A small pixel-art display for your desk: 64×64 RGB LEDs in a 3D-printed shell, powered over USB-C and controlled from a browser. Play animated artwork from a microSD card or Makapix Club, show clocks and widgets, or stream pixels from your computer. The firmware and enclosure are open source.
Finished and in daily use: both variants work as designed. The maintainer's two devices run around the clock, p64a since 2026-10-09 and p64b (the two knobs) since 2026-10-17. Firmware 0.2.0 is released and flashes from the browser; development continues. Project status
Build one · Use it · Develop it · Documentation
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| A landscape clock | Time over artwork | The v7a shell in hand |
- Plays pixel art: GIF, PNG/APNG, WebP and BMP, with transparency and pixel-aware scaling. Demanding animations slow down rather than skip frames.
- Plays community artwork: Makapix's Promoted channel needs no account. Pair for more channels, likes and sending artwork from the site. A card keeps cached art available offline; playsets mix channels.
- Shows useful information: clock faces and a time overlay, weather, air quality, UV, and the board's temperature sensor. A night schedule dims or blanks the panel.
- Accepts live pixels: DDP or raw p64 UDP from a computer, including screen capture with the bundled sender.
- Offers browser controls: mobile-friendly UI, live preview, optional PIN and a documented HTTP API. Tap gestures, auto-rotation and optional knobs add local control.
- Supports firmware updates over Wi-Fi: user-initiated installs with checksum verification and rollback. Pre-built releases flash from the browser.
Quality mode uses 11 bit planes at about 264 Hz; Photo mode raises refresh to about 814 Hz for cameras. Clocks require NTP after each boot. See the owner's guide for operating limits.
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| Colourful pixel art | Artwork with the time overlay | In low light |
More photos, playback clips and the web UI · Clock-face comparison · Concept video of p64b (45 s, rendered from the enclosure source; how it is made)
| p64a | p64b | |
|---|---|---|
| Controls | Browser and tap gestures | Same, plus two rotary knobs |
| Soldering | None | Required for the encoder wiring |
| Shell | v7a | v7b |
| Status | Finished; assembled 2026-10-09, in daily use | Finished; assembled 2026-10-17, in daily use |
Both variants use the same firmware and remain supported. The build guide defaults to p64a and links the extra p64b steps.
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| A slim tabletop shell | The assembled p64a, from behind |
No printer, no breadboard, no custom boards. A p64 is four steps:
- Buy the parts online: three items from Waveshare (controller, panel, supply) and two from Amazon (USB-C adapters, screws). p64b adds a few Adafruit parts.
- Order the shell from JLC3DP: upload two files, choose black PLA, pay.
- Assemble: p64a with a hex key; p64b after three small solder joints.
- Put the firmware on it: from the browser with the web flasher, or with one esptool command (flashing guide). No ESP-IDF needed.
For scale, one p64a cost the maintainer about US$119 delivered (parts $86, shipping $32, tax $1) and one p64b about US$157 (parts $115, shipping $38, tax $4), at the September and October 2026 prices paid, with shipping to New York. The build guide has every link and the build costs page every invoice line.
| I want to… | Read |
|---|---|
| Assemble and set up a device | Build guide |
| Add artwork, choose widgets or recover a device | Owner's guide |
| Check readiness and known limits | Project status |
| Build or change the firmware | Firmware guide |
| Print or modify the shell | Enclosure guide |
| Write a client | HTTP API |
| Find specifications, decisions and history | Documentation index |
p64 is a sibling of p3a, the same author's ESP32-P4 pixel-art player, and a player for Makapix Club. Development history includes the session prompts and hardware test records.
Project code and documentation use Apache 2.0. Third-party components and assets retain their own licenses; see credits.