Adding WiFi and Bluetooth LE to Embedded Designs Just Got Easier with the 1800th mikroBUS™ Click Board

For embedded engineers looking to streamline wireless communication in IoT and smart devices, integrating both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth® LE in a power-efficient, compact form factor can be a challenge—especially without reinventing the hardware stack. That’s where modular add-on boards like MIKROE’s Stephano-I Click come in.

Marking the 1800th entry in MIKROE’s growing ecosystem of mikroBUS™-enabled Click boards™, the Stephano-I Click is designed to plug-and-play wireless connectivity into virtually any embedded system. Built around Würth Elektronik’s Stephano-I radio module, this board offers dual radio support for 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) 5, making it a compact and efficient solution for IoT, smart home, or industrial applications.

Key Features for Embedded Applications

The Stephano-I Click is engineered to support a range of wireless use cases without burdening developers with complex integration steps. Here’s what stands out:

• Dual wireless support:

  • IEEE 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi (2.4GHz)

  • Bluetooth® LE 5, operating in both peripheral and central roles

• Simple command interface: AT commands over UART

• Data rates:

  • Wi-Fi: Up to 1 Mbps

  • Bluetooth LE: Output power up to 4.5 dBm

• Wi-Fi output power: Up to 13.4 dBm

These specifications make it suitable for secure device-to-cloud communication, edge device pairing, and smart device mesh networks.

Designed for Seamless Integration

The Click board is built to fit directly into the mikroBUS™ socket, which is widely adopted by embedded development platforms. This offers several key advantages:

• Standard UART pins for fast and reliable serial communication

• Hardware flow control for robust data transmission

• Reset and wake-up pins for power management

• Unpopulated debug and boot control pins, which allow for advanced control and future expansion

Additionally, the ClickID™ feature enables automatic detection of the board by the host system—simplifying integration and accelerating time to first communication.

Built for Rapid Prototyping and Scalable Design

The board comes pre-integrated with mikroSDK, an open-source software development kit that supports rapid evaluation and customization. This means developers can quickly prototype wireless connectivity in embedded applications without needing to rewrite low-level drivers or communication stacks.

This makes Stephano-I Click particularly attractive for:

• IoT developers building connected sensors or appliances

• Industrial automation teams adding wireless diagnostics or control

• Smart home designers implementing BLE pairing or Wi-Fi control interfaces

Conclusion

As embedded systems continue to migrate toward smarter, more connected architectures, adding wireless functionality with minimal design overhead is essential. MIKROE’s Stephano-I Click shows how modular hardware—especially in a standardized format like mikroBUS™—can simplify this process while still offering the flexibility and performance engineers require.

Whether you’re building a connected prototype or integrating dual-radio capability into a finished product, the Stephano-I Click offers a compelling, low-barrier option for embedding Wi-Fi and Bluetooth LE in your design.