{
  "id": 14751991,
  "title": "YouTuber built 30-frame-per-second grayscale Game Boy, then open sourced it for all e-paper displays",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/15/youtuber-built-30-frame-per-second-grayscale-game-boy-then-open-14751991",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-15T17:15:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Register",
    "slug": "the-register",
    "url": "https://www.theregister.com/offbeat/2026/10/15/youtuber-built-30-frame-per-second-grayscale-game-boy-then-open-sourced-it-for-all-e-paper-displays/5303394"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "YouTuber Bo Made It recently showcased a custom open-source E Ink driver that could potentially enable any display to achieve similar results to the classic Game Boy. Demonstrated on a tiny ESP32-S3-powered e-paper board, the display produced a grayscale version of the Game Boy screen, albeit not as visually appealing as the original olive-green screen. E Ink displays, such as the one used in this demonstration, are known for their power efficiency by retaining screen states without continuous energy consumption. However, the trade-off is a slow pixel-changing process, making it impractical for displaying fast-moving images. To overcome this limitation, Bo developed a custom driver that shortened the refresh waveform and allowed per-pixel driving, reducing ghosting and enabling four shades of grey. While not a first attempt, Bo's method offers a unique approach to faster E Ink refresh times by utilizing stock hardware. However, this achievement comes with a warning: modifying E Ink screens to achieve higher refresh rates can potentially damage the panel and has not been evaluated for long-term panel life. As such, Bo advises against attempting this on sensitive devices like a modded Kindle and recommends using a cheap E Ink screen instead.",
  "summary": "Not afraid of custom waveforms frying your e-paper? Download it from GitHub and give it a shot on your stock screen today",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Register Science",
        "title": "YouTuber built 30-frame-per-second grayscale Game Boy, then open sourced it for all e-paper displays",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/15/youtuber-built-30-frame-per-second-grayscale-game-boy-then-open",
        "published": "2026-10-15T17:15:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}