TRMNL-compatible e-ink device (stavros)
Hardware
e-ink display
SHOW HN2025
85points
24comments
#844of 3,837 in 2025
Top 22%of 2025 by points
How HN took it
MixedNo clear lean
4 positive, 1 neutral or asking, 0 mixed, 1 critical, out of 6 comments about the project. Thread score +0.14.
Pricing: 1 for, 1 againstDocs: 1 for, 0 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Beautiful writing and a fantastic project
From 2 comments
stavros is one of my favourite posters on HN, and the writing on his site is full of beautiful turns of phrase like that. > The Timeframe is a beautiful, battery-powered,…
drcongo on HNOh I had seen yours! What a fantastic project, well done. Beautiful result.
stavros on HN
Objections
Confusing developer edition and license tiers for plugin development and API access
From 3 comments
> $20 “developer edition” license which “unlocks their API”. I expected this upgrade to give me API access so I could retrieve the image that’s displayed of my device, but that’s…
joshstrange on HNThat option is for when you add it to your cart. You get API access with the device because you have one, but AFAIK you can't develop plugin without the dev option? I don't know,…
stavros on HNInteresting, I have developed plugins for my TRMNL and I only paid for the device. Or at least I've developed HTML-based views that are custom (I think that's "plugins") that are…
joshstrange on HN
Worry that the lifetime license could become a subscription requirement
From 1 comment
Yeah, my BOM was $20 for the driver and $50 for the screen, plus $50 for the TRMNL license. About the same as the TRMNL I bought, in the end, though as you say the license is a…
stavros on HN
Questions
Typical refresh rate and how the image service works
From 1 comment
This is neat--what's the typical refresh rate/update speed for the image service? Is the API is basically "Push PNG to server, PNG displays on whiteboard?"
estsauver on HN
Alternatives named
TRMNL
From 2 comments
TRMNL's site seems to think there is not a cost-savings to build-your-own. They don't appear to include the licensing cost though. From their site: > Making your own TRMNL from…
JKCalhoun on HN> $20 “developer edition” license which “unlocks their API”. I expected this upgrade to give me API access so I could retrieve the image that’s displayed of my device, but that’s…
joshstrange on HN