ESP 128266 exploration

Abstract

The ESP8266 is the name of a micro controller designed by Espressif Systems. Espressif is a Chinese
company based out of Shanghai. The ESP8266 advertises itself as a self-contained WiFi networking solution offering
itself as a bridge from existing micro controller to WiFi and is also capable of running self contained applications. the
number of GPIO pins exposed, the amount of flash memory provided, the style of connector pins and various other
considerations related to construction. From a programming perspective, they are all the same. A micro controller is an
integrated circuit that is capable of running programs. There are many instances of those on the market today from a
variety of manufacturers. The prices of these micro controllers keeps falling. These micro controller and architectures
are great and there will always be a place for them. However, there is a catch … and that is networking. These devices
have an amazing set of capabilities including direct electrical inputs and outputs (GPIOs) and support for a variety of
protocols including SPI, I2C, UART and more, however, none of them so far come with wireless networking included.