Choose a Hardware Configuration

The right choice mostly depends on the field conditions: available network, expected autonomy, board integration, and the level of complexity you accept.

Quick Comparison

Board	Configuration	Choose it if...	Strengths	Points to watch
	ESP32-S3 Mini + WiFi + HX711	You have WiFi near the hive or you are prototyping in a workshop.	Simple, compact, low cost.	Field power, battery, and protection must be designed separately.
	Waveshare + WiFi + HX711	You have WiFi, but want a more integrated board for power.	Battery and solar charging are handled by the board, board wiring is more framed.	More specific board; the 4G modem is not used in this configuration.
	Waveshare + 4G + HX711	The apiary has no WiFi and must send measurements directly.	Direct upload through the A7670E modem, board designed for battery use.	SIM, network coverage, and power use must be planned.
Variable	Custom configuration	You want another board, another transport, or a derived build.	Flexible.	You must validate pins, power, and compile-time options yourself.

Image sources: ESPBoards and Waveshare.

Choose by Network

If the apiary has reliable WiFi when measurements are sent, choose a WiFi configuration. It is the simplest path: the board wakes up, joins the network, sends the measurement, then goes back to sleep.

If the apiary has no WiFi, the 4G configuration is more appropriate. It needs more preparation: SIM card, coverage, and in rare cases, the SIM APN.

Choose by Power

Power strongly depends on the selected board.

With an ESP32-S3 Mini, you design field power around the board. This can be fine for a prototype or a very custom build, but it is not the most integrated configuration.

With the Waveshare ESP32-S3-A7670E-4G board, part of the battery and solar charging topic is already handled by the board. Waveshare pages therefore document power in the context of that board, rather than in a generic power page.

Choose by Firmware

The documented configurations match Bee Thing Firmware PlatformIO environments:

Configuration	Firmware environment
ESP32-S3 Mini + WiFi + HX711	super_mini_esp32_s3_wifi_hx711
Waveshare + WiFi + HX711	waveshare_esp32_s3_a7670e_wifi_hx711
Waveshare + 4G + HX711	waveshare_esp32_s3_a7670e_4g_hx711

Compile-time configuration selects the board, transport, sensors, and pins. Runtime configuration contains values specific to one scale: network, ingestion URL, token, calibration, and sleep duration.

See also: Firmware configuration.