LilyGo T-Beam

Development Board

Code name: LILYGO_T_BEAM

LilyGo T-Beam is a development board based on the ESP32 microcontroller using XTENSA architecture.

This board features a maximum CPU frequency of 240 MHz and 16MB flash memory.

About LilyGo T-Beam

🚀 The LilyGo T-Beam is a feature-rich ESP32-based development board designed for LoRa and GPS applications. It integrates an ESP32 dual-core processor with WiFi and Bluetooth 5, providing seamless wireless connectivity. ⚡

📡 With an onboard LoRa transceiver (SX1262/SX1276), it enables long-range communication at frequencies 433/868/915 MHz. Additionally, the board includes a Ublox NEO-6M GPS module for precise geolocation.

💾 Equipped with 16MB Flash and 8MB PSRAM, along with a 18650 Li-ion battery holder for portable applications, the T-Beam is a powerful tool for IoT and tracking projects.

Where to Buy LilyGo T-Beam

Starting from

$50 per unit

Amazon.com Ships worldwide

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Amazon.de Ships to EU

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AliExpress Best value

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Prices are subject to change. We earn from qualifying purchases as an Amazon Associate.

Technical Specifications

Complete technical specification details for LilyGo T-Beam

Display

Type OLED

Size 0.96"

Resolution 128X64

Driver SSD1306

Connectivity

WiFi 802.11 b/g/n (2.4 GHz)

Bluetooth 4.2

BLE 4.2

LoRa Yes

Microcontroller

Model esp32

Clock Speed 240 MHz

Flash Size 16MB

PSRAM 8MB

Architecture xtensa

✨ Features & Pins

Digital IO 48

Analog Input 20

PWM 27

Interrupts 46

Download Full Datasheet

Quick Setup

Copy-paste configs for LilyGo T-Beam - auto‑generated from this board's exact hardware specs.

ESP32 240 MHz 16MB DIO Xtensa

In Arduino IDE 2 select Lilygo T Beam from the esp32 by Espressif package. In PlatformIO use board = esp32dev. ESP32 · 240 MHz · 16MB · DIO.

Tools menu settings

Board (select in Arduino IDE) Lilygo T Beam

CPU Frequency 240 MHz

Flash Size 16MB

Flash Mode DIO

Upload Speed 921600

Architecture Xtensa

In Arduino IDE 2, open Boards Manager, search "esp32" by Espressif and install it. Then go to Tools → Board and select "Lilygo T Beam" for the LilyGo T-Beam.

platformio.ini


[env:lilygo_t_beam]
platform  = espressif32
board     = esp32dev
framework = arduino

; Exact hardware config for LilyGo T-Beam
board_build.mcu        = esp32
board_build.f_cpu      = 240000000L
board_build.flash_size = 16MB
board_build.flash_mode = dio
board_upload.flash_size = 16MB

The board value is a close generic match - check PlatformIO board registry for an exact fit.

esp32: block (YAML)


esp32:
  board: esp32dev
  framework:
    type: arduino   # or "esp-idf"

# LilyGo T-Beam - 240 MHz ESP32
# Flash: 16MB | USB: N/A

Paste into your device's .yaml. See ESPHome ESP32 docs for full options.

esptool.py - flash command


esptool.py \
  --chip esp32 \
  --baud 921600 \
  write_flash \
    --flash_mode dio \
    --flash_size 16MB \
    0x0 bootloader.bin \
    0x8000    partitions.bin \
    0xe000    boot_app0.bin \
    0x10000   firmware.bin

Install: pip install esptool - replace firmware.bin with your binary - bootloader at 0x0

LilyGo T-Beam Pinout Diagram

Complete pin reference for LilyGo T-Beam

The LilyGo T-Beam pinout provides multiple GPIOs and interfaces:

5V and 3.3V for power supply.

SDA and SCL for I2C, MISO, MOSI, SCK, and SS for SPI.

Dedicated LoRa and GPS module pins ensure seamless integration.

Safe Pins to Use

These pins are safe for general GPIO usage without boot or system conflicts

IO18

IO21

IO40

IO41

IO42

IO45

Why Are These Pins Safe?

✓ No boot sequence involvement

✓ No flash/PSRAM connections

✓ No USB or JTAG conflicts

✓ Freely assignable without issues

Pins to Avoid or Use with Caution

Reserved for critical functions. Misuse may cause boot failures, programming issues, or system conflicts.

Strapping Pins

Boot behavior & flash voltage

JTAG Debugging

Low-level debugging interface

USB Pins

USB Serial/JTAG communication

Flash/SPI Pins

Memory & PSRAM connections

UART Serial

Debugging & firmware uploads

PIN	Label	Why Avoid	Type
IO1	U0TXD (GPIO1)	Connected to on-board USB-UART for uploading and logs; drives serial output at boot, so using as GPIO can disrupt programming or console.	🔌 USB
IO2	GPIO2	If driven HIGH on reset (while IO0 is LOW), selects an unsupported SDIO boot mode, causing boot failure.	🛠️ Strapping
IO3	U0RXD (GPIO3)	Used for receiving data from USB-UART (programming); also pulled HIGH at boot for console communication, so using as GPIO can disrupt uploads.	🔌 USB
IO10	GPIO10 (Flash SD3)	Used by internal flash/PSRAM; typically not exposed on modules, avoid using as GPIO.	⚡ Flash
IO11	GPIO11 (Flash CMD)	Used by internal flash (chip select/command); not available for general use.	⚡ Flash
IO12	MTDI (GPIO12)	Keep LOW during boot (internal PD); pulling HIGH at reset selects 1.8V flash mode, causing flash brownout if 3.3V flash is used.	🛠️ Strapping
IO13	MTCK (GPIO13)	Used for JTAG debugging (TCK); avoid using as GPIO if JTAG is needed.	🪛 Other
IO16	GPIO16	Connected to internal PSRAM on PSRAM-enabled modules; not usable as GPIO on those modules.	⚡ Flash
IO17	GPIO17	Connected to internal PSRAM on PSRAM-enabled modules; not usable as GPIO on those modules.	⚡ Flash
IO38	GPIO38 (SENSOR_CAPN)	Cannot be used as output; only suitable for input.	🪛 Other
IO39	GPIO39 (SENSOR_VN)	Cannot be used as output; only suitable for input.	🪛 Other

Useful Links

Datasheets and resources for LilyGo T-Beam

Board Datasheet

Technical specifications

ESP32 Datasheet

Microcontroller reference

LilyGo T-Beam Custom Pin Mapping

Pin configuration and GPIO mapping for LilyGo T-Beam

Digital I/O Pins

Interrupt Pins

Analog Inputs

PWM Pins

Pin	Function	ESP Pin	I/O Type	Description
1	3V3	3.3V	POWER OUTPUT	3.3V power output
2	GND	GND	POWER GROUND	Ground connection
3	5V	5V	POWER INPUT	5V power input
4	IO1	GPIO1	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, I2C, ADC
5	IO2	GPIO2	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, ADC
6	IO3	GPIO3	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, ADC
7	IO10	SPI_CS	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, SPI Chip Select
8	IO11	SPI_D	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, SPI Data
9	IO12	SPI_CLK	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, SPI Clock
10	IO13	SPI_Q	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, SPI Q
11	IO16	ADC2_CH5	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, ADC
12	IO17	U1_TXD	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, UART TX
13	IO18	U1_RXD	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO, UART RX
14	IO21	GPIO21	BIDIRECTIONAL	GPIO
15	IO38	LORA_CS	OUTPUT	GPIO, LoRa Chip Select
16	IO39	LORA_RST	OUTPUT	GPIO, LoRa Reset
17	IO40	LORA_IRQ	INPUT	GPIO, LoRa Interrupt
18	IO41	GPS_TX	OUTPUT	GPS Module TX
19	IO42	GPS_RX	INPUT	GPS Module RX
20	IO45	BATTERY	INPUT	Battery Voltage Sense

Legend

Function Pin role

GPIO ESP32 pin

I/O Direction

# Pin number

Default Tools & Configuration

Build and upload settings for LilyGo T-Beam

Setting	Value
Bootloader tool	esptool_py
Uploader tool	esptool_py
Network uploader tool	esp_ota
Bootloader address	`0x0`
Flash mode	dio
Boot mode	qio
PSRAM type	opi
Maximum upload size	3072 KB (3145728 bytes)
Maximum data size	320 KB (327680 bytes)