Continuing the glory of the Inkplate series, we present you the newest board - Inkplate 6COLOR - an incredibly simple to use e-paper display, now with colorful e-paper display. Powerful, Wi-Fi-enabled ESP32 microcontroller makes this 5.8" color e-paper display incredibly easy to control. Just plug in a USB cable, open Arduino IDE (or MicroPython), and change the contents of the screen with a few lines of code! Thanks to its low-power mode, you can run it for months, or even years, on a single battery. Our Inkplate series is everything you ever needed from an e-paper display, in a single ecosystem.
Let’s face it, other e-paper displays are a hassle to work with. For one thing, they usually require additional hardware—breakout boards for connectors and cables, or external microcontrollers. And their documentation is often pretty rough, with few examples and little or no sample code. You can make them work, sure, but it takes a lot of effort, and most of us just don’t have the time and resources to go that extra mile.
This is where the Inkplate comes in. Designed with simplicity in mind, it addresses all of the challenges that e-paper brings with it. Let’s start with hardware: everything is plug-and-play; just connect a USB Type-C cable, press the power button, and you’re ready to go. Inkplate boards contain all of the bits and pieces you need to get started, including a Wi-Fi microcontroller, microSD slot, extra input/output pins, Real Time Clock (RTC), Li-ion battery charger, and more. As for the screen, Inkplate 6COLOR has a slower refresh time compared to other Inkplate boards, but it compensates for that with a beautiful multicolor screen. You can show a total of seven different colors or use built-in dithering algorithms for even more realistic colors renderings on the screen.
Inkplate has you covered on the software side, as well. If you’re the Arduino type, you’ll have text on your screen in less than five minutes. Install the board definition, download the library, and open one of the many sample applications. Customizing those samples is about as easy as it gets. Using a library based on the Adafruit GFX graphics library, you can add text, images, and other graphical objects to the screen with just a few lines of code. The full documentation is here to help you finish your projects. MicroPython module and sample code will be provided as well.
In fact, our obsession with simplicity goes beyond the hardware and the software. Want to make your Inkplate look stylish and keep it safe at the same time? We’ll save you some time (and some filament) by pre-installing your board into a custom, 3D-printed enclosure.
There’s just something about e-paper displays. We find e-paper fascinating for a number of reasons, but let’s start with some facts: it just looks brilliant, uses power only when refreshing, and it has no glare. Now, after being so used to black & white e-paper displays on e-book readers, let us surprise you with the actual color pixels. The AC057TC1 e-paper screen from E-Ink Corporation packs seven color pixels for each physical pixel on the screen, and by dithering them, you can show real masterpieces on its screen.
Some "screenshots" of the e-paper on Inkplate 6COLOR
Technical specs of the screen:
Inkplate 6COLOR refresh in real time. First video without dithering, second with dithering turned on.
Check out how the Inkplate 6COLOR compares to our previous e-paper displays.
Inkplate 6COLOR | Inkplate 10 | Inkplate 6 | Inkplate 6PLUS | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Screen Size | 5.85" | 9.7" | 6" | 6" |
Resolution | 600 x 448 | 1200 x 825 | 800 x 600 | 1024 x 758 |
Total number of pixels | 268,800 | 990,000 | 480,000 | 776,192 |
Colors | Yes, seven colors total | No | No | No |
Touch pads | 3 | 3 | 3 | No, touchscreen |
All-in-one Board | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Low-Power Mode | 18 μA | 22 μA | 25 μA | 22 μA |
Wi-Fi | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Battery Charger | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
MicroSD slot | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Greyscale | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Partial Update | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Refresh Time in Seconds | 25 s / 11 s | 1.61 s | 1.26 s | 1.27 s |
Refresh Time per Pixel | 93 μs / 41 μs | 1.62 μs | 2.63 μs | 1.63 μs |
Inkplate 6COLOR is open hardware driven by open source software. OSHWA certification is in the works. Its hardware design files and software are openly maintained in our GitHub repositories, as is our documentation. If you don’t find what you’re looking for, we provide free technical support through our forums. You can also contact us using the Ask a technical question link on our campaign page if you have a question.
" A new e-paper color display [launching] via Crowd Supply offering a 5.8 inch Wi-Fi enabled color display that is easy to set and extremely versatile. "
"I’m a sucker for DIY projects and I’m also a sucker for e-ink. That’s why this $199 device, which is essentially a color e-ink panel with a built-in Arduino controller is so interesting."
"With seven colors to choose from and a built-in dithering system, the latest Inkplate is nothing if not eye-catching."
Produced by Soldered Electronics in Osijek, Croatia.
Sold and shipped by Crowd Supply.
One all-in-one e-paper color board - Inkplate 6COLOR.
One all-in-one e-paper color board - Inkplate 6COLOR in 3D printed enclosure.
From the Crowd Supply Basics project.
A 100 cm cable with a USB Type-C and a USB Type-A connector.
From the Crowd Supply Basics project.
A wall mount 5 V, 1 A AC adapter with a USB Type-A port and US plug.
From the Crowd Supply Basics project.
A wall mount 5 V, 1 A AC adapter with a USB Type-A port and EU plug.
Osijek, Croatia · solderedcom · solderedelectronics · soldered.com
At Soldered Electronics, we craft custom electronic products for everyone from hobbyists to industry pros. Dive into our selection of electronic boards, sensors, and actuators—essential tools in realms like microelectronics, mechatronics, robotics, programming, and IoT. Every piece we sell is a product of our own design, grounded in open-source hardware and software.