Circuit Playground Express
All-in-one ATSAMD21 learning board with 10 NeoPixels, LIS3DH accelerometer, MEMS microphone, speaker with class D amp, IR transmit/receive, 7 capacitive touch pads, and 2MB SPI flash for CircuitPython code storage.
$24.95
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Specifications
Components
ST triple-axis MEMS accelerometer with tap detection and free-fall detection.
MEMS microphone for audio input and sound sensing.
Bus Interfaces
GPIO Map
Overview
The Circuit Playground Express is Adafruit's upgraded educational board, replacing the Classic's ATmega32u4 with the ATSAMD21 ARM Cortex-M0+ running at 48 MHz. The upgrade brings significantly more compute power, 2MB of SPI flash for storing CircuitPython scripts and libraries, and full support for Microsoft MakeCode's drag-and-drop visual programming environment.
The board packs a complete sensor suite: a LIS3DH triple-axis accelerometer with tap and free-fall detection, a MEMS microphone, a phototransistor (light and color sensing), a thermistor, and both infrared transmitter and receiver for remote control and inter-board communication. Ten addressable mini NeoPixels ring the board, and a 7.5mm magnetic speaker with a class D amplifier provides audio output with true analog sound.
Eight alligator-clip friendly pads support capacitive touch and analog input, making this ideal for craft and wearable projects where alligators connect to fruit, foil, or conductive materials. Two push buttons (A and B), one slide switch, and a reset button complete the input options.
Unlike the Classic, the Express supports CircuitPython, MakeCode, Arduino IDE, and code.org CS Discoveries — making it suitable for beginners all the way to experienced developers. The ARM Cortex-M0+ enables more complex projects, particularly audio manipulation and multi-sensor data fusion that would overwhelm an 8-bit AVR.
Use Cases
5Educational Platform
Development boards suitable for teaching programming, electronics, and embedded systems concepts.
Wearable
Body-worn computing devices including smartwatches, fitness bands, and health monitors.
Prototyping
Rapid hardware prototyping and proof-of-concept development with breadboard-friendly form factors and accessible development environments.
STEM Education
Educational kits and boards designed to teach science, technology, engineering, and math concepts through hands-on projects.
CircuitPython Learning
Educational platforms for learning CircuitPython programming with hands-on hardware projects.
Resources
Where to Buy
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