Waveshare ESP32-S3 1.69-Inch Display Development Board w/ IMU & RTC

You can program it using the Arduino IDE with the ESP32 board package installed, Espressif's official ESP-IDF framework for full feature control, or MicroPython for rapid scripting. Connect via the onboard Type-C USB port, select the correct COM port and board target (e.g., ESP32-S3 Dev Module), and upload your code. The display uses the ST7789V2 SPI driver, and libraries are available for all major platforms.

The onboard QMI8658 is a 6-axis inertial measurement unit combining a 3-axis accelerometer and a 3-axis gyroscope. It enables motion sensing for applications like gesture control, step counting, or orientation detection. You access its data via the I2C interface using dedicated sensor libraries. Initialize the sensor with the correct I2C address (often 0x6B), then read registers for raw or processed acceleration and gyroscope values to integrate into your project logic.

Yes, the board supports low-power operation with a battery. Connect a 3.7V lithium battery to the dedicated MX1.25 header. The PCF85063 RTC chip maintains timekeeping during deep sleep when the main ESP32-S3 is powered down. Configure the ESP32's deep sleep modes via code, and the RTC can wake the system after a set interval. The RTC battery header also supports charging if you use a rechargeable cell.

The 12-pin expansion header breaks out multiple interfaces for peripherals. It provides access to 5 general-purpose GPIO pins, which can be configured for digital I/O, PWM, or other functions. The header also includes dedicated pins for I2C (SDA, SCL) and UART (TX, RX) communication. Consult the board's pinout diagram to identify the specific GPIO numbers (e.g., IO1, IO2) and avoid conflicts with the internal display or IMU SPI/I2C buses.

The 240x280 pixel LCD is controlled via the ST7789V2 display driver over an SPI interface. You need to use a compatible graphics library such as TFT_eSPI for Arduino, LVGL for advanced GUIs, or the display driver in ESP-IDF. Initialize the display with the correct SPI pins, resolution, and color mode (16-bit RGB565 is common). The board's design routes the display SPI signals internally, saving your GPIOs for other uses.