Why I Love ESP32

The ESP32 is the perfect microcontroller for building local-first IoT devices — buttons, sensors, and controls scattered around my home and office.

No Cloud Needed

Connects directly over local WiFi or ZeroTier VPN
No cloud dependency — all data stays on local devices or my private servers
Supports multiple protocols: MQTT, HTTP, WebSocket, BLE

What I Use ESP32 For

Door sensors, motion detectors, environmental monitors
Custom control buttons for media, lights, or scripts
Local logging and event triggering, connected to my koad:io backend

Why ESP32 Works for Me

Low cost, low power, yet powerful enough for complex tasks
Easy to program with Arduino or MicroPython
Vast community and open source libraries
Fits perfectly with my sovereign software philosophy — no outside data sharing

Example: Basic Button Code (Arduino)

#include <WiFi.h>
#include <WebServer.h>

const int buttonPin = 0;
bool buttonPressed = false;

void setup() {
  pinMode(buttonPin, INPUT_PULLUP);
  Serial.begin(115200);
  // Setup WiFi or ZeroTier here
}

void loop() {
  if (digitalRead(buttonPin) == LOW) {
    if (!buttonPressed) {
      Serial.println("Button pressed");
      // Trigger event or send local message here
      buttonPressed = true;
    }
  } else {
    buttonPressed = false;
  }
  delay(50);
}

With ESP32, I maintain full control and sovereignty over my environment — no cloud, no data leaks, just pure local power.