Seeed Studio has launched two new ePaper display DIY Kits: the XIAO ePaper DIY Kit-EN04 and XIAO ePaper DIY Kit-EE04, respectively powered by a Nordic Semi nRF52840 or Espressif ESP32-S3 wireless SoC.
Both kits support 24-pin and 50-pin ePaper displays, and the company offers 1.54-inch to 7.5-inch displays as options. The XIAO ePaper DIY kits also feature a battery connector with a power switch, a built-in charging IC, and come with one reset and three user buttons. They target low-power ePaper projects such as digital signage, electronic labels, and portable information boards.
XIAO ePart DIY kit specifications:
- Wireless board
- Kit-EN04 – XIAO nRF52840 Plus
- Wireless MCU – Nordic nRF52840 Arm Cortex-M4F microcontroller @ up to 64 MHz with 1 MB flash, 256 KB SRAM, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, 802.15.4 connectivity
- Storage – 2 MB onboard Flash
- Wireless Connectivity – Bluetooth 5.0 (BLE), 802.15.4, and NFC
- Antenna – Ceramic antenna
- USB – USB 2.0 Type-C for power supply and console
- Kit-EE04 – XIAO ESP32S3 Plus
- SoC – Espressif ESP32-S3R8
- CPU – Dual-core Tensilica LX7 microcontroller up to 240 MHz with vector instructions for AI acceleration
- Memory – 8MB PSRAM
- Wireless – WiFi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 LE + Mesh connectivity
- Storage – 16MB SPI flash, MicroSD card socket
- Antennas – IPEX1 antenna for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth
- USB – USB 2.0 Type-C for power supply and console
- SoC – Espressif ESP32-S3R8
- Kit-EN04 – XIAO nRF52840 Plus
- Display I/F
- 24-pin 0.5mm pitch FPC ePaper connector
- 50-pin 0.5mm pitch FPC ePaper connector
- Misc
- Reset button, 3x user buttons
- Battery power ON/OFF switch
- Power Supply
- 5V via USB-C port
- 3.7V Li-Ion battery via 2.0mm pitch JST connector
- Dimensions – TBD
Both models support the Arduino IDE, Platform IO, and ESPHome for Home Assistant integration, and the ESP32-S3 variant also adds support for SenseCraft HMI no-code UI platform. Suthinee is currently reviewing the latter with the reTerminal E1001/E1002 ePaper displays, and (spoiler alert) she finds it relatively easy to use to create all sorts of user interfaces. More details to get started with either can be found on the documentation website.
Typical applications for the nRF52840 ePaper kit include a battery-powered smart name badge, dynamic price tags, meeting room signage, and a portable checklist board, while the ESP32-S3 variant can be used for Smart Home dashboards, energy monitoring solutions, security alerts, and digital photo frames. Basically, for anything requiring a battery, go with the nRF52840 board, and for anything else, with the ESP32-S3 model.
If you already own a compatible ePaper display, the XIAO ePaper DIY Kit goes for $9.90, whether you select the nRF52840 or ESP32-S3 model. If you don’t, you can add a 1.54-inch to 7.5-inch display for $5.85 to $45, depending on the selected model. The kits should also soon become available on the company’s AliExpress store.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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