ElecFreaks
Micro:bit Breakout Board ( Octopus:bit)
The Octopus:bit is a breakout board for the BBC micro:bit that extends all GPIO ports (P0–P16, P19–P20) into colour-coded pin headers with VCC and GND alongs...
The Octopus:bit is a breakout board for the BBC micro:bit that extends all GPIO ports (P0–P16, P19–P20) into colour-coded pin headers with VCC and GND alongside each I/O pin. This makes connecting sensors, servos, and other modules quick and easy — especially with the ElecFreaks Octopus series of accessories.
A built-in voltage boosting module lets you switch the working voltage of select pins (P8, P9, P11–P16) between 3.3V and 5V, enabling compatibility with both 3.3V and 5V modules. The board also breaks out serial, I2C (3 channels), and SPI (2 channels) interfaces.
Key Features
- Full GPIO Breakout – All micro:bit pins (P0–P16, P19–P20) with colour-coded VCC/GND
- 3.3V/5V Voltage Switch – Selectable voltage on P8, P9, P11–P16 via on-board booster
- I2C Support – 3 channels for connecting I2C devices
- SPI Support – 2 channels for SPI devices
- Serial Port – Broken out for UART communication or board-to-board serial
- Octopus Compatible – Pin layout matches ElecFreaks Octopus series modules
Specifications
- Input Voltage – 3.3V (powered via micro:bit edge connector)
- Output Voltage – 3.3V or 5V (switchable on select pins)
- Dimensions – 150 × 100 × 20mm
- Weight – 33.4g
Ideal For
- Expanding micro:bit GPIO for sensor and actuator projects
- Programming education with micro:bit
- Smart device prototyping
- Connecting 5V modules to the 3.3V micro:bit
Resources
Jargon buster
Plain-language definitions for the technical terms used above.
- breakout
- A breakout is a small circuit board that makes a tiny or hard-to-solder component easier to connect to with standard pins. It matters because this OLED module can be wired into a microcontroller project without needing to solder directly to the display’s fine contacts.
- 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 metal pins used to plug a module into a breadboard or connect it with jumper wires. Pre-soldered headers make the module easier to use straight away without needing to solder 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.
- 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 serial connection that sends data over separate transmit and receive wires, often labelled TX and RX. It matters because this module is designed to replace a wired UART cable with a wireless link while keeping the same serial data format.
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Related Tutorials
Free guides on learn.littlebird.com.au
