ESP32 boards are great for a number of projects because they often come with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi on board. This means you can use them for projects that require an internet connection, but there are plenty of ESP32 projects that will work even when the internet is down.
Offline connection with Meshtastic
Be part of a decentralized communication network
If you really want an ESP32 project that doesn’t rely on the internet, then this is it. It turns the ESP32 into a true “off-the-grid” communication device that does not require internet access.
You can with an ESP32 based LoRa board Flash the Meshtastic firmwareconnect your phone or computer to your device via Bluetooth, USB or local Wi-Fi and send messages to other Meshtastic nodes. LoRa works by encoding data using a possible radio modulation technique send small amounts of data over long distances with very little force.
Here’s the best part Meshtastic nodes can act as repeaters that can rebroadcast your message, allowing it to travel significant distances as long as there are enough nodes between them. With an inexpensive ESP32, you can build a communication device that can work completely off the grid.
- Brand
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MakerHawk
- Operating system
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Meshtastic
- Ports
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USB-C
- Screen
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Yes
This ESP32 kit includes everything you need to connect to your local Meshtastic network or any other LoRa based technology project. It has an LED display, a 1100 mAH battery and multiple antennas.
Local temperature and humidity sensor
No cloud required
The ESP32 is ideal for a project like building your own smart home sensors. Thanks to the built-in Wi-Fi, you can connect these sensors to your smart home server over your local network. For example, if you run House helperyou can Use ESPHome to get information a temperature and humidity sensor Connect to your smart home software with ESP32.
The beauty of building your own sensors is that you don’t have to rely on cloud services. Your smart home hub and ESP32 sensor can communicate directly with each other without needing to leave your network. This means that if you lose internet access, your sensor can continue to talk to your smart home server over the local network as if nothing had changed.
ESP-NOW sensor networks
Let your ESP32s talk directly to each other
If your Internet access drops, devices can often communicate with each other over your local network. However, if your router goes down, you can assume that your ESP32 devices will no longer be able to communicate.
However, this is not necessarily the case. ESP-NOW is a communication protocol that transfers data from one Wi-Fi device to another without the need for a traditional Wi-Fi connection. Devices can talk peer-to-peer without having to route all communication through your router.
For example, you can use ESP-NOW to get ESP32 mailbox sensor to notify another ESP32 sensor located in your home that mail has arrived. As long as the mailbox sensor and the other ESP32 are within range of each other, it doesn’t matter if the home Wi-Fi can’t reach your mailbox. The built-in ESP32 can then transmit the status of the mailbox sensor to your smart home.
Offline data logger
Save the data to the SD card
Another way to keep the ESP32 running even when there is no network connection is to use local memory. You can add an SD card module to the ESP32, which can then write data to the card. This will continue to work whether your router is down or not.
There are many ways you can use this. For example, if you have a greenhouse, you can set up an ESP32 with a temperature sensor to record the temperature over time. It doesn’t matter if your greenhouse is too far from your router to get a Wi-Fi signal; all data is stored locally.
When you want to view the data, you can extract it microSD cardconnect it to the computer and download the content. You can then stick the SD card back into the ESP32 and it will continue to record more temperature readings.
Fully native video doorbell
Say goodbye to your Ring subscription
Video doorbells can be incredibly useful, but many popular models rely on cloud services or lock key features behind paywalls. the price of Call subscriptionsfor example, it keeps going up and your posts often end up on cloud servers outside of your home network.
You can create a simple video doorbell by connecting a camera and doorbell button to an ESP32 and connecting it to something like Home Assistant. Usage local storage or with NVR integration, you can record the stream from your doorbell or capture snapshots when the doorbell rings.
It won’t give you the same quality as a commercial video doorbell, but the main thing is that because it works completely locally, your video doorbell will continue to work even if your internet goes down, which is not the case with cloud-based video doorbell features.
ESP32 can free you from the internet
There are many ESP32 projects that will continue to work when you lose internet access, and some will work even if your entire home network goes down. Too many devices depend on the internet when they don’t really need to; With the ESP32, you can build something that doesn’t need the internet at all.
