CircuitPython 6.0.0 Alpha 1

This is the first alpha release of CircuitPython 6.0.0. It is a renumbered version of 5.4.0 because i2cslave module and class have been renamed to i2cperipheral. It is alpha because we may remove or rename additional APIs. It is relatively stable.

Feature-wise, this stable release adds basic lower power support when in time.sleep() and initial ESP32-S2 support. The lower power work changed time keeping and may have introduced bugs. Please use 5.3.0 if you need a stable version of CircuitPython.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 5.4.0 Beta 1

• Added sdioio and sdcardio for native SDCard support. Available on SAMD51 and spresense. Thanks to @jepler and @kamtom480.
• Added busio support to ESP32-S2. Thanks to @tannewt
• Add support for SAME54. Thanks to @jepler
• Add global navigation satellite system (gnss) support for Spresense. Thanks to @kamtom480
• Improved ESP32-S2 performance. Thanks to @tannewt and @DavePutz
• Updated ulab thanks to @jepler and @v923z
• Fix time.sleep() after it has been ctrl-c'd. Thanks to @DavePutz
• Fix microcontroller.cpu.temperature read hang. Thanks to @dhalbert
• Fix ScanEntry prefix matching when any=False. Thanks to @dhalbert
• Fixed port D pins on STM32 LQFP64 boards. Thanks to @hierophect
• Fixed I2C timing on STM32 F7 and H7. Thanks to @hierophect
• Fixed display refresh when changing palette transparency. Thanks to @DavePutz
• Meowbit build is now UF2 rather than a bin. Thanks to @hierophect
• Documentation improvements thanks to @AndrewR-L
• Improved Dutch, German, Brazilian Portuguese and Spanish translations. Thanks to @buchen, @fede2cr, @ryevertigo, and @wtuemura.

Full commit log is here.

Breaking changes since 5.x

• i2cslave is now i2cperipheral and the class in it is changed as well.

New boards since 5.4.0 Beta 1

• Seeeduino Wio Terminal Thanks to @ansonhe97
• Atmel SAME54 Xplained Thanks to @jepler
• Loc Ber M4 Thanks for @florin-trutiu
• UnexpectedMaker FeatherS2 Thanks to @tannewt and @UnexpectedMaker

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• pulseio.PulseIn isn't reliable on SAMD21. #3049
• Performance has dropped since 5.3.0 due to excessive background work. #2929
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed since 5.4.0 Beta 1, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @ansonhe97, @buchen, @DavePutz, @deshipu, @dhalbert, @fede2cr, @florin-trutiu, @hierophect, @jepler, @jerryneedell, @kamtom480, @kattni, @k0d, @ladyada, @PTS93, @rhooper, @sommersoft, @v923z, @wtuemura and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here) or sponsoring MicroPython on GitHub.

Translations

One important feature of CircuitPython is translated control and error messages. With the help of fellow open source project Weblate, we're making it even easier to add or improve translations. Sign in with an existing account such as Github, Google or Facebook and start contributing through a simple web interface. No forks or pull requests needed!

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.

CircuitPython 5.4.0 Beta 1

This is the second beta release of CircuitPython 5.4.0. This release adds basic lower power support when in time.sleep(). The lower power work changed time keeping and may have introduced bugs. Please use 5.3.0 if you need a stable version of CircuitPython.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 5.4.0 Beta 0

• New port for the ESP32-S2. Thanks to @tannewt, @jerryneedell, @jepler
• New countio module to count pulses. Thanks to @LearnWeaver
• New watchdog module to control built in WatchDog. Only on nRF52840 currently. Thanks to @xobs
• New vectorio module for native displayio shapes. Thanks to @WarriorOfWire
• New pre-commit hooks. Thanks to @Flameeyes
• Native module docs are now Python stubs. Thanks to @dherrada, @sommersoft and @tannewt
• Add one directional UART support to iMX RT. Thanks to @hierophect
• Add negative step support to PixelBuf. Thanks to @dunkmann00
• Add support for anonymous BLE advertising. Thanks to @xobs
• Add support for REPL over debug UART. Only on STM32. Thanks to @k0d
• Add bytearray.decode() for improved CPython compatibility. Thanks to @theacodes
• Fix garbled audio playback when voice 0 is stopped. Thanks to @jepler
• Fix timekeeping on Spresence. Thanks to @kamtom480
• Fix exception when no bus is found to match other ports (and be compatible with find pin combo scripts.) Thanks to @arturo182
• Fix pulseio deinit issue on SAMD. Thanks to @DavePutz
• Fix USB race condition on SAMD. Thanks to @hathach
• Fix microcontroller.cpu.temperature crash on iMX RT. Thanks to @arturo182
• Fix gamepad and gamepadshift after lower power changes. Thanks to @jepler
• Increase max SPI speed on iMX RT. Thanks to @arturo182
• Allow setting RGBW pixels with RGB value. Thanks to @rhooper
• Update ulab. Thanks to @jepler and @v923z
• Clock configuration improvements on STM and iMX RT. Thanks to @hierophect
• Add support for GD25S512MD flash chip. Thanks to @bd34n
• New translations for Czech (cs) and Dutch (nl). Thanks to @DustinWatts, @vooralfred, @dronecz and @jepler.
• Improved German, French and Swedish translations. Thanks to @bergdahl, @aberwag, @dglaude, Thomas Friehoff, @PTS93, and @jepler.

Full commit log is here.

New boards since 5.4.0 Beta 0

• AloriumTech Evo M51 Thanks to @jpecor
• Fluff M0 Thanks to @deshipu
• PyCubed MRAM Thanks to @maholli
• Espressif Saola 1 w/WROVER Thanks to @tannewt
• Espressif Saola 1 w/WROOM Thanks to @tannewt
• HiiBot BlueFi Thanks to @BradChan
• Nice Nano Thanks to @Nicell

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed since 5.4.0 Beta 0, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @aberwag, @arturo182, @bd34n, @BradChan, @DavePutz, @deshipu, @dglaude, @dhalbert, @dunkmann00, @Flameeyes, @hathach, @hierophect, @jepler, @jerryneedell, @JoeBakalor, @jpecor, @kamtom480, @kattni, @k0d, @ladyada, @LearnWeaver, @maholli, @mew-cx, @Nicell, @PTS93, @rhooper, @sommersoft, @spkuehl, @Teknikio, @theacodes, Thomas Friehoff, @v923z, @WarriorOfWire, @xiongyihui, @xobs and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here).

Translations

One important feature of CircuitPython is translated control and error messages. With the help of fellow open source project Weblate, we're making it even easier to add or improve translations. Sign in with an existing account such as Github, Google or Facebook and start contributing through a simple web interface. No forks or pull requests needed!

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.

CircuitPython 5.4.0 Beta 0

This is the first beta release of CircuitPython 5.4.0. This release adds basic lower power support when in time.sleep(). The lower power work changed time keeping and may have introduced bugs. Please use 5.3.0 if you need a stable version of CircuitPython.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 5.3.0

• Add sleep support while time.sleep() on ports except CXD56 and LiteX. Thanks to @tannewt
• ujson.load can now use mp_stream objects like busio.UART. Thanks to @WarriorOfWire
• rgbmatrix now supported on STM32F4. Thanks to @jepler
• aesio added for C level AES. Thanks to @xobs
• displayio enabled on STM32H7 boards. Thanks to @hierophect
• One directional SPI now supported on IMX RT. Thanks to @hierophect and @arturo182
• Added empty Swedish translations. (Try our new Weblate site to add and improve translations.) Thanks @jepler
• _pixelbuf.colorwheel color order fixed. Thanks to @kattni
• PacketBuffer reliability improved. Thanks to @dhalbert
  • packet_size is deprecated in favor of incoming_packet_length.
  • outpoing_packet_length added so calling code can split input appropriately.
• ulab updated. Removed from espruino_pico and espruino_pico due to space. Thanks to @v923z and @jepler
  • Adds ulab.compare.clip.
• os and pulseio enabled on STM32F7. Thanks to @k0d
• Pinout of Teknikio Bluebird pinout updated for newer rev. Thanks to @JoeBakalor
• Itaca uChip now has .bin files as well as .uf2. Thanks to @mew-cx
• STATUS2 is no longer read for SPI Flashes with single status bytes. Thanks to @bd34n
• Doc fixes. Thanks to @rhooper and @spkuehl

Full commit log is here.

New boards since 5.3.0

• Teensy 4.1 Thanks to @tannewt
• Makerdairy Pitaya Go Thanks to @xiongyihui
• Simmel Thanks to @xobs
• Nordic PCA10100 Thanks to @xobs
• OpenMV H7 Thanks to @hierophect
• STM32F746 Nucleo Thanks to @k0d
• STM32F746 Discovery Thanks to @k0d

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed since 5.3.0, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @arturo182, @bd34n, @DavePutz, @dhalbert, @hathach, @hierophect, @jepler, @JoeBakalor, @kattni, @k0d, @ladyada, @mew-cx, @rhooper, @spkuehl, @Teknikio, @theacodes, @TG-Techie, @v923z, @WarriorOfWire, @xiongyihui, @xobs and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here).

Translations

One important feature of CircuitPython is translated control and error messages. With the help of fellow open source project Weblate, we're making it even easier to add or improve translations. Sign in with an existing account such as Github, Google or Facebook and start contributing through a simple web interface. No forks or pull requests needed!

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.

CircuitPython 5.3.0

This is CircuitPython 5.3.0, the first 5.3.x stable release. This release adds support for 3 new boards, and the RGBMatrix driver for RGB LED matrices. See below for a more detailed list.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 5.2.0

• Add support for RGB Matrix displays (#2706, #2775), thanks @jepler @PaintYourDragon
• Add a fill method to displayio.Bitmap (#2756), thanks @caternuson
• Make the colors used by the stage library compatible with those used in the displayio library (#2777), thanks @deshipu
• Multiple improvements to the STM32 port (#2735, #2788), thanks @k0d, @hierophect
• Improvements to the litex port (#2768), thanks @xobs
• Improvements to ulab (#2767), thanks @v923z, @jepler
• Use "checkout@v2" in the circuitpython build process (#2765), thanks @jepler
• Fix the maximum keycode in keyboard HID descriptor (#2764), thanks @dhalbert
• Fix bad submodule patk (#2763), thanks @larsks
• Add the NFC Copy Cat board (#2758), thanks @sabas1080
• Use Sphinx 3 to build the documentation (#2757), thanks @sommersoft

Full commit log is here.

3 New boards since 5.2.0

• nfc_copy_cat
• nucleo_f767zi
• nucleo_h743zi_2

Breaking Changes and Deprecations from 4.x

• 5.0.0 improves our internal filesystem definitions and may overwrite your existing files so make sure to back them up before updating!
• The bleio module has been renamed to _bleio to indicate that it is meant to be used only for writing BLE libraries, and that its API may change between CircuitPython minor versions. There are many incompatible changes in _bleio since 4.0.0. Please use the latest adafruit_ble library for end-user BLE programming.
• The displayio refresh API has been revamped to be simpler. wait_for_frame and refresh_soon have been removed. In both 4.x and 5.x, auto refresh will automatically refresh the display so they can be removed. The new auto_refresh property and refresh() function can be used to control when the screen refreshes and at a specific rate.
• Moved audioio.Mixer to audiomixer.Mixer, which is only available on M4 microcontrollers. Moved audioio.RawSample, and audioio.WaveFile to the new module audiocore. However, for backwards compatibility, they are still available in audioio. They will be removed from audioio in 6.0.0. Thanks @jepler.
• Added I2C.writeto_then_readfrom(). Deprecate stop= arg which will be removed in 6.x. Use I2C.writeto_then_readfrom() instead.
• Removed re from Circuit Playground Express Display build.
• Removed gamepad from Circuit Playground Express Crickit build.

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @caternuson, @deshipu, @dhalbert, @heirophect, @jepler, @tannewt, @xobs, @k0d, @v923z, @larsks, @sabas1080, and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here).

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.

CircuitPython 5.3.0-rc.0

This is CircuitPython 5.3.0-rc0, the latest minor revision of CircuitPython, and a release candidate. If this release does not have show-stopper issues, it will be re-released as 5.3.0, the first 5.3.x stable release. This release adds support for 3 new boards, adds the RGBMatrix driver for RGB LED matrices. See below for a more detailed list.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 5.2.0

• Add support for RGB Matrix displays (#2706, #2775), thanks @jepler @PaintYourDragon
• Add a fill method to displayio.Bitmap (#2756), thanks @caternuson
• Make the colors used by the stage library compatible with those used in the displayio library (#2777), thanks @deshipu
• Multiple improvements to the STM32 port (#2735, #2788), thanks @k0d, @hierophect
• Improvements to the litex port (#2768), thanks @xobs
• Improvements to ulab (#2767), thanks @v923z, @jepler
• Use "checkout@v2" in the circuitpython build process (#2765), thanks @jepler
• Fix the maximum keycode in keyboard HID descriptor (#2764), thanks @dhalbert
• Fix bad submodule patk (#2763), thanks @larsks
• Add the NFC Copy Cat board (#2758), thanks @sabas1080
• Use Sphinx 3 to build the documentation (#2757), thanks @sommersoft

Full commit log is here.

3 New boards since 5.2.0

• nfc_copy_cat
• nucleo_f767zi
• nucleo_h743zi_2

Breaking Changes and Deprecations from 4.x

• 5.0.0 improves our internal filesystem definitions and may overwrite your existing files so make sure to back them up before updating!
• The bleio module has been renamed to _bleio to indicate that it is meant to be used only for writing BLE libraries, and that its API may change between CircuitPython minor versions. There are many incompatible changes in _bleio since 4.0.0. Please use the latest adafruit_ble library for end-user BLE programming.
• The displayio refresh API has been revamped to be simpler. wait_for_frame and refresh_soon have been removed. In both 4.x and 5.x, auto refresh will automatically refresh the display so they can be removed. The new auto_refresh property and refresh() function can be used to control when the screen refreshes and at a specific rate.
• Moved audioio.Mixer to audiomixer.Mixer, which is only available on M4 microcontrollers. Moved audioio.RawSample, and audioio.WaveFile to the new module audiocore. However, for backwards compatibility, they are still available in audioio. They will be removed from audioio in 6.0.0. Thanks @jepler.
• Added I2C.writeto_then_readfrom(). Deprecate stop= arg which will be removed in 6.x. Use I2C.writeto_then_readfrom() instead.
• Removed re from Circuit Playground Express Display build.
• Removed gamepad from Circuit Playground Express Crickit build.

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @caternuson, @deshipu, @dhalbert, @heirophect, @jepler, @tannewt, @xobs, @k0d, @v923z, @larsks, @sabas1080, and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here).

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.

CircuitPython 5.2.0

5.2.0

This is CircuitPython 5.2.0, it features a new port to LiteX, a Python powered hardware description system used to define a soft System on Chip (SoC) that is then loaded into a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA). There are a few minor fixes and improvements over 5.1.0 as well.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 5.1.0

• Add LiteX port for CircuitPython on an FPGA. Thanks to @xobs.
• Add support for additional baudrates for nRF UART (including MIDI's 31250). Thanks to @billmoser
• Add support for MX25L51245G SPI Flash. Thanks to @bd34n and @ladyada
• Add displayio support for inverted backlights. Thanks to @siddacious and @tannewt
• Add support for phase and polarity to FourWire as kwargs. Thanks to @tannewt
• Fix iMX RT UART read length. Thanks to @arturo182 and @theacodes
• Fix iMX RT neopixel timing. Thanks to @arturo182
• Fix reading pixel values from Pixelbuf. Thanks to @jepler.
• Fix _bleio.PacketBuffer when in server mode. Required for BLE Midi. Thanks to @tannewt

Full commit log is here.

5 New boards since 5.1.0

• Fomu Thanks to @xobs
• ThunderPack Thanks to @jgillick
• Winterbloom Big Honking Button Thanks to @theacodes
• 8086 Consultancy Commander Thanks to @burtyb
• BDMicro Vina M0 Thanks to @bd34n

Breaking Changes and Deprecations from 4.x

• 5.0.0 improves our internal filesystem definitions and may overwrite your existing files so make sure to back them up before updating!
• The bleio module has been renamed to _bleio to indicate that it is meant to be used only for writing BLE libraries, and that its API may change between CircuitPython minor versions. There are many incompatible changes in _bleio since 4.0.0. Please use the latest adafruit_ble library for end-user BLE programming.
• The displayio refresh API has been revamped to be simpler. wait_for_frame and refresh_soon have been removed. In both 4.x and 5.x, auto refresh will automatically refresh the display so they can be removed. The new auto_refresh property and refresh() function can be used to control when the screen refreshes and at a specific rate.
• Moved audioio.Mixer to audiomixer.Mixer, which is only available on M4 microcontrollers. Moved audioio.RawSample, and audioio.WaveFile to the new module audiocore. However, for backwards compatibility, they are still available in audioio. They will be removed from audioio in 6.0.0. Thanks @jepler.
• Added I2C.writeto_then_readfrom(). Deprecate stop= arg which will be removed in 6.x. Use I2C.writeto_then_readfrom() instead.
• Removed re from Circuit Playground Express Display build.
• Removed gamepad from Circuit Playground Express Crickit build.

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• ulab can give erroneous results when sorting 2D arrays
• ulab can give erroneous results with expressions like a[a<1]
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @arturo182, @bd34n, @billmoser, @burtyb, @caternuson, @dhalbert, @dpgeorge, @hierophect, @jepler, @jgillick, @ladyada, @siddacious, @sommersoft, @tannewt, @theacodes, @xobs, and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here).

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.

CircuitPython 5.1.0

5.1.0

This is CircuitPython 5.1.0, the latest minor revision of CircuitPython and the first 5.1.x stable release. It is identical to 5.1.0-rc.0.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 5.0.0

• ulab, a numpy-like fast vector module (#2583 and others). Thanks @v923z, @jepler
  • Perform mathematical operations 10-50x as fast as raw CircuitPython
  • Enabled on almost all boards except those with samd21 microcontrollers
  • Guide: https://learn.adafruit.com/ulab-crunch-numbers-fast-with-circuitpython/overview
• Support for "f-strings", a more convenient way to build strings dynamically. (#2690) Thanks @klardotsh, @jepler
  • Enabled on almost all boards except those with samd21 microcontrollers.
• mpy-cross signals certain syntax errors better (#2670). Thanks @jepler
• nRF now properly handles unaligned disk reads (#2662). Thanks @jepler
• New builds of unix port and mpy-cross facilitate testing (#2672). Thanks @jepler
• STM port: add PulseOut (#2668). Thanks @hierophect
• STM port: add PulseIn (#2697). Thanks @hierophect
• STM port: fix some GPIO clocking issues (#2680). Thanks @hierophect
• STM port: rename directory to reflect the scope of the port (#2699). Thanks @hierophect
• STM port: change ST drivers submodule to match TinyUSB (#2701). Thanks @hierophect
• Winterbloom Sol: Disable USB HID descriptor (#2681). Thanks @theacodes
• Support importing native modules in native packages (#2657). Thanks @tannewt
• Document proximity and sound_level in design guide (#2684). Thanks @caternuson
• Improve argument validation in displayio (#2666). thanks @dhalbert
• Add TG-Watch02A board (#2695). Thanks @TG-Techie
• Add UARTLogger2 board (#2705). Thanks @NightSkySK
• Fix DotStar status LED init (#2712). Thanks @tannewt

Breaking Changes and Deprecations from 4.x

• 5.0.0 improves our internal filesystem definitions and may overwrite your existing files so make sure to back them up before updating!
• The bleio module has been renamed to _bleio to indicate that it is meant to be used only for writing BLE libraries, and that its API may change between CircuitPython minor versions. There are many incompatible changes in _bleio since 4.0.0. Please use the latest adafruit_ble library for end-user BLE programming.
• The displayio refresh API has been revamped to be simpler. wait_for_frame and refresh_soon have been removed. In both 4.x and 5.x, auto refresh will automatically refresh the display so they can be removed. The new auto_refresh property and refresh() function can be used to control when the screen refreshes and at a specific rate.
• Moved audioio.Mixer to audiomixer.Mixer, which is only available on M4 microcontrollers. Moved audioio.RawSample, and audioio.WaveFile to the new module audiocore. However, for backwards compatibility, they are still available in audioio. They will be removed from audioio in 6.0.0. Thanks @jepler.
• Added I2C.writeto_then_readfrom(). Deprecate stop= arg which will be removed in 6.x. Use I2C.writeto_then_readfrom() instead.
• Removed re from Circuit Playground Express Display build.
• Removed gamepad from Circuit Playground Express Crickit build.

2 New boards since 5.0.0

• TG-Watch02A
• UARTLogger2

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• ulab can give erroneous results when sorting 2D arrays
• ulab can give erroneous results with expressions like a[a<1]
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @dhalbert, @jepler, @hierophect, @ladyada, @TG-Techie, @theacodes, @sommersoft, @tannewt, @v923z and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here).

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.

CircuitPython 5.1.0-rc.0

5.1.0-rc.0

This is CircuitPython 5.1.0-rc0, the latest minor revision of CircuitPython, and a release candidate. If this release does not have show-stopper issues, it will be re-released as 5.1.0, the first 5.1.x stable release.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 5.0.0

• ulab, a numpy-like fast vector module (#2583 and others). Thanks @v923z, @jepler
  • Perform mathematical operations 10-50x as fast as raw CircuitPython
  • Enabled on almost all boards except those with samd21 microcontrollers
  • Guide: https://learn.adafruit.com/ulab-crunch-numbers-fast-with-circuitpython/overview
• Support for "f-strings", a more convenient way to build strings dynamically. (#2690) Thanks @klardotsh, @jepler
  • Enabled on almost all boards except those with samd21 microcontrollers.
• mpy-cross signals certain syntax errors better (#2670). Thanks @jepler
• nRF now properly handles unaligned disk reads (#2662). Thanks @jepler
• New builds of unix port and mpy-cross facilitate testing (#2672). Thanks @jepler
• STM port: add PulseOut (#2668). Thanks @hierophect
• STM port: add PulseIn (#2697). Thanks @hierophect
• STM port: fix some GPIO clocking issues (#2680). Thanks @hierophect
• STM port: rename directory to reflect the scope of the port (#2699). Thanks @hierophect
• STM port: change ST drivers submodule to match TinyUSB (#2701). Thanks @hierophect
• Winterbloom Sol: Disable USB HID descriptor (#2681). Thanks @theacodes
• Support importing native modules in native packages (#2657). Thanks @tannewt
• Document proximity and sound_level in design guide (#2684). Thanks @caternuson
• Improve argument validation in displayio (#2666). thanks @dhalbert
• Add TG-Watch02A board (#2695). Thanks @TG-Techie
• Add UARTLogger2 board (#2705). Thanks @NightSkySK
• Fix DotStar status LED init (#2712). Thanks @tannewt

Breaking Changes and Deprecations from 4.x

• 5.0.0 improves our internal filesystem definitions and may overwrite your existing files so make sure to back them up before updating!
• The bleio module has been renamed to _bleio to indicate that it is meant to be used only for writing BLE libraries, and that its API may change between CircuitPython minor versions. There are many incompatible changes in _bleio since 4.0.0. Please use the latest adafruit_ble library for end-user BLE programming.
• The displayio refresh API has been revamped to be simpler. wait_for_frame and refresh_soon have been removed. In both 4.x and 5.x, auto refresh will automatically refresh the display so they can be removed. The new auto_refresh property and refresh() function can be used to control when the screen refreshes and at a specific rate.
• Moved audioio.Mixer to audiomixer.Mixer, which is only available on M4 microcontrollers. Moved audioio.RawSample, and audioio.WaveFile to the new module audiocore. However, for backwards compatibility, they are still available in audioio. They will be removed from audioio in 6.0.0. Thanks @jepler.
• Added I2C.writeto_then_readfrom(). Deprecate stop= arg which will be removed in 6.x. Use I2C.writeto_then_readfrom() instead.
• Removed re from Circuit Playground Express Display build.
• Removed gamepad from Circuit Playground Express Crickit build.

2 New boards since 5.0.0

• TG-Watch02A
• UARTLogger2

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @dhalbert, @jepler, @hierophect, @ladyada, @TG-Techie, @theacodes, @sommersoft, @tannewt, @v923z and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here).

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.

CircuitPython 5.0.0

5.0.0

This is CircuitPython 5.0.0, the latest major revision of CircuitPython, and is a new stable release.

5.0.0 features many improvements and enhancements to displayio, including grayscale OLED and e-paper displays, extensive additions and improvements to BLE support, support for the STM32F4, iMX RT10xx and Sony Spresense microcontroller families, and PWM audio support.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New features and improvements since 4.1.2

• Many improvements to displayio
  • Revamped refresh API
  • Grayscale OLED support
  • e-paper display support
  • Groups can be hidden
• Many _bleio improvements
  • Renamed bleio to _bleio to emphasize one should use the BLE library and that _bleio's API may change without a major CircuitPython version bump
  • Central support
  • Client support
  • Pairing and bonding support
• Many audio fixes and improvements
  • MP3 decoding support
  • PWM audio out
  • nRF52840 I2S support
  • Mixer moved to audiomixer and now supports per-voice volume
• Finalized _pixelbuf API for RGB pixel speedups
• Additional chip families with beta support:
  • STM32F4
  • iMX RT 10xx
  • CXD56 (Sony Spresense)
• Added Korean translation
• Many translation improvements

Breaking Changes and Deprecations from 4.x

• 5.0.0 improves our internal filesystem definitions and may overwrite your existing files so make sure to back them up before updating!
• The bleio module has been renamed to _bleio to indicate that it is meant to be used only for writing BLE libraries, and that its API may change between CircuitPython minor versions. There are many incompatible changes in _bleio since 4.0.0. Please use the latest adafruit_ble library for end-user BLE programming.
• The displayio refresh API has been revamped to be simpler. wait_for_frame and refresh_soon have been removed. In both 4.x and 5.x, auto refresh will automatically refresh the display so they can be removed. The new auto_refresh property and refresh() function can be used to control when the screen refreshes and at a specific rate.
• Moved audioio.Mixer to audiomixer.Mixer, which is only available on M4s. Moved audioio.RawSample, and audioio.WaveFile to the new module audiocore. However, for backwards compatibility, they are still available in audioio. They will be removed from audioio in 6.0.0. Thanks @jepler.
• Added I2C.writeto_then_readfrom(). Deprecate stop= arg which will be removed in 6.x. Use I2C.writeto_then_readfrom() instead.
• Removed re from CircuitPlayground Express Display build.
• Removed gamepad from CircuitPlayground Express Crickit build.

51 New boards since 4.1.2

• Adafruit Bluefruit Sense
• Adafruit Circuit Playground Bluefruit
• Adafruit Circuit Playground Express with displayio
• Adafruit Clue nRF52840 Express
• Adafruit Edge Badge
• Adafruit Feather M7 1011
• Adafruit Feather STM32F405 Express
• Adafruit Itsy Bitsy nRF52840 Express
• Adafruit Metro nRF52840 Express
• Adafruit Monster M4SK
• Adafruit PyPortal Pynt
• Adafruit PyPortal Titano
• Alethea Flowers Winterbloom Sol
• ARAMCON Badge 2019
• Arduino NANO 33 BLE
• Arduino NANO 33 IoT
• arturo182 Feather MIMXRT1011
• arturo182 Feather MIMXRT1062
• arturo182 Serpente
• Cedar Grove Studios StringCar M0 Express
• Elecrow PYB Nano v2
• Espruino Pico
• Espruino WiFi
• George Robotics Pyboard
• keithp.com Snekboard
• KittenBot Meowbit
• Null Bytes Labs CircuitBrains Basic
• Null Bytes Labs CircuitBrains Deluxe
• NXP MIMXRT1010 Eval Kit
• NXP MIMXRT1020 Eval Kit
• NXP MIMXRT1060 Eval Kit
• n°Garage Ndbit6
• Oddly Specific Objects Open Book
• OSHWA Open Hardware Summit 2020 Badge
• PJRC Teensy 4.0
• Radomir Dopieralski PewPew M4
• Robot Exploration Lab PyCubed
• Robotics Masters Robo HAT MM1 M4
• Seeed Seeeduino XIAO
• Sarfata shIRtty
• Sony Spresense
• SparkFun Qwiic Micro w/o Flash
• SparkFun Qwiic Micro w/Flash
• SparkFun SAMD51 Thing Plus
• ST STM32F407 Discovery Kit
• ST STM32F411 Discovery Kit
• ST STM32F412 Discovery Kit
• Teknikio Bluebird
• TZT STM32F411CE Black Pill
• XinaBox CC03
• XinaBox CS11

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @3ach, @adafruit, @AdinAck, @aine, @albang, @alexwhittemore, @AndrewTribble, @anecdata, @anneb, @anne B, @AnthonyDiGirolamo, @Anton-2, @antonio, @ardnew, @arturo182, @ATMakersBill, @becky-lou, @bitbank Mr. Optimization, @bmeisels, @brentru, @C47D, @callmeraffiq, @CarlFK, @carternuson, @cater, @caternuson, @cbyr2401, @CedarGroveStudios, @cgrover, @charlesburnaford, @_cli_ninja, @codeNsolder, @CollinCunningham, @cr1901, @CSchmitz, @CudaCoreRoo, @curt Olson, @dalegrover, @Dar, @darkmusic, @Dar-Scott, @dastels, @davep, @DavePutz, @DavidGlaude, @dcbricetti, @ddiminnie, @deanm1278, @deshipu, @devoh, @dglaude, @dhalbert, @dherrada, @diegoMini+, @dmgrime, @dmopalmer, @dpgeorge, @DrewFustini, @DudeImOnly6, @Duewester, @dunkmann00, @dhalbert, @edspark, @fede2, @fgallaire, @FoamyGuy, @Frank.H, @gallaugher, @geekguy, @gotfredsen, @graham, @hathach, @hexthat, @hierophect, @hukuzatuna, @hybotics, @iayanpahwa, @iot49, @iraytrace, @jackdanielsmurphy, @jamesbowman, @jasonp, @jedgarpark, @jepler, @Jerryn, @jerryneedell, @JoeBakalor, @joey, @joeycastillo, @josh, @jp, @jpecor, @KalbeAbbas, @kamtom480, @kattni, @kdb424, @kevinjwalters, @kickbutts, @KingerNorth, @KittenCanaveral, @kjw, @klardotsh, @ladyada, @lgnashold, @loganwedwards, @madbodger, @maholli, @makermelissa, @marius_450, @Marius-450, @matthewnewberg, @MikeB, @MrCertainly, @mr. Certainly, @Mr-Coxall, @mscosti, @mubes, @mwelling, @mytechnotalent, @ndGarage, @n...

5.0.0 Release Candidate 1

This is a 5.0.0 Release Candidate -- please test

This is release 5.0.0-rc.1 (Release candidate 1). If this release does not have show-stopper issues, it will be re-released as 5.0.0, the first 5.x.x stable release.

If you find a bug please check the current known issues and file an issue if something isn't already known.

5.0.0

5.0.0 is the latest major revision of CircuitPython. It features many improvements and enhancements to displayio, including grayscale OLED and e-paper displays, extensive additions and improvements to BLE support, support for the STM32F4, iMX RT10xx and Sony Spresense microcontroller families, and PWM audio support.

Download from circuitpython.org

Downloads are available from circuitpython.org! The site makes it easy to select the correct file and language for your board. The downloads page is here. Downloads are no longer available from the GitHub release pages because of the large number of files for each release.

Installation

To install follow the instructions in our new Welcome to CircuitPython! guide. To install the latest libraries, see this page in that guide.

Try the latest version of the Mu editor for creating and editing your CircuitPython programs and for easy access to the CircuitPython serial connection (the REPL).

New Features, Updates, and Fixes Since 5.0.0-rc.0

i.MX

• Fix I2C clock speed on i.MX boards. Thanks @mubes.
• Freeze adafruit_requests and adafruit_esp32spi libraries into mimxrt1011 builds to save RAM. Thanks @arturo182.

Other board-specific fixes

• Arduino M0 boards now have both .bin and .uf2 downloads available. Thanks @dhalbert, and thanks to @fgallaire for pointing out the issue.

Build infrastructure

• Release download links available at https://circuitpython.org/downloads now point to AWS S3 instead of to GitHub release assets. Thanks @dhalbert, @jwcooper, and @sommersoft.

New Boards

Find downloads for all boards, including these, at https://circuitpython.org/downloads.

New Since 5.0.0-rc.0

None.

Breaking Changes and Deprecations from 4.x

• 5.0.0 improves our internal filesystem definitions and may overwrite your existing files so make sure to back them up before updating!
• The bleio module has been renamed to _bleio to indicate that it is meant to be used only for writing BLE libraries, and that its API may change between CircuitPython minor versions. There are many incompatible changes in _bleio since 4.0.0. Please use the latest adafruit_ble library for end-user BLE programming.
• The displayio refresh API has been revamped to be simpler. wait_for_frame and refresh_soon have been removed. In both 4.x and 5.x, auto refresh will automatically refresh the display so they can be removed. The new auto_refresh property and refresh() function can be used to control when the screen refreshes and at a specific rate.
• Moved audioio.Mixer to audiomixer.Mixer, which is only available on M4s. Moved audioio.RawSample, and audioio.WaveFile to the new module audiocore. However, for backwards compatibility, they are still available in audioio. They will be removed from audioio in 6.0.0. Thanks @jepler.
• Added I2C.writeto_then_readfrom(). Deprecate stop= arg which will be removed in 6.x. Use I2C.writeto_then_readfrom() instead.
• Removed re from CircuitPlayground Express Display build.
• Removed gamepad from CircuitPlayground Express Crickit build.

Known Issues

• displayio operations that read from an SD card (e.g., OnDiskBitmap) will interfere with other SD card operations and can cause lockup. To work around this problem, do not read or write files on the SD while the display is updating, and vice versa.
• See https://github.com/adafruit/circuitpython/issues for other issues.@

Thanks

Thank you to all who used, tested, contributed, helped out, and participated on GitHub and/or Discord, including @arturo182, @bmeisels, @DavePutz, @dhalbert, @fgallaire, @hierophect, @jamesbowman, @jepler, @ladyada, @lgnashold, @maholli, @makermelissa, @mubes, @neubauek, @pdp7, @rhooper, @tannewt, @ATMakersBill, @AndrewTribble, @anne B, @antonio, @cgrover, @CarlFK, @curt Olson, @Dar, @davep, @DavidGlaude, @DudeImOnly6, @Duewester, @KingerNorth, @SouthernDragon, @TG-Techie, @ThomasAtBBTF, @adafruit, @anecdata, @brentru, @cater, @charlesburnaford, @codeNSolder, @deshipu, @dherrada, @diegoMini+, @ednl, @FoamyGuy, @geekguy, @graham, @hexthat, @jasonp, @Jerryn, @kattni, @kjw, @madbodger, @marius_450, @mscosti, @ntoll, @siddacious, @sommersoft, @stargirl, @timvictor, @v923z and surely more we have missed. Join us on the Discord chat to collaborate.

Documentation

Documentation is available in readthedocs.io.

Here are all the changes since 5.0.0-rc.0.

This release is based on MicroPython 1.9.4 @25ae98f. Support upstream MicroPython by purchasing a PyBoard (from Adafruit here).

Troubleshooting

Check out this guide for info on common problems with CircuitPython. If you are still having issues, then post to the Adafruit Support Forums and join Discord.

Assets

Builds are no longer stored as assets on this release page, because there are too many of them. Please see the Download from circuitpython.org section above.