Tinkerie

Flashie

Version 0.7.0-alpha · in Tinkerie 1.5.2-alphaAlpha

Put new firmware on your boards, and operating systems on SD cards.

In plain words

Firmware is the program that runs on a little board like an ESP32 or Arduino. Flashie copies it onto the board over USB, checks every byte, and restarts the board. It can also put a whole operating system, like Raspberry Pi OS, onto an SD card, or turn a Windows ISO into a USB installer.

ESP32 / ESP8266Raspberry Pi PicoArduinoSTM32Block programmingSD card and USB writer
Download TinkerieFirst five minutes

You'll need: A microcontroller board, or an SD card / USB drive.

Flashie
Flash in three steps: pick the board, pick the firmware, flash.
Your first five minutes

Try this first

  1. Plug in your board

    Use a USB cable that carries data. Flashie lists it and guesses what it is.

  2. Pick the firmware

    Choose from the firmware library (MicroPython, WLED, ESPHome, Tasmota, Meshtastic…) or your own file.

  3. Press Flash

    Flashie writes it, reads it back to check it, and restarts the board.

  4. Or try Create

    Build a program from blocks, like Scratch, and upload it with one button.

Screenshots

A closer look

Click any picture to see it bigger.

Create: snap blocks together and Flashie writes the code.
Write image: a Windows 11 ISO about to become a USB installer.
OS settings: set up Wi-Fi, a user and SSH before the first start.
Everything it does

Features

Flash microcontrollers

No esptool, avrdude or Python needed.

  • ESP32, S2, S3, C3, C6, H2 and ESP8266, compressed and verified
  • Raspberry Pi Pico and Pico 2 (RP2040 / RP2350), even rebooting into BOOTSEL for you
  • Arduino Uno, Nano, Pro Mini, Mega, Leonardo, Micro, read back to verify
  • STM32 Blue Pill, Black Pill and most STM32s
  • 20+ Cheap Yellow Display (CYD) models
  • Identify chip asks an unknown board what it is

Firmware library

Popular firmware, downloaded from the official projects.

  • MicroPython, CircuitPython, ESPHome, WLED, Tasmota, Meshtastic
  • ESP32 Marauder, Bruce, NerdMiner, Grbl
  • Filtered to your board, with builds for your exact board first
  • Checksums checked, and firmware for the wrong chip refused

Create: programs from blocks

Drag-and-drop blocks become real code.

  • Blocks for pins, LEDs, buttons, NeoPixels, servos, sensors, OLEDs, Wi-Fi and a tiny web server
  • Blocks on the left, the code they make on the right
  • Pin pickers that warn about pins you shouldn't use
  • MicroPython on ESP32 and Pico; Arduino C++ on Arduino boards
  • Templates: Blink, Button + LED, Wi-Fi web server, temperature logger

Write image: SD cards and USB drives

Like Raspberry Pi Imager, and a bit like Rufus.

  • Raspberry Pi OS and more, from Raspberry Pi's official list
  • Your own .img or .iso, plain or packed as .zip, .xz, .zst, .gz or .bz2
  • Linux ISOs (Ubuntu, Fedora, Mint…) written ready to start
  • Windows 10 and 11 ISOs turned into a USB installer for UEFI PCs
  • Checks the drive after writing; only removable drives are ever listed

OS settings for Raspberry Pi

Set it up before it ever starts.

  • Hostname, username and password
  • Wi-Fi network, password and country
  • SSH with a password or public keys
  • Time zone and keyboard layout
  • Passwords go on the card only as a scrambled hash
Compatibility

Supported boards

FamilyExamplesFile
ESP32 familyDevKitC, CYD, XIAO, M5Stack, LilyGO T-Display, Nano ESP32.bin
ESP8266NodeMCU, Wemos D1 Mini, ESP-01.bin
RP2040 / RP2350Pico, Pico W, Pico 2, RP2040-Zero, XIAO RP2040.uf2 (a .bin is converted)
Arduino AVRUno, Nano, Pro Mini, Mega 2560, Leonardo, Micro, Pro Micro.hex
STM32Blue Pill (F103), Black Pill (F401/F411).bin or .hex
Before you start

Good to know

Writing an image erases the whole drive. Flashie asks you to confirm the drive and shows its name and size, so check it's the right one.

Works well with

Pairs nicely with

Tracie

See what your freshly flashed board prints.

Wirie

Design the board you're flashing.

Makie

Print a case for it.