The AkiraConsole, Powered by AkiraOS, Aims to Be Everything From a Security Tool to a Games Machine
Retro gaming? Wi-Fi scanning? Sub-gigahertz and NFC skills? The AkiraConsole, driven by an Espressif ESP32, ticks a lot of boxes.
Moldova-based pen.engineering is preparing to launch a crowdfunding campaign for a compact handheld gadget designed to scratch the itch of those wanting a network security test platform as well as those looking to do a little retro gaming on the go: the AkiraConsole.
"AkiraConsole is a handheld console from pen.engineering designed for professionals, researchers, and enthusiasts who need a powerful, portable tool for hardware hacking, network security, gaming, experimenting, and controlling other devices on the go," claims company founder Sirbu Artur, also known as Artur R0K3R. "Built on the robust AkiraOS ecosystem, this console bridges the gap between a portable gaming device and a high-performance RF [Radio-Frequency] and hardware auditing tool."
The compact handheld is driven by an Espressif ESP32-S3-WROOM-1 module with integrated 2.4GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 5 Low Energy (BLE) radios, linked to Semtech LR2021 LoRa and Texas Instruments CC1101 sub-gigahertz radio transceivers. There's an STMicroelectronics ST25DV dynamic Near-Field Communication (NFC) tag designed for Universal Second Factor (U2F) and data pairing, with everything wired up to on-board antennas optimized for 868/915MHz and 2.4GHz operation.
The front of the gadget features a 2.8" full-color IPS LCD panel, positioned above tactile buttons acting as a four-way direction pad and four "fire" buttons. There's a buzzer for audible alerts, a built-in STMicroelectronics LSM6DS3S six-axis inertial measurement unit (IMU), microSD storage, and expansion pins offering SPI, I2C, I2S, and USB buses plus general-purpose input/output (GPIO) support alongside a proprietary slot for future cartridge expansion boards. Power is provided via a USB Type-C connector, with support for optional lithium-polymer batteries on a JST PH header.
On the software side, the AkiraConsole runs the AkiraOS firmware — built atop the Zephyr real-time operating system (RTOS) and featuring applications written in WebAssembly. "AkiraOS transforms ESP32-based hardware into a powerful, extensible platform for embedded applications, IoT [Internet of Things] projects, and creative coding," Artur explains.
The AkiraOS source code is available on GitHub under the permissive Apache 2.0 license; pen.engineering is preparing to launch a crowdfunding campaign for the AkiraConsole hardware soon, with interested parties invited to sign up on Crowd Supply to be notified when it goes live.