There are a great number of things one can do if they are able to interface their electronics to their desktop / laptop computer. This process used to be kinda hard but it isn't now, thanks to USB!

The USB specification has several ways to characterize devices. This includes telling the computer that the device you are plugging into the USB port is a keyboard or mouse. These peripherals are categorized as human interface devices (HID). 

Many Adafruit products can communicate with other computers using HID and emulating a keyboard.

What types of projects work well emulating a keyboard? Some examples:

  • Macro keys - activating to send a predefined sequence of keystrokes
  • Assistive Technology - the ability to trigger keyboard input using a multitude of interface devices connected to the microcontroller
  • Device control - the ability to send multimedia commands for volume, etc.
  • Sensor input - Turn a banana or some slime into a keyboard with the use of capacitive touch
  • Fun - a simple prank would send some characters to someone's screen at random times

This guide will show you how to quickly and easily emulate a keyboard on an Adafruit Circuit Playground Express board in both Microsoft MakeCode and CircuitPython.

Parts List

A Black woman's manicured hand holds a round microcontroller with lit up LEDs.
Circuit Playground Express is the next step towards a perfect introduction to electronics and programming. We've taken the original Circuit Playground Classic and...
$24.95
In Stock
USB cable - USB A to Micro-B - 3 foot long
This here is your standard A to micro-B USB cable, for USB 1.1 or 2.0. Perfect for connecting a PC to your Metro, Feather, Raspberry Pi or other dev-board or...
$2.95
In Stock

This guide was first published on Aug 01, 2018. It was last updated on Mar 19, 2024.

This page (Overview) was last updated on Mar 08, 2024.

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