On The Way

They are on the way home they come soon
i tried to find the best combo possible for under $30 with shipping and tax so that this is a very doable project

THE PARTS

found some parts that will work together for $25 total from 2 websites to get the best deals and the best components

Type-C ESP32 ESP-WROOM-32
E-INK Display

LAYOUT

1. Color Usage Ideas

Note: E-paper tri-color displays usually use Black + Red/Yellow + White (background). You can only set one “non-black” color per pixel, so plan carefully.

+------------------------------------------------+
| TIME (Black) |
| HH:MM |
| Day, Date |
+------------------------------------------------+
| WEATHER |
| [Weather Icon: Black/Sun, Red/Alert] Temp°C |
| Condition |
+------------------------------------------------+
| CALENDAR EVENTS |
| Event 1 (Black) |
| Event 2 (Red if urgent) |
| Event 3 |
+------------------------------------------------+
| OPTIONAL QUOTE (Yellow) |
| "Have a great day!" |
+------------------------------------------------+

1. Suggested Color Strategy for Dashboard

Time / Date: Black

Weather Temp: Black

Weather Alerts: Red (if temp > 30°C or < 0°C, etc.)

Upcoming Calendar Events: Red if urgent (like “Meeting in 1 hr”), Black otherwise

Fun Fact / Quote: Yellow

Optional Icons / Borders: Yellow highlights for separation

Wireing

`
E-Paper Pin | ESP32 Pin | Notes
-- | -- | --
VCC | 3.3V | Power
GND | GND | Ground
DIN (MOSI) | GPIO 23 | SPI MOSI
CLK (SCK) | GPIO 18 | SPI Clock
CS | GPIO 5 | Chip Select
DC | GPIO 17 | Data/Command
RST | GPIO 16 | Reset
BUSY | GPIO 4 | Busy/ready

`

1. Required Arduino Libraries

Install these via Library Manager:

GxEPD2 → For e-paper display

WiFi → ESP32 Wi-Fi

HTTPClient → Fetch API data

ArduinoJson → Parse JSON from weather & calendar APIs

NTPClient → Get network time

THE PLAN

Today I spent time researching the components and setup for my Personal E-Ink Dashboard project. I finalized the hardware:

• ESP32-WROOM-32 Development Board – handles Wi-Fi, time synchronization, and API requests.

• Waveshare 2.66" E-Paper Module B – SPI e-paper display that shows text and basic graphics, perfect for a low-power always-on dashboard.

I reviewed the libraries and software I’ll need:

• GxEPD2 for controlling the e-paper display

• WiFi.h and HTTPClient.h for internet connectivity and API requests

• ArduinoJson for parsing JSON from the weather and calendar APIs

• NTPClient for keeping the clock accurate

I also researched data sources:

• Weather: OpenWeatherMap API (free tier)

• Calendar: Google Calendar or Apple iCloud public ICS feed

• Optional extras: daily quotes or fun facts

Planned Wiring / Schematic

Here’s the intended wiring for connecting the ESP32 to the 2.66" e-paper display:

     +------------------+
     |   ESP32          |
     |                  |
     | 23(MOSI) --------> DIN
     | 18(SCK)  --------> CLK
     | 5(CS)    --------> CS
     | 17(DC)   --------> DC
     | 16(RST)  --------> RST
     | 4(BUSY)  --------> BUSY
     | 3.3V     --------> VCC
     | GND      --------> GND
     +------------------+
              |
              v
       2.66" E-Paper Display

SPI communication allows fast updates of the e-paper screen.

I will start by displaying just the time to verify wiring and libraries work before integrating weather and calendar APIs.

The ESP32 will enter deep sleep between updates to save power.

Next Steps:

Assemble the hardware and verify the wiring

Write test code to display text and graphics on the e-paper display

Connect to Wi-Fi and fetch the current time

Plan the layout for time, weather, and calendar events on the 2.66" screen