T-Dongle-S3 get it now

Overview

LILYGO T-Dongle-S3 is an ESP32-S3 USB dongle development board in a USB Type-A plug form factor, suitable for USB gadgets, portable displays, data logging, and IoT education projects. It uses the ESP32-S3 with 16MB Quad-SPI Flash and 512KB SRAM, and has no PSRAM. Onboard peripherals include a 0.96-inch ST7735 SPI color display (160 × 80), APA102 RGB LED, TF card slot, BOOT button, and QWIIC connector.

Quick Start

Example Support

Example	PlatformIO/Arduino	ESP-IDF	Description
T-Dongle-S3	✓		Display, TF card, LED, QWIIC examples

PlatformIO

1. Install Visual Studio Code and Python
2. Search for and install the PlatformIO IDE extension in VS Code, then restart VS Code
3. Open the T-Dongle-S3 project folder
4. Enable default_envs = T-Dongle-S3 in platformio.ini
5. Keep only one valid src_dir = xxxx example path
6. Click ✓ to build, plug in the device, then click → to upload

Arduino

1. Install Arduino IDE
2. Install Arduino ESP32 Core 3.3.0 or later
3. Copy all folders in the project lib directory to the Arduino Sketchbook libraries directory
4. In Tools → Board, configure:

Arduino IDE Setting	Value
Board	ESP32S3 Dev Module
Port	Your port
USB CDC On Boot	Enable
CPU Frequency	240MHz (WiFi)
Core Debug Level	None
USB DFU On Boot	Disable
Erase All Flash Before Sketch Upload	Disable
Flash Mode	QIO 80MHz
Flash Size	16MB (128Mb)
Arduino Runs On	Core1
USB Firmware MSC On Boot	Disable
Partition Scheme	16M Flash (3MB APP/9.9MB FATFS)
PSRAM	Disabled
Upload Speed	921600
Programmer	Esptool
USB Mode	Hardware CDC and JTAG

Note: For examples with USB in the name, set USB Mode to USB-OTG (TinyUSB). If upload fails, hold the BOOT button while plugging the T-Dongle-S3 into the computer USB port to enter download mode.

Related Videos

Key Features

• ESP32-S3, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n + Bluetooth 5 LE
• 16MB Quad-SPI Flash, 512KB SRAM, no PSRAM
• USB Type-A dongle form factor
• 0.96-inch ST7735 SPI color display, 160 × 80 resolution
• APA102 RGB LED, BGR color order
• TF card slot using SDMMC pins
• QWIIC connector configured for serial port function by default
• BOOT button for custom functions or download mode

Specifications

Parameter	Value
SOC	ESP32-S3
Flash	16MB (Quad-SPI)
SRAM	512KB
PSRAM	No PSRAM
Wireless	Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 5 LE
Display	0.96-inch ST7735 (SPI), 160 × 80
RGB LED	APA102 × 1, BGR
Storage	TF card slot
USB Input Voltage	4.8V ~ 5.5V
USB Max Current	800mA
USB	USB Type-A plug
QWIIC	Serial port function by default; add external pull-up resistors for I2C

Pin Diagram

Name	GPIO
RGB DIN	GPIO40
RGB CLK	GPIO39
SDMMC D0	GPIO14
SDMMC D1	GPIO17
SDMMC D2	GPIO21
SDMMC D3	GPIO18
SDMMC CLK	GPIO12
SDMMC CMD	GPIO16
Button	GPIO0
QWIIC TX	GPIO43
QWIIC RX	GPIO44

QWIIC Connector

The QWIIC connector is configured for serial port function by default. To use it for I2C, add pull-up resistors to the external sensor.

Dimensions

Schematic

• T-Dongle-S3 Schematic

Datasheet

• ST7735 Display Datasheet
• APA102 Datasheet

Software Libraries

• T-Dongle-S3 GitHub Repository

FAQ

• Q. Upload keeps failing?
  A. Hold the BOOT button while plugging the T-Dongle-S3 into the computer USB port to enter download mode. After flashing, unplug and power it again. Do not hold BOOT while powering on for normal startup.

• Q. Can QWIIC be used as I2C directly?
  A. QWIIC is configured for serial port function by default. To use I2C, add pull-up resistors to the external sensor.

Changelog

Version	Date	Notes
V1.0		Initial release