By using the serial connections on a Micro:bit, it is possible to interact with it by sending messages in text, rather than just reading the input from a sensor. You can even use serial connections
Small OLED screens for microcontrollers are a cheap and easy way to display more detailed output for your Micro:bit than the scrolling LED matrix allows. Often sold as 0.96″ screens, these are just under 25mm
Keypads make a convenient way to add lots of buttons to a Micro:bit and they come in a range of sizes. The type above are known as membrane keypads. They have a sticky back, are
The Micro:bit comes with 20 IO (input/output) pins which can be used to connect a range of hardware devices, however if you look at a pinout diagram, you find that 8 of these are used
A LCD screen is a great way to give more feedback to a user, either for a text message or values back from a sensor. Known as a 1602 LCD, this common display gives two
A rotary encoder, such as the common KY-040 above, is a knob that you can turn continuously either clockwise or anti-clockwise and detect which direction it is being turned. Types such as the KY-040 are
About Buttons Microcontrollers such as the Micro:bit all do one similar thing, accept an input (some sort of ‘message’ from the outside world), process (run some code) and output (show something to the outside world).
Servos are small motors with gearing that can add a high amount of torque (turning strength), and reliably turn to a precise angle. Servos such as the SG09 are small, cheap, run on low power
NeoPixels are Adafruit’s brand of individually addressable RGB LEDs. However the name has become common use to describe most kinds of WS2812 (and similar) LED arrays. Each LED can have it’s colour set individually using
These small joystick modules are composed of a single switch (triggered when pushing down), and two potentiometers set by moving the X and Y axis. As well as two power pins, it has three ouput