#Devlog 1 — NexKey: The First Lines of the Circuit ⚡

Today I finally started working on NexKey, my own custom macropad.

🎯 The main goal

I want to build a macropad completely by myself — including the PCB.

Today was mostly about getting started with KiCad and figuring out how everything will connect.

🔧 What I worked on

I started building the schematic and divided it into different parts:

• 🧠 MCU + Power
• ⌨️ 9-Key Matrix
• 🖥️ TFT Display + SD Card
• 🔄 Rotary Encoder
• 🌈 RGB LEDs

I also planned how everything will communicate with the XIAO ESP32.

The TFT and SD card will share the same SPI bus, while the keys will use a 3×3 matrix with an MCP23017 GPIO expander.

For RGB, I’m using SK6812MINI-E LEDs in a chain.

🧩 What I learned

I thought PCB design was mostly about placing components and drawing tracks…

Turns out, there’s a LOT of planning before routing even starts. 😭

Day 1 done. ✅