Over the last year I started getting more interested in hardware again, especially small electronics projects and microcontrollers. Most of my work is in software, but experimenting with different boards like the ESP32 and the Raspberry Pi Pico W has brought me back to the hardware world. It has been fun to see how software and electronics can connect together in real ways. I like building things I can actually hold, not just things on a screen.
It is a little ironic because I originally started college as an electrical engineering major (and took Circuits I and Digital Logic) before switching to industrial engineering and eventually moving fully into software. Now, years later, I am back to reading about circuits, voltages, and components. It feels like everything has come full circle, even if I have to re-learn a lot of the basics.
I have been experimenting with a few different microcontrollers, and each one fits a different purpose for me:
Some of the projects I am exploring involve custom lighting, props, and display pieces. For example, I want to build LED-based desk accessories, controlled lighting systems, sound-reactive lamps, and even themed props like the Juggernog machine replica.
I am currently looking at how to integrate the Pico W or ESP32 into custom PCB designs. Instead of jamming a full development board into a case, I want to design boards where the microcontroller mounts directly to the PCB, making the final product cleaner and more professional. It is a big jump in difficulty, but that is the part I find most exciting.
Even though I enjoy working with these boards, I realized I need a stronger foundation in electronics if I want to design safe and reliable projects. Things like managing power correctly, handling different voltages (3.3V vs 5V), and understanding component values all matter once you move beyond a breadboard. So I picked up the book Practical Electronics for Inventors to learn more about the fundamentals.
It has been helpful to revisit concepts like Ohm’s law, current flow, and reading schematics. Learning these fundamentals again gives me the confidence to eventually design my own carrier boards for the Nano or Pico and understand exactly what is happening in the circuit.
Since getting back into this, I have started building out a small electronics bench to handle both the coding and the assembly side of things:
As I continue swapping between the Pico W, Nano, and ESP32, I will keep documenting my progress here. This is only the beginning of my hardware journey, and I am excited to see where it leads.