Announcing Web Serial Support in Firefox

Summary

Support for Web Serial in Firefox 151 for Desktop Firefox can now connect directly to microcontrollers, development boards, 3D printers, power meters, and other serial-connected hardware from the web. Starting in Firefox 151 for Desktop, support for the Web Serial API allows web applications to communicate with compatible devices without requiring native software. Web Serial compatible devices are popular among hobbyists, hardware hackers, educators, makers, and developers with use cases ranging from home automation to hardware prototyping and 3D printing. Web Serial support makes Firefox more useful for these kinds of projects. One of the organizations that has demonstrated the value of Web Serial is Adafruit, a leader in open-source hardware and STEM education. They’ve made it quick and easy to install CircuitPython on their devices by delivering firmware over Web Serial. Then it’s straightforward to run Python programs on the device. Name your file code.py and, for most devices, the code can be installed by dragging-and-dropping the file onto the USB device. Your Python programs can interoperate with a web page over Web Serial using simple text-based I/O. To install CircuitPython firmware with Firefox, we recommend using the Adafruit Web Serial Tool and not the OPEN INSTALLER method on the CircuitPython site. Here’s an example using an Adafruit ESP32-S2 based board where messages sent from web code can be directly displayed on the device over Web Serial. We’ve collaborated with Adafruit to test Firefox’s implementation against real hardware workflows commonly used by this community. The result: Firefox is a more practical browser for programming and interacting with hardware directly using web technology. As an example of how you can combine Web Serial with electronics, Mozilla engineer Alex Franchuk created an amazingly fun and functional device that melds electronics and web editing. Check out the Page Playground. The list of serial compatible devices includes ...