New Espressif microcontrollers spotted at CES 2026 include a tri-band Wi-Fi 6E SoC (ESP32-E22) and an ultra-low-power Bluetooth LE MCU (ESP32-H21), based on show-floor details shared in a CNX report.

New Espressif Microcontrollers at CES 2026

The headline part is the ESP32-E22: a dual-core RISC-V SoC clocked up to 500 MHz, with 1 MB on-chip memory (no optional PSRAM reported) and tri-band 2.4/5/6 GHz Wi-Fi 6E. The same reporting also cites 160 MHz channel bandwidth, 2×2 MIMO, and a quoted physical throughput up to 2.1 Gbps. Beyond radio, the part is positioned to act as a connectivity co-processor, with host interfaces listed as PCIe, USB, and SDIO, plus 41 GPIO.

ESP32-E22 Wi-Fi Throughput

  • Tri-band Wi-Fi 6/6E with 2x2 MIMO and 160 MHz channels
  • iPerf-based testing using real data transmission workloads
  • Demonstrates high stability and efficient bandwidth utilization
  • Achieves up to 2.1 Gbps physical throughput in 160 MHz mode

ESP Wi-Fi 6E SoC Features

  • 6 GHz band, Tri-Band
  • 160 MHz Channel Bandwidth
  • 2x2 MIMO transceiver
  • Bluetooth LE 6.0 + BR/EDR

On the show-floor, the ESP for Wi-Fi 6E was demonstrated on a test/evaluation board with two external antennas and two USB-C ports, hinting at a future DevKit-style release once the silicon and SDK support firm up.

What the New Espressif Microcontrollers Mean for Low-Power Nodes

The ESP32-H21 goes the other direction: a single-core RISC-V CPU at 96 MHz, 320 KB RAM, and a radio feature set aimed at small nodes (Bluetooth LE plus 802.15.4 for Zigbee/Thread). It’s also described as “ultra-low-power,” with an on-chip DC-DC converter intended to support operation at lower voltages, and 19 GPIO for compact designs.

Roadmap Signals Beyond Today’s Parts

Separately, Espressif’s investor materials reference Wi-Fi 7 alongside Wi-Fi 6E and also point to “32-bit multiple-core” devices as part of the company’s technical breadth, which fits the direction implied by these CES showpieces. If you want the current official family overview while these specific parts mature, Espressif’s SoC family overview is the best starting point.

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