Portable SmartWatch Kits

Our current SmartWatch kits (the GC9A01 and Waveshare LCD round displays) are wired to a Raspberry Pi Pico on a breadboard and powered over USB. They are great for learning how to draw clock and watch faces with MicroPython, but they are not wearable — there is no onboard battery, so the display goes dark the moment you unplug the USB cable.

This page surveys options for a portable SmartWatch kit: one that keeps a MicroPython-programmable round display but adds its own rechargeable battery so a student can walk around wearing (or carrying) a working clock.

Recommended: Waveshare ESP32-S3-Touch-LCD-1.28

The closest drop-in upgrade to our existing kits. It uses the same GC9A01 family round display and MicroPython workflow students already know, but adds an onboard battery charging circuit.

1.28" round IPS touch LCD (240x240), same display family as our GC9A01 kit
ESP32-S3 with WiFi/BLE, 16MB flash, 2MB PSRAM
Built-in Li-ion charging chip with an MX1.25 2-pin JST connector for a 3.7V LiPo battery (supports both charging and discharging)
Onboard 6-axis IMU (accelerometer + gyroscope)
Battery voltage readable through a voltage divider on GPIO1
Official MicroPython firmware and getting-started docs from Waveshare
Approx. $15-20 for the board plus a small 3.7V LiPo battery
A "-B" variant ships in a CNC metal watch-style case

This is the option we plan to build a kit page for, since it minimizes the jump in cost, wiring, and code compared to our current lessons.

Other options considered

LILYGO T-Watch-S3 / T-Watch 2020 V3

A fully-enclosed, wearable watch case (not a breadboard kit) built around an ESP32. Comes with its own 400mAh battery (1100mAh on the newer T-Watch Ultra). Community MicroPython ports exist:

More "watch-shaped" and immediately wearable than a teaching kit, but higher cost (~$40-50) and a bigger jump from our current lessons.

PineTime + wasp-os

A $25-27 open-source smartwatch (nRF52832) with a built-in battery, running wasp-os, a MicroPython-based watch OS. It's a fixed appliance rather than a breadboard-and-code teaching kit, and wasp-os is its own MicroPython fork rather than stock MicroPython, so it's a poor fit for lessons that have students write their own display code from scratch.

NASA Artemis Watch 2.0

A $129 fully-assembled kids' programmable watch built on a dual-core ESP32 with a full-color LCD, accelerometer, gyroscope, compass, and temperature sensor. Marketed as "runs Python," but pricier than the alternatives and less clear on giving students raw MicroPython REPL access to the display.

Comparison

Option	Display	Battery	MicroPython	Approx. Cost	Fit for this course
Waveshare ESP32-S3-Touch-LCD-1.28	1.28" round LCD	Onboard LiPo charging (JST)	Official firmware	$15-20 + battery	Best - same display family as current kits
LILYGO T-Watch-S3 / Ultra	Square/round touch	Onboard 400-1100mAh	Community ports	$40-50	Good, but bigger jump
PineTime + wasp-os	Round LCD	Onboard	wasp-os fork	$25-27	Fair - fixed appliance, not stock MicroPython
NASA Artemis Watch 2.0	Color LCD	Onboard	"Runs Python"	$129	Weak - expensive, less DIY access