Adafruit I2S Amplifier BFF Add-On for QT Py and Xiao

Jargon buster

Plain-language definitions for the technical terms used above.

ESP32

ESP32 is a family of low-cost microcontroller chips and modules from Espressif with built-in WiFi and Bluetooth. They support programmable firmware and over-the-air updates, and are commonly programmed with toolchains such as the Arduino core and ESP-IDF.

GPIO

General-purpose input/output pins are microcontroller pins you can set in software to read signals, switch devices on and off, or connect to peripherals. The number of GPIO pins matters because it limits how many buttons, LEDs, sensors, and other parts you can wire directly to the board.

Headers

Rows of connector contacts on a fixed pitch (commonly 2.54 mm) used to link a board to a breadboard, jumper wires, or another board. They come as male pin headers and female socket headers; when a module ships with pre-soldered headers it can be used straight away, whereas bare pads require soldering the pins yourself.

I2C

I2C is a two-wire communication bus used by many sensors and small modules. It matters because several I2C devices can share the same two wires, but each device needs a compatible address and your controller must support I2C.

I2S

I2S is a digital audio interface used to send sound data between chips, such as from a microcontroller to an audio amplifier or DAC. It matters if your project needs cleaner digital audio output than a basic buzzer or PWM signal can provide.

IoT

Short for Internet of Things, meaning physical devices that connect to networks or the internet to send data or be controlled remotely. It matters if you want projects such as connected sensors, remote controls or classroom data-logging activities.

nRF52840

The nRF52840 is a Nordic Semiconductor system-on-chip built around a 32-bit Arm Cortex-M4 processor, with built-in Bluetooth Low Energy and native USB. It is widely used in maker and wearable boards, where it offers BLE and USB support along with broad library coverage in common maker toolchains.

PCB

A printed circuit board (PCB) is a board, usually rigid, with etched copper tracks that connect electronic components together without loose wiring. Components are mounted on the board and signals route between them through the copper layout.

RP2040

The RP2040 is a dual-core Arm Cortex-M0+ microcontroller chip from Raspberry Pi, used on many maker boards and offering programmable I/O, multiple GPIO pins and reasonable processing speed. Code and accessories built for that chip should work where RP2040 compatibility is listed, though demanding tasks such as reading a camera can require careful pin allocation and timing.

SPI

A fast serial communication bus often used for displays, memory cards, and sensors. It matters because SPI devices need specific pins for clock and data, plus a separate chip-select line for each device.

UART

UART is a simple asynchronous serial interface that sends data over separate transmit and receive wires, usually labelled TX and RX, with both ends set to the same baud rate. It is a common way for microcontrollers and other serial devices to exchange data.