Frequently Asked Questions
Our support team sometimes notices they’ve received the same question a few times. When that occurs, we add it to our FAQ queue, to make a blog post accessible to everyone. These FAQs include how to get devices working, questions about the display industry, questions about microcontrollers, and more! Do you have a question not covered here? Contact Crystalfontz Support.
What is the Difference Between OLED, PMOLED, and AMOLED?
Confused about the differences (and similarities) between OLEDs, PMOLEDs, and AMOLEDs? Quick Version: OLED stands for Organic Light Emitting Diode. PMOLED is Passive Matrix OLED — Passive Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode. AMOLED is Active Matrix OLED. An Active Matrix OLED uses a TFT (Thin Film Transistor) transistor-per-pixel architecture. Learn More To find out more […]
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LCD Glossary
Wondering how LCDs are constructed? How liquid crystals create an image? Or how backlights arranged for best viewing? What about different types of connections (SPI and I2C) and ways to drive LCD displays? So many questions. We have answers — check out the new Crystalfontz LCD Glossary. Growing Glossary of LCD Terminology and Acronyms This glossary will
New Product: 128 x 32 OLED Displays
Crystalfontz is pleased to announce a new line of 128 x 32 OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) displays as part of our product catalog. These displays are compact in size and feature a high resolution 128×32 graphic display. Quick Start Guide – What You Need to Know 1) These displays are small and thin. You can
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New Product: Arduino and LCD Module Bundles
2022/08/11 – The modules described in this blog post have been updated with new displays. Read about it here. Or go directly to the updated Graphic LCD Arduino Shield Display page. Crystalfontz America announces three new supporting products for the128x64 pixel COG (Chip-On-Glass) graphic LCD display module series of displays based on the CFA10072 carrier
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Tutorial: Connecting a TFT Display Using an Arduino or SparkFun Board
In the video tutorial below, the Crystalfontz 128×128 SPI Color TFT display is connected using 4-wire SPI mode and a SparkFun RedBoard. The software demonstrates bit-banged software SPI, or can use hardware SPI. Please see our tech forum for the complete step-by-step written tutorial. One of our Twitter followers posted this update, using an Arduino-compatible board
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FAQ: Hot Bar Soldering for TAB or COF Style LCD Modules
Question Some of your LCDs have a flexible connection, but I can’t find any connectors that fit them. What is the best way to connect these modules to a PCB? Answer There are three kinds of modules that have this kind of construction: TAB (Tape Automated Bonding) COF (Chip On Flex) and some COG (Chip
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FAQ: How Do I Display an Image on the Crystalfontz 835 LCD Module?
Question: How do I display an image on CFA835 module using the RS232 interface? Answer: You can send an image directly from your host application, or read it off the uSD card. Image Requirements for Use on an LCD Module The image needs to be a BMP, grayscale, 8 bits/pixel, no compression, Microsoft Windows format only.
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Tutorial: Connect an Arduino to a Crystalfontz 533 Keypad LCD
In our last post, we talked about connecting a Raspberry Pi to a Crystalfontz LCD. In this post, we look at connecting an Arduino Uno with a CFA533 I2C LCD with a keypad. This gives you the ability to output and control your Arduino via I2C using a character module with a keypad interface. Let’s Get Started Step
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Tutorial: Connect a Crystalfontz LCD with a Raspberry Pi
Have you wondered what it takes to integrate a Crystalfontz LCD with a Raspberry Pi? The answer may surprise you — it is quicker and easier than you might think.
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What Makes an LCD Sunlight Readable?
Have you ever been at the car wash in the late afternoon, struggling to read the instructions on the display at the pay kiosk? That may be because it was not a sunlight-readable LCD display. What Makes a Display Readable in Bright Light? There are two ways to get sunlight readability: 1) is to work
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What’s Under the Black Blob on the Back of LCDs?
Black blobs, “gob tops”… what are those black lumps on the back of LCDS? Let’s Take a Closer Look This image shows the detailed CAD work that goes on behind that innocuous black blob of plastic on the back of COB (Chip-On-Board) LCD modules. The engineers must analyze the wire bond length and angle to
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