Python
Python is a programming language that lets you write code quickly and effectively. With a design philosophy that focuses on code readability, Python is easy to learn and use. Thanks to the advances in single board computers and powerful microcontrollers, Python can now be used to control hardware. Check out some of the tutorials below to get started graphing, charting and GUI design in Python.
2D Barcode Scanner Breakout Hookup Guide
May 27, 2021
A quick Hookup Guide to get you started with the SparkFun 2D Barcode Scanner Breakout.
Air Quality Sensor - SGP40 (Qwiic) Hookup Guide
June 24, 2021
Get started measuring indoor air quality with the SparkFun Air Quality Sensor - SGP40 (Qwiic) Hookup Guide.
Assembly Guide for SparkFun JetBot AI Kit
August 13, 2019
Assembly Guide for the SparkFun JetBot AI Kit. This tutorial includes photos & comments to assemble the two-layer chassis & additional components unique to the JetBot kit.
Assembly Guide for SparkFun JetBot AI Kit V2.0
March 27, 2020
Assembly Guide for the SparkFun JetBot AI Kit v2.0. This tutorial includes photos & comments to assemble the two-layer chassis & additional components unique to the JetBot kit.
Bark Back Interactive Pet Monitor
March 8, 2017
Monitor and interact with pets through this dog bark detector project based on the Raspberry Pi!
Basic Servo Control for Beginners
February 25, 2020
An introductory tutorial demonstrating several ways to use and interact with servo motors!
Building Large LED Installations
July 16, 2015
Learn what it takes to build large LED installations from planning to power requirements to execution.
Computer Vision and Projection Mapping in Python
February 6, 2019
Use computer vision to detect faces and project images on top of them.
Digital Temperature Sensor Breakout - AS6212 (Qwiic) Hookup Guide
September 9, 2021
Get started measuring highly accurate temperatures at extremely low power with the AS6212 temperature sensor on the SparkFun Digital Temperature Sensor Breakout - AS6212 (Qwiic).
Flexible Grayscale OLED Hookup Guide
May 31, 2018
Figure out how to get images displaying on your new flexible OLED screen.
Getting Started with the Autonomous Kit for the Sphero RVR
December 13, 2019
Want to get started in robotics? Look no further than the SparkFun autonomous kit for the Sphero RVR! Whether you purchased the Basic or Advanced kit, this tutorial will get you rolling...
Getting Started with Walabot
February 15, 2018
See through walls, track objects, monitor breathing patterns, and more using the power of radio frequency with the Walabot! In this tutorial, we will explore Walabot’s features using the Software Demo Kit (SDK) on Windows and the Application Programming Interface (API) on Linux-based distributions for embedded projects.
Graph Sensor Data with Python and Matplotlib
July 23, 2018
Use matplotlib to create a real-time plot of temperature data collected from a TMP102 sensor connected to a Raspberry Pi.
How to Load MicroPython on a Microcontroller Board
September 4, 2018
This tutorial will show you how to load the MicroPython interpreter onto a variety of development boards.
How to Run a Raspberry Pi Program on Startup
September 18, 2018
In this tutorial, we look at various methods for running a script or program automatically whenever your Raspberry Pi (or other Linux computer) boots up.
Introduction to the Raspberry Pi GPIO and Physical Computing
January 20, 2021
This tutorial will teach you how to set up your Raspberry Pi as a full desktop computer and read in sensor data through the GPIO using SparkFun hardware.
IoT Weight Logging Scale
May 9, 2018
This tutorial will show you how to make a scale that logs your weight to a custom website on the Internet. The principles can be extrapolated to any type of data.
Jetson Nano + Sphero RVR Mash-up (PART 1)
April 23, 2020
We took two of our biggest robotics partnerships from the previous year and shazamed them together into one robot to rule them all!
Jetson Nano + Sphero RVR Mash-up (PART 2)
July 29, 2020
We took two of our biggest robotics partnerships from the previous year and shazamed them together into one robot to rule them all!
Keyboard Shortcut, Qwiic Keypad
April 25, 2019
A simple project using the Qwiic Keypad and the RedBoard Turbo to create your own custom hotkey-pad.
Lumenati Hookup Guide
October 12, 2017
Lumenati is our line of APA102c-based addressable LED boards. We'll show you how to bring the sparkle to your projects!
LumiDrive Hookup Guide
January 17, 2019
The LumiDrive LED Driver is SparkFun’s foray into all things Python on micro-controllers. With the SparkFun LumiDrive you will be able to control and personalize a whole strand of APA102s directly from the board itself.
Machine Learning @ Home Kit Hookup Guide
July 16, 2021
A living hookup guide with three different machine learning applications that will help you around the home as well as teach the basics of taking the examples of machine learning you find in the DLI Course and working towards deploying those projects beyond an example in Jupyter Notebooks!
MicroMod RP2040 Processor Board Hookup Guide
January 21, 2021
This tutorial covers the basic functionality of the MicroMod RP2040 Processor Board and highlights the features of the dual-core ARM Cortex-M0+ processors development board. Get started with the first microcontroller from the Raspberry Pi Foundation!
Old Tutorials
Looking for the old, archived tutorials? Head on over to the
archived tutorials on the main
SparkFun site.
Please be aware that the tutorials you find there are no longer
actively maintained.