SparkFun
TIMI-96
The TIMI-96 is a breadboard-compatible 0.96″ TFT LCD display module powered by the 4D Labs PIXXI-28 graphics processor. Designed to plug directly into a brea...
The TIMI-96 is a breadboard-compatible 0.96″ TFT LCD display module powered by the 4D Labs PIXXI-28 graphics processor. Designed to plug directly into a breadboard via its unique MatesBus interface, it lets you simulate instrument readouts, meters, and graphical displays during development — without tying up your microcontroller's limited resources.
With a 3.3 V serial UART interface (5 V tolerant), controller I2C bus, and 3 GPIO pins, TIMI-96 can operate as a stand-alone controller, a host-driven peripheral, or a tethered test instrument. Program it using the free Mates Studio software.
Key Features
- PIXXI-28 Graphics Processor – Dedicated GPU handles all display rendering
- 160×80 Pixel TFT LCD – 0.96″ colour display (non-touch)
- Breadboard Compatible – MatesBus pinout (2×5 pins, 0.1″ pitch, 0.3″ row spacing)
- Serial UART – 3.3 V (5 V tolerant), 300 to 2,187,500 baud
- Controller I2C – 3.3 V level I2C bus
- 3 GPIO – 2 analogue/I2C + 1 PWM audio output
- 16 MB Flash – For storing graphics, fonts, and media assets
- 3.3 V 500 mA Power Output – Power external devices directly from TIMI
- 4 Orientations – Portrait, landscape, and reversed versions of each
Specifications
- Display – 0.96″ TFT LCD, 160×80 pixels, non-touch
- Processor – PIXXI-28 (4D Labs)
- Processor Flash – 32 KB
- Processor SRAM – 14 KB (user variables)
- Storage – 16 MB flash
- Supply Voltage – 5 V DC (3.3 V possible)
- Weight – ~5.0 g
- Compliance – RoHS, REACH, UL 94V-0
Ideal For
- Simulating instrument readouts and meters during prototyping
- Breadboard-based electronics development
- Adding graphical displays to microcontroller projects
- Educational electronics and STEM projects
Resources
Jargon buster
Plain-language definitions for the technical terms used above.
- baud
- Baud is the signalling rate of a serial connection, often used as the speed setting for UART communication. Matching the baud rate matters because both connected devices must use the same setting for readable data.
- GPIO
- General-purpose input/output pins are microcontroller pins you can set in software to read signals, switch devices on and off, or connect to peripherals. The number of GPIO pins matters because it limits how many buttons, LEDs, sensors, and other parts you can wire directly to the board.
- I2C
- I2C is a two-wire communication bus used by many sensors and small modules. It matters because several I2C devices can share the same two wires, but each device needs a compatible address and your controller must support I2C.
- LCD
- LCD stands for liquid crystal display, a screen technology that uses a backlight and liquid crystals to show images or text. It matters because LCD modules usually need a display driver and enough controller pins or a bus interface to send image data.
- microcontroller
- A microcontroller is a small computer on a chip that runs your program and controls connected inputs and outputs. For this product, it is the part that reads buttons and sensors, drives the display and speaker, and communicates over Bluetooth.
- PWM
- Pulse Width Modulation is a way for a digital pin to simulate variable output power by switching on and off very quickly. It matters for controlling things like LED brightness, motor speed, or servo-style signals from a microcontroller pin.
- SRAM
- Fast temporary memory used by a processor while a program is running. More SRAM helps with projects that handle larger data buffers, networking, displays, or more complex code.
- TFT
- A thin-film transistor display is a common type of colour LCD used for graphics screens. Knowing a product is for TFTs helps you check that the driver board matches the display’s connector, resolution, backlight, and signalling method.
- UART
- UART is a simple serial connection that sends data over separate transmit and receive wires, often labelled TX and RX. It matters because this module is designed to replace a wired UART cable with a wireless link while keeping the same serial data format.
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Brands
Displays & Screens
TIMI-96 Datasheet
Datasheet · 2.0 MB · Click any page to view full size
Supplier page — sparkfun.com
Supplier Description · 440.7 KB · Click any page to view full size
Related Tutorials
Free guides on learn.littlebird.com.au
