Which ESP8266 for arduino?

Hardware and Blynk Libraries
1

Hello,
I would like to use an ESP8266 with an Arduino uno as a shield. Now my Question:
Which one is the best for Blynk? Which version? I would like to buy it on Banggood.com - a URL would be helpful.
Thanks for you help!

2

When you are already a banggood customer, than just search for Wemos D1 R2.

This one is my favorite, compared to similar boards, you can just upload your code, withount pressing reset/flash buttons…

1 Like
3

I have used the these and have not had a bad one yet.
http://www.banggood.com/search/esp8266-esp-12e.html

1 Like
4

@EricHier do you really need an Uno when the ESP is so much more powerful?

ESP in standalone is so much easier to set up than as a shield for an Uno.

We like the WeMos D1 Mini but you might also want to look at the NodeMCU V3 which is cheaper and has lots more pins. The pins are pre-soldered too unlike the WeMos where you have to do it yourself.

1 Like
5

Okay - great proposal. What do I need to install to use it with the Arduino IDE? Any drivers?

6

Most operating systems will pick up the required drivers. Which OS are you using?

In the IDE add http://arduino.esp8266.com/stable/package_esp8266com_index.json to Additional Boards Manager URL’s (File, Preferences) and all the ESP boards will become available to you.

1 Like
7

Okay - I will use this board within my next project. :slight_smile:

8

I use Windows 10 and Ubuntu as my operating systems. I have already heard of those additional ESP boards but I wasn’t sure if they work with the NodeMCU.

9

Drivers should be picked up automatically for Windows 10 and Ubuntu. NodeMCU is an ESP and appears in the IDE.

10

Thanks! I think, that I will read a book about the NodeMCU first to learn the basics. :slight_smile:

11

The NodeMCU is programmed with regular Arduino sketches like all the ESP’s. It can be coded with lua but that all looks Greek to me.

1 Like
12

Is you name not grrek? :smiley:

Lua is more easy to understand for a non-programmer than C++ but why should one learn lua if he can code in c/c++.

1 Like
13

@af_bln that was my point, I would always recommend C/C++ over LUA as the internet has code examples for everything in C/C++ but not LUA. To me LUA is like java i.e. very few java examples for Blynk users.

1 Like
14

I can code in C++ (not perfect, but enough), so I will use C++ instead of Lua. What an easy decision. :slight_smile:

15

I have been having success with the OAK device by Digistump http://digistump.com/oak/.
Uses the Arduino IDE and updates firmware via the Board Manager. First connection and firmware updateis a bit of a pain, but once connected, goes fairly smoothly.
Digistump has forums for Oak users, provides a dashboard on the web that can do a fair bit of the Blynk type stuff, as well as a serial terminal for easy monitoring via desktop.
This is carried out via the Particle cloud – another available dashboard and soon to offer on line arduino like IDE for OTA programing to Oak when away from your computer.
Only $11 for a standalone ESP8266 device with Digistump offering several shields as well.

16

I am using an UNO + ESP8266 NodeMCU v3 (LiLO Version)…
I have written some code to allow them to talk via Serial CSV code.
It is very reliable and quick. I’d be happy to share the code with you.

17

@Jamin we too have used Serial comms between Arduino’s and ESP’s and it does work reliably. In our experience much easier to set up than Blynk’s ESP as a WiFi shield.

We had some faulty temperature probes that simply wouldn’t work with ESP’s so we hooked them up to the Arduino and sent the details via the Serial link to the ESP. Not a long term solution to use 2 MCU’s when 1 (ESP) will do, but it got us out of fix until the replacement probes were obtained.

2 Likes