PyBLE, an open PBLE/1 workflow for developing MicroPython from an iPad over BLE

[yyods]

Hello MicroPython community,

I have been working on PyBLE, a free and MIT-licensed tablet-first IDE for
MicroPython. The goal is to make the repeated edit/run/debug loop practical
from an iPad without turning Wi-Fi or cloud services into a requirement.

PyBLE consists of:

1. a Flutter app for editing Python, file operations, run/stop, a live console,
   and a beginner Blocks workspace;
2. PyBLE-enabled MicroPython with a portable board-side BLE agent; and
3. PBLE/1, the open GATT protocol between them.

Provisioning is deliberately separate from runtime use. A supported desktop
Chromium browser installs the matching firmware once over USB. The iPad then
talks to the board over BLE. Stock MicroPython does not include the PBLE/1
agent, so generic “MicroPython + Bluetooth” hardware is not automatically
compatible.

The public hardware-tested firmware beta currently enables exactly two
profiles:

• esp32-4mb, for a classic ESP32 with 4 MiB flash; and
• esp32-s3-n16r8, for an ESP32-S3 with 16 MiB flash and 8 MiB Octal PSRAM.

The latter is not a generic ESP32-S3 image. esp32-c3-4mb is unavailable;
enabling it would require its own exact-profile release gates and hardware
evidence.

For firmware 0.4.2, both enabled profiles passed a real-hardware full browser
erase/install and a deliberate interruption at 7% followed by a complete
recovery. That is deliberately scoped evidence for the public beta; the formal
final-candidate, current-byte app/PBLE/1, reliability, and resource
qualification matrices remain open.

The app's Blocks mode uses explicit numeric GPIOs, standard machine.Pin and
neopixel APIs, seven editable examples, visible generated Python, and a
bounded all-or-nothing Python-to-Blocks conversion. It intentionally avoids
guessing an onboard LED or a safe GPIO.

I would especially welcome technical feedback on:

• the PBLE/1 framing, capability, file-transfer, and run/console contracts;
• the boundary between portable agent behavior and target-specific ports;
• failure and recovery behavior on constrained BLE links;
• how the firmware qualification requirements could support additional
  MicroPython ports without an app-side chip allowlist; and
• the clarity of the one-time flashing and board-profile safety guidance.

For iPad and exact-profile testers, reports covering scan/connect, reconnect,
save/run/stop, console, file round trips, Blocks, and orientation are useful.
Please include immutable version information and the exact module marking.

• Project and setup: https://pyble.dev
• Hardware-tested firmware beta: https://pyble.dev/flash
• iPad TestFlight: https://testflight.apple.com/join/yU4e8s6d
• Source and specifications: https://github.com/PyBLE-dev/PyBLE

Thank you for taking a look. I am interested in concrete critique as much as
successful test reports.