LILYGO T-Dongle S3

Overview

The LILYGO T-Dongle S3 is a USB stick form-factor development board built on the ESP32-S3. Its compact dongle shape allows it to plug directly into USB-A ports, making it suitable for embedded applications that need wireless connectivity without a separate power supply or cable.

Available with or without a 0.96-inch ST7735 IPS LCD (80x160 full-color display), the board ships with 16MB of Flash and leverages the ESP32-S3's native USB controller for communication. Bluetooth 5 and WiFi 802.11 b/g/n are fully supported. A TF card slot is present on the board (note: per documentation, this slot is non-functional in the current hardware revision).

Firmware Compatibility

The T-Dongle S3 supports Arduino IDE, PlatformIO, and MicroPython. The GitHub repository at Xinyuan-LilyGO/T-Dongle-S3 contains pinout references and example sketches. Native USB CDC is available for serial communication without external UART chips.

Flashing Guide

1. Install ESP32-S3 Arduino core via Boards Manager.
2. Plug the T-Dongle S3 into a USB-A port (use an adapter if needed for flashing).
3. Select "ESP32S3 Dev Module" with 16MB Flash and USB CDC On Boot enabled.
4. Hold Boot button while inserting to force USB DFU mode if needed.
5. Upload sketch via Arduino IDE or esptool.