function‑CoreBoard) – Hardware reference, board guides, and BSP notes for the new S31 devkits. Good first stop before you buy or prototype. 🔗 [ESP32‑S31 devkit user guides & docs]. (esp32-s31.espressif.com)
- Linux on ESP32‑S3 (native, WiFi) – A practical, flashable project that runs a native Linux 6.11 on ESP32‑S3 (NOMMU limitations explained). Useful reading if you want to understand tradeoffs when running Linux on constrained wireless MCUs. 🔗 [paulneja — Linux‑on‑esp32‑S3 (GitHub)]. (github.com)
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⚡ Quick Hits
- esptool 5.3.x is out — pip install/update to avoid toolchain mismatch when flashing newer ESP parts. 🔗 [PyPI esptool]. (pypi.org)
- Waveshare has multiple ESP32‑C6 display/devkit variants (touch, AMOLED, ST7789 examples) — good inexpensive dev boards for UI/voice experiments. 🔗 [Waveshare ESP32‑C6 product docs]. (docs.waveshare.com)
- sigrok / PulseView still the easiest open tool for cheap logic analyzers; grab the nightly or static builds if your distro packages lag. 🔗 [sigrok downloads]. (sigrok.org)
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📺 Cool Videos
- Run Linux on ESP32 — how to run the Linux kernel on an ESP32
– Practical walk‑through and context for running Linux on ESP32‑class boards (S3 examples). 🔗 [YouTube video]. (youtube.com)
- Flash Linux on ESP32‑S3 / SUDOSOM‑S3 — the easy way
– Shows tools and tricks to prepare and flash a Linux image to S3 class boards — handy if you want a reproducible flash path. 🔗 [YouTube video]. (youtube.com)