Seeed Studio recently reached a cooperation with the open-source project OpenDisplay and launched two ePaper dashboard development kits for smart home scenarios. Built on low-power Bluetooth (BLE) and the OpenDisplay open-source firmware solution, the kits emphasize ultra-long battery life, bringing a lightweight information panel solution to DIY enthusiasts and smart home developers.

OpenDisplay originated from the OpenEPaperLink project and is also a collaborating project in the Open Home Foundation's open smart home ecosystem. The solution adopts a distinctive sender-receiver split architecture: compute-intensive tasks such as image rendering, color conversion and image dithering are all handled by the sender device, and the processed image data is then delivered to the ePaper terminal over BLE. The ePaper receiver is only responsible for refreshing the screen, without any complex computation, minimizing terminal power consumption and fully exploiting the characteristic advantage of E Ink displays — consuming power only when refreshing.

The two pieces of hardware launched by Seeed this time are receiver terminals in this architecture. Both are powered by the Nordic nRF52840 main controller with on-chip 1MB Flash and 256KB SRAM, plus 2MB of external flash, and ship pre-flashed with the OpenDisplay open-source firmware — ready to join the ecosystem out of the box.

The 4.26-inch grayscale model: 800×480 resolution with 4-level grayscale support; a built-in 2,000mAh battery delivers up to 2 years of battery life with one screen refresh every 15 minutes; priced at $39.90.

The 7.3-inch color model: uses E Ink Spectra 6 six-color ePaper, also at 800×480 resolution, capable of displaying black, white, red, yellow, green and blue, with dithering algorithms delivering rich visual effects; likewise equipped with a 2,000mAh battery, it runs for about 1 year with one refresh every 2 hours; priced at $75.90.

Both kits come standard with 3D-printed stands supporting landscape and portrait placement, suitable for the desktop to display static information such as home temperature and humidity, sensor data, calendars and schedules, and smart home device status. Notably, the terminals themselves have no Wi-Fi module and cannot connect to the network independently — a BLE sender device must be paired to generate screens and push data. Meanwhile, ePaper natively has no backlight and refreshes relatively slowly, making it better suited for static information display rather than dynamic content.

Aimed at open-source enthusiasts and smart home tinkerers, the kits support independent secondary development via the open firmware, with discounts available for volume purchases. They are now officially on sale at the Seeed store.