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The Solar Feather Express is a Feather-format development board designed by Joey Castillo of Oddly Specific Objects for low-power projects that harvest energy from solar input. Its reported power circuit can select between USB and solar input and route power through a battery-management chip, but the available reporting does not establish the board’s measured power use, solar-panel requirements, or current availability.
What is the Solar Feather Express?
It is a custom development board built in the Feather form factor, intended for solar energy harvesting and low-power applications. Hackster.io’s article on the project describes the board and its design; it is not a current store listing or an independent performance test.
The design uses Microchip’s SAM L21 microcontroller. The article reports one Arm Cortex-M0+ core running at up to 48 MHz, 40 kB of SRAM, and up to 256 kB of embedded flash. It also describes the chip as supporting full functionality down to 1.62 V and rapid wake from deep-sleep modes. Those are reported chip specifications, not measurements of the assembled board’s power consumption.
How is its power system described?
The reported circuit combines input selection, voltage regulation, and battery management. Hackster.io names a Torex Semi XC6220 regulator, SMA diodes, and a Texas Instruments BQ24074 battery-management chip.
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- About this starter kit: The product is not assembled and the code is not burned before it leaves the factory. We have online tutorials to teach you how to assemble and upload the code. This kit does not include batteries, you need to prepare the batteries yourself.
- Choose an input: The SMA diodes are described as switching between USB and solar input according to which has the higher voltage.
- Regulate and manage power: The article says incoming power passes through the XC6220 regulator and then the BQ24074 battery-management chip to supply a battery.
The article does not state the required solar-panel voltage or current, specify a battery, provide charging results, or list tested panel combinations. The component description therefore is not enough to establish that a particular panel or battery will work with the board.
What was the board built to do?
Castillo said the board was intended to drive two public art installations he was completing. The story describes the design progressing from an earlier concept or rendering to a physical board, tying the project to that specific use rather than presenting it as a broadly tested, ready-to-buy development platform.
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- Includes a solar cell module (1.5V, 500mA) along with a DC motor — no soldering necessary! The motor's wires have clips at the ends that attach to the solar panel using nuts that you can tighten by hand.
- Solar cell module harnesses the power of the sun and converts the light into usable electricity energy for countless applications.
- The solar cells are laminated in the high-quality resin material on the PC board with moisture protection.
- Solar Cell Module: Measures 3.15" x 4.88" overall, Voltage: 1.5 V, Current Isc (typ): 500mA, Weight: 1.53 ounces
- DC Motor: Output: 1V / 400mA, Shaft Diameter: 2mm (approximately 1/16 inch), Weight: 1.18 ounces (including leads)
Can you buy it now?
Hackster.io reported that no full-scale production run had been publicly promised when its article appeared. That is a publication-time statement, not confirmation of present-day stock, sales, or production status. The article does not establish whether the board is currently available.
Read the Hackster.io article about the Solar Feather Express.
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- The LAFVIN Solar Tracking Starter Kit allows you to learn the principles of converting light energy into electron energy.
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- A detailed tutorial is provided with graphical programming test code.
- This product can provide learners with hands-on skills.
- Interesting electronic programming can stimulate learners' interest in learning.
Rank #3
- 5 SETS STEM KIT: These science kits contain a solar powered car, a wind powered car, an obstacle avoidance robot, a transmission tank and a glider. Kids would love to build their own robot car kit. REQUIRES (NOT INCLUDED): AA BATTERIES
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What the reporting does—and does not—establish
- Established in the article: Feather form factor, the named SAM L21 and power components, the reported input-selection approach, and Castillo’s stated use for two public art installations.
- Not established: board-level sleep current or other measured power use, solar yield, charging rate, panel or battery compatibility, independent test results, and current availability.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
