Personal project

Pico Studio

Aug 2026 · A desktop workspace for MicroPython

I built Pico Studio to keep the everyday work of developing for a Raspberry Pi Pico in one place. Browse files, edit Python, inspect diagnostics and follow the USB console alongside live resource readings. It is a native desktop workspace built with Python and Tkinter.

Read the article ↗Download Windows x64

ABOUT THE PROJECT

A desktop workspace for MicroPython

My role: Design & development
Technology: Python · Tkinter · MicroPython · pyserial · mpremote · Pyflakes
Project: Personal project

FROM IDEA TO IMPLEMENTATION

The story behind the build

The problem

Keep editing, files, diagnostics and the USB console together during MicroPython development.

The approach

Build a Python/Tkinter desktop workspace with explicit device actions, static checks and opt-in monitoring.

The result

A desktop workspace for Raspberry Pi Pico development. Gallery readings use labelled synthetic offline data.

My contribution Design & development.

Inside Pico Studio

Explore the project imagery. Select an image to enlarge it.

Pico Studio displayed on a monitor beside a microcontroller board

The workspace, imagined on the desk

01 / 03

THE MAKING OF PICO STUDIO

Technical notes

Connecting listens to the device without stopping its program. Entering the REPL for file access is an explicit action, so opening the workspace does not quietly reset a running Pico.

The editor combines line numbers, syntax highlighting, find and local syntax and Pyflakes checks. Diagnostics inspect the text without running it, with a problem list and F8 navigation.

The file browser supports uploads, downloads and folders. Folder and ZIP transfers preserve directory structure, validate archive paths and write through temporary sibling files before renaming.

Opt-in monitoring keeps the USB console visible alongside MicroPython heap history, filesystem use, CPU clock, device ticks and custom scalar values. CPU clock is a frequency reading, not a CPU utilisation measurement.

The gallery includes actual app captures with synthetic offline data and a generated desk mockup. The preview never started the USB worker or connected to a device; its numbers are illustrative, not benchmarks.

START A CONVERSATION