P10

2 Articles

Low-Resolution Display Provides High-Nostalgia Animations

April 16, 2018 by 14 Comments

High-definition displays are the de facto standard today, and we’ve come to expect displays that show every pore, blemish, and bead of sweat on everything from phones to stadium-sized Jumbotrons. Despite this,  low-resolution displays continue to have a nostalgic charm all their own.

Take this 32 x 16 display, dubbed PixelTimes, for instance. [Dominic Buchstaller] has gone a step beyond his previous PixelTime, a minimalist weather clock and home hub built around the same P10 RGB matrix. The previous build was a little involved, though, with a nice wood frame that took some time and skill to create.

Building your own version of PixelTimes is really approachable. The case is mostly 3D-printed, and the acrylic parts [Dominic] laser cut could just as easily be cut with a saw. And that P10 board can be source for peanuts direct from Chine. The software for the project has been upgraded since the original version, supporting flicker-free animations. Everything runs on a NodeMCU, and there are even scripts to convert your favorite GIF to an animation. Oh, and it still displays the weather too.

This looks great and seems like a lot of fun, and [Dominic] kindly provides all the files you’ll need to build your own. It shouldn’t take more than an hour to build once you’ve got all the parts.

A Minimalist Weather Clock With A Unique Display

November 28, 2017 by 18 Comments

If you’re looking for a home hub to display weather, time, and important family information, the formula is pretty simple: build yet another “magic mirror” project. We’re not complaining — magic mirrors look great. But if all you need is time and weather, this elegant pixel display is something just a little bit different.

Among his many criteria for the perfect hack, [Dominic] lists usefulness, visual appeal, and low cost. We’ll agree that his minimalist weather clock hits all those marks, and with the careful selection of a 16 x 32-pixel RGB display module, [Dominic] ended up giving back to the community by developing an Arduino driver for it. He points out that strips of Neopixels could have been used for the display, but they’d have ended up costing more, so the LED matrix was a sensible choice. A 3D-printed separator grid and a paper diffuser provide the proper pixelated look, and some simple animated icons display the two-day weather forecast. We find the time and temperature numerals a little hard to read, but it’s not bad considering the limited resolution of the display. And the case is a nice bit of woodworking too. Not a bad result for only €43.

We’re intrigued by the P10 LED matrix module [Dominic] used for this one. It might be a good choice for a word clock and weather station, or with his driver, a display for just about anything.