FrameOSWaveshare 2.13" (DES) e-Paper
212×104 black & white e-ink display for FrameOS - specs, setup and driver details.
Official Waveshare store
Official store page for this device.
- Vendor
- Waveshare
- Model
- 2.13" (DES) e-Paper
- Technology
- E-ink
- Colors
- Black / White
- Resolution
- 212×104 px
- Size
- 2.13″ diagonal
- Interface
- SPI
- Platforms
- Raspberry Pi · ESP32-S3
- Status
- 🟡 Should work
- FrameOS driver
waveshare.EPD_2in13_DES
Part of the FrameOS device database. Spotted an error, or tested this panel? Edit this page on GitHub - it's a markdown file.
The Waveshare 2.13" (DES) e-Paper is a 2.13″ e-ink panel with a resolution of 212×104 pixels showing black and white. Two-tone e-ink has the fastest refresh of any e-paper type - a full update takes only a couple of seconds - and the high contrast works great for text, dashboards and dithered photos. Like all e-paper, it keeps the last image with zero power - the frame only wakes up to render.
How it works
FrameOS ships a native Nim driver
(waveshare.EPD_2in13_DES) compiled straight into the binary that runs on your Raspberry Pi - no Python, no
vendor libraries. Each render pass draws your scene into a full-color image,
dithers it to the panel's palette, and pushes the result to the display over SPI.
Setup
- Connect the panel to the Raspberry Pi - plug the HAT onto the GPIO header, or hook up the separate driver board with the bundled ribbon cable.
- Add a frame in the FrameOS backend and select the Waveshare 2.13" (DES) 212x104 Black/White driver.
- Save & deploy. The panel blinks through a refresh cycle and shows your scene.
Make sure the letter suffix on your panel's ribbon cable matches the driver - Waveshare reuses product names across revisions. More tips in the Waveshare buying guide.
Status
🟡 Should work, not yet confirmed on real hardware. The driver shares its controller logic with panels that are confirmed working. If you have this display, report your results with a photo and we'll mark it confirmed.