1- voltage regulator 3.3v is integrated to the chip
2-cmos converter to TTL is embedded too
advantage is : it`s a small dimension bord when physically place is important
When i use a small code on it . esp32 c3 supermini work correctly.
but when i use heavy and bigger code on it , using more cpu .
and cpu using more power, cpu heating more power regulator heating more then the overheating security of cpu run and cut evrythinks . board will not be recognize by the computer any more until cooldown for hours. add a radiator or external 3.3v power supply we loose the advantage to stay on small dimension.
in my opinion this small board is good for small project like switch on/off one device it works well.
You could try adding a heat sink (with some heat transfer material).
Alot of these little devices will get warm, but if its very busy at high CPU then yes it will get hot some some extra measure may needed.
If you don’t need the speed, you can drop the clock rate down an see if they helps make it stable.
The datasheets or implementation guidelines for these devices usually include very specific information on how they must be mounted in order to achieve their full rated dissipation capacity. This covers such things as thermal pads immediately under the chips and heat vias to conduct the heat to sinks on the other side of the board (fins on top of the chip aren’t actually of much use, although they do look good). Many commercial implementations do not include this design detail because testing during development indicated it wasn’t needed, and most development modules don’t include it because it involves expense that the hobbyist doesn’t see value in.
However I can’t agree with the scale of operation you refer to. I currently have a C3 Super Mini under test with external EEPROM, LCD display and RFID sensor with some very complex code to support all that, and it is well within acceptable temperature range. However the RF components are only being used intermittently, and I am not using the on-board regulator for the 3.3V supply to the peripherals.
You might find that part of the overheating issue isn’t just the CPU itself, but also the tiny onboard 3.3 V regulator getting stressed when the ESP32‑C3 is under load. A simple way to improve stability is to bypass that onboard regulator and feed the ESP32 from a separate external supply that’s designed to handle Wi‑Fi bursts more efficiently.
It can supply plenty of current at 3.3 V while staying cooler than the tiny onboard regulator.
Also, if you don’t actually need the C3 running flat-out all the time, you could try lowering the CPU clock frequency (e.g., from 160 MHz down to 80 MHz). This can noticeably reduce both power consumption and heat without impacting performance too much for many projects.
That way, you’ll keep the small form factor but avoid the overheating resets you’ve been seeing.
ESP32-C3 chips typically get warm under normal operation, but excessive heat can indicate a short circuit, overcurrent, or a damaged regulator/CPU.
Heat may have permanently damaged components on the RX board.
Hi ahsrab, I’m running a TX, Rx setup like you are doing and have no problems. They do run warm but not hot. Are they standalone are not attached to other circuitry as this may be causing them to run hot. The pull-up rail is the 3.3volts not the 5 volt. I would try them standalone first you can still monitor the program. I have one that I thought had failed but when I tried it the next day it was okay.
