Pimoroni's Badger 2040 W Offers Wi-Fi Connectivity on a Compact ePaper Badge

Sheffield-based hobbyist electronics store Pimoroni has announced the launch of the Badger 2040 W, an ePaper programmable name badge with Wi-Fi connectivity driven by a Raspberry Pi Pico W mounted on the rear.

"Badger 2040 W is a maker-friendly all-in-one badge wearable, designed for efficient identification of humans and other lifeforms," Pimoroni explains of its latest design. "It's great for powering by battery, as it can go into an ultra low power sleep mode when the screen's not being refreshed. And because it's a handy microcontroller with built in screen that can fit right in your pocket, we bet you could use it for a bunch of other cool experimental projects too."

Part of the "Pico W Aboard" range, the Badger 2040 W — also known as the "Wadger" — is dominated by a 2.9" black-and-white ePaper display on the front, below which are three buttons with another two located to the right. A small hole in the PCB at the top provides a place to thread a lanyard, while mounting holes are also provided. A battery connector is included on the rear alongside a STEMMA QT/Qwiic-compatible jack for expansion.

The Badger 2040 W isn't Pimoroni's first entry in the "Pico W Aboard" family. The first boards in the range were announced the same day as the Raspberry Pi Pico W itself, covering functionality from Wi-Fi-connected camera and air quality monitoring to LED matrices. It's also not the first Badger 2040, but its design is noticeably different: where the original Badger 2040 was a single board with a Raspberry Pi RP2040 built in, the Badger 2040 W opts to mount an entire Raspberry Pi Pico W as a module instead.

The company has also introduced a few improvements during the redesign. The new model includes an on-board real-time clock (RTC) with support for timer-based wake-ups, an improved software library with support for Pimoroni's PicoGraphics, and a broader selection of sample projects. There's no word yet, however, of support for Bluetooth connectivity — only recently added to the official Raspberry Pi Pico SDK.

The Badger 2040 W is now available to buy on Pimoroni's web store at $26.78, a roughly $10 premium over the original Badger 2040; a bundle with AAA battery holder and batteries, Velcro square, lanyard made from recycled plastic, and a USB cable is also available at $32.73.