FrameOSSeeed Studio buying guide
Which Seeed Studio reTerminal and XIAO e-paper displays run FrameOS, which one to pick, and what to know before buying.
Seeed Studio makes the closest thing to a ready-made FrameOS frame. The reTerminal E-series puts an ESP32-S3 with 8 MB of PSRAM, an e-ink panel, buttons, a buzzer and a battery in a finished case, and FrameOS has a hardware preset for each model: pick it, flash from the browser, and scenes render on the device itself. For your own builds, Seeed's XIAO ePaper boards carry the same chip.
This page covers every Seeed ESP32 display we know of, including the ones FrameOS doesn't support yet.
Finished devices
| Device | Display | FrameOS |
|---|---|---|
| reTerminal E1004 | 13.3" 1200×1600 Spectra 6 color, 5000 mAh battery | 🟢 Tested - preset seeed_reterminal_e1004 |
| reTerminal E1002 | 7.3" 800×480 Spectra 6 color | 🟢 Tested - preset seeed_reterminal_e1002 |
| reTerminal E1001 | 7.5" 800×480 black/white | 🟡 Preset seeed_reterminal_e1001, should work |
| reTerminal Sticky | 3.97" 800×480 black/white | 🟡 Preset seeed_reterminal_sticky, should work |
| reTerminal E1003 | 10.3" 1404×1872 16-level grayscale, touch | ⚪ Not supported yet |
| XIAO 7.5" ePaper Panel | 7.5" 800×480 black/white, XIAO ESP32-C3 | ⚪ Not supported yet |
| reTerminal D1001 | 8" 800×1280 touch LCD, ESP32-P4 | ⚪ Not supported yet |
Which one should I buy?
- An art frame for photos and paintings: the E1004. A 13.3" six-color panel behind a mat in a real picture frame. It renders 1200×1600 scenes on its 8 MB of PSRAM, and on battery it deep-sleeps between refreshes.
- Color, but smaller: the E1002. The 7.3" Spectra 6 glass is the same panel as the Waveshare 7.3" (E) and the PhotoPainter, in a finished case with three buttons.
- Calendars, agendas, dashboards: the E1001. Black and white is crisp, and it refreshes in seconds where a color panel takes much longer.
- A desk or fridge note: the Sticky. 800×480 on a 3.97" panel makes small text sharp.
- Your own frame, your own case: one of the boards below and a panel.
Building your own
| Board | Panels | FrameOS |
|---|---|---|
| XIAO ePaper Display Board EE04 | 24-pin, and the 7.3" Spectra 6 on its 50-pin connector | 🟡 Should work with the TRMNL DIY kit pins |
| XIAO ePaper Display Board EE05 | 24-pin | 🟡 Should work with the TRMNL DIY kit pins |
| TRMNL 7.5" DIY Kit | 7.5" black/white, included | 🟡 Preset trmnl_og_diy_kit |
| TRMNL 4.26" DIY Kit | 4.26" 4-level grayscale, included | 🟡 Preset trmnl_4in26_diy_kit |
| XIAO ePaper Display Board EE02 | 13.3" Spectra 6 | ⚪ Not supported yet - the panel driver exists, the board preset doesn't |
| XIAO ePaper Display Board EE03 | 10.3" 16-level grayscale | ⚪ Not supported yet |
For anything else, the bare XIAO ESP32-S3 (8 MB of PSRAM) is the reference board for a custom ESP32 build: wire it to any Waveshare-family SPI panel, pick the panel and the pins, and flash. Seeed's nRF52840 boards (EN04, EN05) are not ESP32s and don't run FrameOS.
Before you buy
- The preset does the setup. Choosing a reTerminal preset fills in the panel, pins, buttons, buzzer, battery wiring and flash size - see the ESP32 guide for the whole flow, from the backend or FrameOS Cloud.
- macOS needs a driver first. The reTerminal E-series talks USB through a WCH CH340 chip, which macOS doesn't recognise out of the box. Install WCH's driver before flashing - the E1004 page has the steps. Windows 11 and Linux work as they are.
- The buttons and buzzer work in scenes. The three E-series keys arrive as button events a scene can react to, and the buzzer clicks on each press.
- Battery frames sleep. The E1004 preset deep-sleeps on battery and wakes every 15 minutes or on a button, and the backend or cloud shows when it's due back - see battery and deep sleep. The battery reading is verified on the E1004 and wired the same way on the E1001 and E1002 according to Seeed's schematics.
- Color takes time. A Spectra 6 refresh is about half a minute on the 13.3" panel. Perfect for a frame that changes a few times an hour, not for a clock with a second hand.
- FrameOS replaces the factory firmware. Flashing it overwrites the firmware the device ships with, and the frame then talks to your own backend or FrameOS Cloud - no other account needed.
Tested a board marked "should work", or want one that isn't supported yet? Tell us on GitHub or Discord.
Store links on the device pages may be affiliate links: buying through them supports FrameOS at no extra cost to you.