Great news everyone! The ESP32 Rainbow campaign has been an incredible success, reaching 150% of our funding goal. I want to extend a huge thank you to all our backers - your support and enthusiasm for this project has been truly amazing.

For those who missed the campaign, don’t worry! The ESP32 Rainbow is still available for pre-order at the same price, and we’re on track for shipping in April.

What’s Next?

Over the next few months, we’ll be focusing on two main areas:

1. Firmware Development: We're continuing to enhance the firmware with new features, optimizations and improvements to the emulator.
2. Web Platform Development: I'm excited to share a preview of our new web platform that will offer:

• Over-the-air firmware updates via USB
• Direct game downloads to your ESP32 Rainbow
• Online ZX Spectrum emulation using the same core as the device

The web emulator means you can try out games before downloading them to your device, all through a modern web interface. What’s pretty cool is that the emulator is running the same code as the device - so it’s a great way to check compatibility. One thing to note is that this does work best on a desktop or laptop - trying to use it on a mobile device is not recommended!

The game search on the website is powered by ZXDB - a huge database of ZX Spectrum software.

You can try the web site out now here: https://esp32rainbow.com - it is under construction, but you can get a feel for what’s coming.

3. Final Compliance Testing: We've passed the initial set of CE certifications, but there are a few more tests to complete. I'm working with a lab in China to get these done. I've got some more prototypes on order from PCBWay to get these tests done.
4. Component Sourcing: I'll be placing an order for the screens and speakers over the Christmas break, we'll lock down these components to make sure we have them for the final production run.
5. Final Production Run: Once I'm happy with the compliance testing and component sourcing, I'm going to place a final order with PCBWay. This will the big one that will deliver all the boards to the campaign backers and any additional orders post-campaign.

Project Timeline

• January-February: Web platform development and testing
• February-March: Final production and testing
• April: Shipping to backers

I’ll be sharing more regular updates over the coming months. Please keep the questions coming as well!

Thanks again for your incredible support,
Chris