Adafruit
4.2" 400x300 Monochrome/4-Grey eInk Bare Display
· MPN: ADA6381
E-Ink and ePaper panels are ideal for low-power projects where the image needs to stay visible without continuous power. This bare 4.2 inch display has a pap...
E-Ink and ePaper panels are ideal for low-power projects where the image needs to stay visible without continuous power. This bare 4.2 inch display has a paper-like, high-contrast look that remains readable in daylight and keeps its image even when power is disconnected.
This is the display element only, with a standard 24-pin FPC e-paper connector. It is designed to be used with a suitable driver board such as the Feather RP2040 ThinkInk, eInk Feather Friend, eInk Breakout Friend, or a 24-pin eInk/ePaper extension cable and FPC adapter.
The panel uses the SSD1683 chipset and provides 400 x 300 black ink pixels on a white-ish background. Adafruit’s Arduino library handles the display driving and lets you use it like an Adafruit_GFX compatible display. The Feather RP2040 ThinkInk option also supports Arduino or CircuitPython.
A 4-grey mode can provide two extra monochromatic shades, although it is not officially supported by the display and may need dithering for best results.
Specifications:
- Display size: 4.2" diagonal
- Display type: Monochrome or 4-level Grayscale eInk / ePaper Bare Display
- Resolution: 400 x 300 pixels
- Connector: Standard 24-pin FPC e-paper connector
- Pixel colour: Black ink pixels
- Background: White-ish background
- Chipset: SSD1683
- Technical Details: Datasheet
Choose this panel when you want to build a custom ePaper project and already have, or plan to add, a compatible 24-pin eInk driver board.
Jargon buster
Plain-language definitions for the technical terms used above.
- breakout
- A breakout is a small circuit board that makes a tiny or hard-to-solder component easier to connect to with standard pins. It matters because this OLED module can be wired into a microcontroller project without needing to solder directly to the display’s fine contacts.
- CircuitPython
- A beginner-friendly version of Python designed to run directly on microcontroller boards. If a product supports CircuitPython, you can often program it by copying code files onto the board rather than setting up a more complex toolchain.
- ePaper
- A display technology that looks more like printed paper than a glowing screen and usually keeps its image visible with very little power. It matters for projects such as labels, badges, and status screens where readability and low power use are more important than fast animation.
- FPC
- FPC stands for flexible printed circuit, a flat flexible cable or connector style often used where space is tight. It matters because this breakout needs the correct pin count and pitch FPC cable to connect reliably to the display or high-speed interface.
- RP2040
- A microcontroller chip used on many maker boards, with enough speed and flexible I/O for some camera and display projects. Compatibility with RP2040 matters because camera modules often need many pins and careful timing to read image data successfully.
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Displays & Screens
4.2" eInk Display Datasheet
Datasheet · 6.3 MB · Click any page to view full size
Supplier page — adafruit.com
Supplier Description · 707.4 KB · Click any page to view full size
