Adafruit Feather RP2040 SCORPIO - 8 Channel NeoPixel Driver

The Feather RP2040 SCORPIO is designed specifically for driving large quantities of NeoPixels (WS2812) using the RP2040's PIO state machines. It features 8 consecutive GPIO outputs with a 3V-to-5V level shifter, allowing you to drive 8 independent NeoPixel strips simultaneously via DMA — with zero CPU overhead. The 264 KB RAM can buffer several thousand pixels with room to spare for dithering and gamma correction.

The PIO peripheral generates perfectly timed waveforms on all 8 outputs concurrently through DMA, so your code is free to handle buttons, audio, sensors, or run CircuitPython while the LEDs update. NeoPXL8 driver libraries are available for both Arduino and CircuitPython.

Key Features

• RP2040 Processor – Dual ARM Cortex M0+ cores at ~125 MHz, 3.3V logic
• 264 KB SRAM – Buffer thousands of NeoPixels with dithering support
• 8 MB SPI Flash – For CircuitPython/MicroPython code and file storage
• 8× PIO NeoPixel Outputs – GPIO16–GPIO23, with 3V-to-5V level shifting for reliable NeoPixel signalling
• DMA-Driven Output – Zero CPU overhead for LED data; all 8 channels output simultaneously
• Configurable Level Shifter – Jumper to select 3.3V or 5V output; direction jumper to use as inputs (e.g., logic analyser)
• USB Type C – Native USB with UF2 bootloader
• STEMMA QT / Qwiic – On-board I2C connector for solderless sensor connections
• NeoPixel – On-board RGB LED on D4 for status feedback
• 21 GPIO Pins – 4× 12-bit ADC, 16× PWM, 2× I2C, 2× SPI, 2× UART
• User Button – BOOTSEL button also available as user input on GPIO #7
• LiPo Battery Support – JST connector with built-in 200 mA+ charger and charging status LED
• Compact Design – 50.8 mm × 22.8 mm × 7 mm, weighing 5 g

Also Available

• Feather RP2040 – Base model
• Feather RP2040 Adalogger – With MicroSD card slot
• Feather RP2040 RFM69 868/915 MHz – Packet radio
• Feather RP2040 RFM95 LoRa 915 MHz – Long-range LoRa radio
• Feather RP2040 USB Type A Host – With USB host port
• Feather RP2040 DVI – With HDMI-compatible DVI output

Ideal For

• Large NeoPixel installations and LED art
• Multi-strip LED animations with independent control
• Wearable LED projects with battery power
• PIO-based custom peripheral projects

Package Contents

• 1× Feather RP2040 SCORPIO
• 1× Header pin set