From nothing to rowing, in 5 steps

Everything you need to turn an ESP32-S3 board into a wireless bridge for your Concept2 PM3. Work through it in order, or jump straight to the bit you need - your progress is remembered on this device.

Firmware installed. Now unplug the board and plug it back in, this time without holding BOOT, so it starts running the firmware instead of sitting in flashing mode. It will not show up over Bluetooth in the next step until you do.

Got it

of 5 done

Reset

Buy your hardware One ESP32-S3 board is the whole shopping list ~$10

Get the N16R8 version specifically. It needs 16 MB of flash and 8 MB of octal PSRAM. Cheaper variants (N8R2, or 4 MB boards) do not have room for the firmware's partition layout and will not work.

Look for ESP32-S3-DevKitC-1 N16R8, or any ESP32-S3 board whose listing says both "16MB Flash" and "8MB PSRAM".

Robotics.org.za South Africa Amazon Example listing - anything matching the spec above is fine

You will also need a USB cable to connect the board to your computer for the one-time flash in step 2, and a cable to connect the board's USB-C port to the USB port on your PM3.

Flash the firmware Straight from this page over USB. Only ever needed once

After this, the device updates itself wirelessly - you should never need a cable again.

Use Chrome or Edge on a desktop computer. Web Serial is not available in Firefox, Safari, or any mobile browser.
Plug a USB cable into the port marked COM on the board - not the USB-C port that the rowing monitor uses.
Hold the BOOT button while plugging it in, so the board starts up ready to be flashed. This can be fiddly - if the install fails, unplug, then plug back in while still holding BOOT.
Close anything else that might hold the port open (a serial monitor, ESPHome's "Logs" view).

Your browser cannot install firmware over USB. Use Chrome or Edge on a desktop computer. This page has to be loaded over HTTPS for the browser to allow this.

When the install finishes, the dialog closes itself and this page carries on. If one is still sitting there saying "Installation complete!", just close it - its own "Next" button loops back to the install screen rather than continuing.

Join your WiFi Set it up over Bluetooth, no cable needed Optional

Optional, but recommended. Rowing itself does not need WiFi - ErgData, EXR, Kinomap and the rest all talk to the device over Bluetooth. WiFi is what gives you the built-in web interface, saved workout history, Strava uploads, and automatic firmware updates.

Just flashed it? Unplug the board and plug it back in first, without holding BOOT. Until you do, it is still sitting in flashing mode and will not appear over Bluetooth.

Pick your device from the browser's Bluetooth list - it shows up as "PM5 ..."

Scanning for nearby networks...

No networks found. Enter yours by hand below.

My network is not listed - type it in

Network name

Back to the list

Password for ""

Choose a different network

No Bluetooth, or on an iPhone? Set up WiFi by hand

On your phone or laptop, open its WiFi settings and join the network the device creates: PM Connector 5000 Setup (no password).

A sign-in page should pop up automatically. If it does not, open http://192.168.4.1 in a browser.

Pick your home network from the list there, enter its password, and the device saves it and reconnects on its own.

Open the web interface Find the device's address on your network Optional

The device serves its own web interface - live rowing data, workout history, settings and firmware updates. It has no screen to show you its address, so here is how to find it.

Your device is at:

Open the web interface

Try http://pm-connector.local first. That works on iPhone, iPad, Mac and Linux, and sometimes on Windows. If it does not load, your network is blocking the automatic name lookup - find it over Bluetooth instead.

Pick your device from the Bluetooth list...

Found the device, but it is not on WiFi yet. Go back to step 3 and set that up first.

This browser has no Web Bluetooth. On iPhone and iPad, use the pm-connector.local link above - it works well there.

Plug it in and go row Connect it to the PM3 and pair from your app

Connect the board's USB-C port to the USB port on your PM3. This is the other port from the one you flashed through.
Power the board. The PM3 wakes up and the two start talking within a few seconds.
Open your app and pair with the monitor - it appears as PM5 <serial>, using your rower's own serial number.

Known to work with ErgData, EXR, Kinomap, the Concept2 Logbook and Home Assistant. Anything that speaks to a PM5 over Bluetooth should find it.

Open the web interface

That is everything. Your PM3 is wireless. Enjoy the row.