This stunning IPS display breakout is the ideal solution for adding a small, vibrant, and bright display to any project. It offers excellent visibility from all angles. Using 4-wire SPI for communication and featuring its own pixel-addressable frame buffer, it's compatible with every type of microcontroller, even those with limited memory and few available pins! The 2.0-inch display boasts 320x240 color pixels. Unlike low-cost CSTN displays like the 'Nokia 6110' with poor color and slow refresh, this is a true TFT and an IPS display for vivid colors and high-angle visibility. The TFT driver (ST7789) can display full 18-bit color (262,144 shades), though most drivers use 16-bit color. The same driver chip is always included, so you don't have to worry about code compatibility. The breakout board has the TFT display soldered on via a delicate flex-circuit connector, along with an ultra-low-dropout 3.3V regulator, auto-reset circuitry, and a 3/5V level shifter. This allows you to use it with either 3.3V or 5V power and logic. There's also a microSD card holder, enabling you to easily load full-color bitmaps from a FAT16/FAT32 formatted microSD card (not included). Adafruit has written a comprehensive open-source graphics library with example code. It can draw pixels, lines, rectangles, circles, text, and bitmaps. The code is for Arduino but can be easily adapted to your preferred microcontroller. Wiring is a breeze - we recommend using your Arduino's hardware SPI pins as software SPI is slower for this size display.
Using this product is quite straightforward. First, connect the display to your microcontroller. You can use either 3.3V or 5V power and logic thanks to the level shifter on the breakout board. We suggest using the hardware SPI pins on your Arduino for faster performance. To load full-color bitmaps, insert a FAT16/FAT32 formatted microSD card into the holder. The card isn't included, so you'll need to get one separately. Adafruit has an open-source graphics library with example code that makes it easy to draw different shapes and text on the display. You can use this code as a starting point and adapt it to your needs. When handling the display, be gentle as it uses a delicate flex-circuit connector. Also, make sure your microSD card is properly formatted before use. For maintenance, keep the display clean and avoid exposing it to extreme temperatures or humidity. If you run into any issues, refer to the datasheet or the open-source library documentation.
