[devwastaken]

Coming from the rpi platform one thing I miss is there's no standard UI configurator or desktop OS. For wifi credentials or cloud authentication and such it ends up getting programmed in, or you have to build a UI yourself that is specific. But if it doesn't include all the amenities an OS would have like mouse/keyboard, USB file transfer, corporate wifi setup, etc - it's not useable for environments where IT has to co figure it.

[MSFT_Edging]

I feel like the modern world of embedded hobbyist computing has really obscured the embedded aspect. This is good for getting people going but terrible for newcomers understanding the difference between a tiny personal computer with IO(raspberry pi) and baremetal/rtos devices that range in various levels of compatibility.

When I read this, at first I thought "well DUH it doesn't have a desktop OS or various desktop utilities built in, its a microcontroller!"

Then I realized for a lot of people now, their first led blink "hello world" was possibly not on a microcontroller at all. To me, the idea of wanting a mouse and keyboard for a microcontroller to set up wifi seems silly, but to others, they just haven't experienced the alternative.

There is great support for various wifi security standards for the ESP though, you just need to create something equivalent to how a chromecast connects to the internet for the first time. bootstrap an AP, connect to a portal, configure on the portal, reboot and connect to the actual AP.

[briHass]

Depending on what you want to actually build, another option is ESPHome coupled with the Home Assistant ecosystem or standalone with MQTT. Most of the sensors, displays, etc. you'd want to interface with are supported, and everything is some simple YAML config. If you need more flexibility, it supports 'lambdas' which are snippits of any arbitrary C++ code you want, or you can write custom components in C++.

The big benefit to ESPHome is it handles all the 'boring' stuff like Wifi updates, timers, and API/MQTT glue code. I still write one-off stuff in PlatformIO, but most of my devices are running ESPHome with some custom code added on, because I don't feel like reinventing the wheel.

[gregmac]

What use case prompts you to making this statement?

It's not a general purpose PC with I/O tacked on, like a Pi is, but more like the reverse: I/O and a wifi/bluetooth chip that also has a small (but powerful) processor.

[fragmede]

I must be reading your comment wrong, because it sounds like your IT department can't handle devices without a mouse and keyboard, which means they don't use any networking switches or access points. Or badge readers. IT departments can handle it just fine if required to, they just don't want to have to.

OTA upgrades are quite useful.

[tony-allan]

It’s a microcontroller and not meant to run to run an OS.

Single program and a couple of MB of ram and flash.

[regularfry]

The equivalent in the pi ecosystem is the Pico, not the pi zero.