ESP32 SD Card Speedup With a Couple of Lines of Code - In this video, we explore the disappointingly slow data writing speed of the ESP32 when reading and writing to an SD card in our TinyTV project. With 500 kilobytes/sec reading and a dismal 270 kilobytes/sec writing, we embark on an adventure to find a solution. After ditching the Arduino code in favor of IDF functions, we discover incredible improvements. Seeing potential risks, I propose a truly bonkers plan: using a IC to interface SD cards with USB with a USB multiplexer switch and another switch to alternate between ESP32 and the GL823. This could be a total disaster, but I'm game for the challenge. Stay tuned to see if it works out!

Streaming Video and Audio over WiFi with the ESP32 - In this video, we dive into a hardware hack combining several components to create my version of the TinyTV, complete with a remote control, and video streaming over Wi-Fi. We challenge the speed of image display, using different libraries and tweaking performance for optimal results. We explore Motion JPEG or MJPEG to decode and draw images quickly, and even reach about 28 frames per second. We also catered audio using 8-bit PCM data at 16kHz, and deal with syncing both video and audio streams. Finally, we add some interactive elements allowing us to change channels and control volumes, with a classic static animation thrown in for good measure. There's a few hiccups along the way, but that's part of the fun, right?

ESP32-TV Version 3 - Is it done? - In today's project update, I'm excited to share that my ESP32-TV boards, fresh from PCBWay, are operating flawlessly! We've successfully dealt with the USB2244 conflict with the ESP32, and the battery charging issue is now a thing of the past. We've also made some awesome additions like a microphone to our board. The real MVP though, is the USB2244 chip that’s given us significantly improved read/write speeds - making it perfect for handling video files. Next on the agenda, figuring out a solution for the non-standard display connector. As ever, there’s progress, there’s problems, and there's David Bowie animated gifs!

Streaming Video From an SD Card on the ESP32. - In this video, we successfully navigated the convoluted process of setting up movie file playback from an ESP32 with an SD card. There were a few bumps along the way, such as confusing USB data pins and the intricacies of various video container formats, but our quirky PCBWay board came through. Discussed an ingenious method of creating a simple custom video container format with ffmpeg that can be effortlessly parsed by the ESP32. And yes, even though the tiny TV guys use AVI files, we pushed boundaries and learned a thing or two about list chunks, sub formats, and hex dumps. The result? We achieved smooth audio playback and video frame skipping for an optimal balance. Check out the streaming version on WiFi for more fun!

Can You Spot the Problem? - Buckle up folks, this video is a thrilling one! There's everything from unboxing my new ESP32 TV boards that arrived from PCB Way to discovering some hidden issues. We're talking about some pesky problems, surprises, and even a potential catastrophic error that could've led to a disaster. The main dish is the high-speed SD card access over USB - ultimately achieving a whooping transfer rate! But, the journey is a roller-coaster ride, from the project completely failing initially, to some smart hacks and triumphant moments. All the peripherals worked well, from the display to the sound amplifier and even the infrared receiver. Despite the ups and downs, there's a lot to learn and that's what makes this video exciting! Can't wait to share the improvements I have in mind for turning the prototype into the ultimate all-in-one device. But first, let's address the elephant in the room - an ill-placed diode that's a ticking bomb, because you know, safety first!

ESP32-S3 Hardware SPI on the Adafruit ST7789 - I've had some commenters point out the issue with the slow display updates in my recent Arduino Nano ESP32 video. It turns out, the software SPI of the Adafruit_ST7789 library was the culprit. Lo and behold, the solution is simple - using the hardware SPI constructor of the library. Apparently, this isn't well documented, so I wrote some code to serve as reference for myself and others who might run into the same snags. Trust me, the difference in speed is absolutely bonkers. Check out the video to see the magic in action.

A Faster ESP32 JPEG Decoder? - An intriguing issue appeared in the esp32-tv project that deals with speeding up JPEG file decoding using SIMD (Single Instruction Multiple Data) instructions, showing immense performance boost. However, there were some notable differences in speed when it comes to drawing the images versus simply decoding them. The problem was found to be with the DMA drawing mechanism and the way the new fast library decodes the image all at once. But despite this hiccup, by overlapped decoding and displaying process, a high frame rate can still be achieved. Joined me in this dissecting process and my initial tests showing approximately 40 frames per second display rate, on our journey to find the most efficient way to get images on screens.

ESP32-S3 USBMSC - Can we make it faster? - After lots of tinkering, I've managed to improve the speed of writing to the SD Card of my ESP32-TV considerably, but it's still not as fast as I'd like. The Arduino 'readRaw' and 'writeRaw' functions were the culprits, they can only write one sector at a time! After bypassing this and using IDF functions, writing speed improved by 70%. I also experimented with writing to the SD Card in the background, which ironically yielded even better results. However, it's still slower than I'd like, so I've got a crazy new plan: using a cheap IC (GL823) for SD card interfacing and a USB multiplexer switch to swap connections between ESP32 and GL823. It's a wild ride, but that's how we make progress!

Decoding AVI Files for Fun and... - After some quality time with my ESP32 microcontroller, I've developed a version of the TinyTV and learned a lot about video and audio streaming along the way. Using Python and Wi-Fi technology, I was able to set up the streaming server with audio data, video frames, and metadata. I've can also explored the picture quality challenges of uncompressed image data and learned about MJPEG frames. Together with JPEGDEC for depth decoding, I've managed to effectively use ESP32's dual cores to achieve an inspiring 28 frames per second. Discussing audio sync, storage options and the intricacies of container file formats for video storage led me to the AVI format. The process of reading and processing AVI file headers and the listing subtype 'movi' allowed me to make significant headway in my project. All in all, I'm pretty chuffed with my portable battery powered video player. You can check out my code over on Github!

The PCBs are in production - what have I messed up? - After some stress and trepidation, I finally took the plunge and sent my PCB design off for manufacturing. My design centers around building a large seven-segment clock with LED filaments. Jumping hurdles such as voltages, pin usage, and limiting the load on my power supply, I've settled on the ESP32 as the system's heart and come up with a final circuit design. While doing this, I've quickly realized I could improve my layout and fixed a small mistake. Also, I've prepared for either types of LED filaments - the high-voltage ones or the larger, 3v ones. However, I did bungle up a couple of things on the enable line of the shift registers and board layout. But hey, this is a learning curve, right? Can't wait to get the boards and see what other exciting errors surface!