Driving ePaper Displays with XIAO: From Breakout Boards to the EE04

In my video I shared the exact steps needed to get started with ePaper displays using a XIAO module and the Arduino ecosystem, leveraging the open source Seeed GFX Library available on GitHub. The demonstration is based on a 4.2 inch Monochrome eInk ePaper Display with a 400x300 pixel resolution, driven by the SSD1680 controller and connected via SPI.

Powered by the XIAO ESP32-S3 Plus, the XIAO ePaper Display Board (ESP32-S3) EE04 is a feature-rich solution that supports both 24-pin and 50-pin ePaper displays. It integrates a JST 2.0 mm battery connector with power switch and built-in charging IC, along with a reset button and three user buttons. This makes it well suited for low-power ePaper applications such as digital signage, electronic labels, and portable information boards, while the smaller breakout board offers a simpler option for projects using 24-pin displays only.

The display can be controlled either through the dedicated XIAO ePaper Display Board like EE04 or by using the ePaper Breakout Board for Seeed Studio XIAO together with a wide range of XIAO modules such as the XIAO ESP32-C3, XIAO ESP32-C5, or XIAO ESP32-C6. This flexibility makes it easy to experiment with different microcontrollers while keeping the same display and software setup.