SparkFun Edge Hookup Guide

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Contributors: Ell C, Liquid Soulder
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Introduction

With the SparkFun Edge Development Board, edge computing is here! You've probably heard of this latest entry to the long lineage of tech buzzwords like "IoT," "LoRa," and "cloud" before it, but what is the edge and why does it matter? The cloud is impressively powerful but all-the-time connections require power and connectivity that may not be available. Edge computing handles discrete tasks such as determining if someone said 'start washer' and responding accordingly. The audio analysis is done at the "edge" rather than on the web. This dramatically reduces costs and complexity while limiting potential data privacy leaks.

SparkFun Edge Development Board - Apollo3 Blue

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So now that you've embarked upon the journey to the Edge, let's take a moment to get off on the right foot. In this hookup guide we will get familiar with the hardware available and how to connect to your computer, then we'll point you in the right direction to begin writing awesome applications using machine learning!

Required Materials

To follow along with this tutorial, you will need the following materials. You may not need everything though depending on what you have. Add it to your cart, read through the guide, and adjust the cart as necessary.

Suggested Reading

If you aren’t familiar with the following concepts, we recommend checking out these tutorials before continuing.

Serial Terminal Basics

This tutorial will show you how to communicate with your serial devices using a variety of terminal emulator applications.

Using SparkFun Edge Board with Ambiq Apollo3 SDK

We will demonstrate how to get started with your SparkFun Edge Board by setting up the toolchain on your computer, examining an example program, and using the serial uploader tool to flash the chip.

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