Samsung Color E-Paper Capabilities and Limitations
Samsung Color E-Paper panels (EMDX series, e.g. EM32DX) are battery-powered Tizen 8.0 displays that keep their image without power. They suit static content that changes a few times a day, such as posters, menus or price lists.
To set a panel up, follow the Samsung Color E-Paper provisioning guide. Supported models and firmware are listed on the Samsung supported devices page.
Supported
| Feature | Notes |
|---|---|
| Applets and timings | HTML5 content and images. Every change redraws the whole panel, which takes several seconds and makes the screen flicker. This is normal for e-paper. |
| Battery status | Box shows the battery level and whether the panel is charging. |
| Screenshots | |
| Core App restart | |
| Screen refresh | Applets can refresh the screen and read and set the time of the daily screen refresh with the JS API (refreshNow(), getRefreshTime(), setRefreshTime()). The panel accepts one refresh about every minute and rejects refreshNow() calls in between. |
Not supported
| Feature | Reason |
|---|---|
| Reboot, scheduled power actions and auto recovery | The panel does not start the Core App again after a remote reboot. |
| Remote Core App update | Update the Core App in the Samsung E-Paper app, see the provisioning guide. |
| Orientation change | Set the orientation in the Samsung E-Paper app before you install the Core App. |
| Video, streams and Picture in Picture | The panel shows only still images. |
| Brightness and volume | The panel has no backlight and no speaker. |
| Display power on/off and on/off timers | The panel sleeps instead, see Sleep and battery. |
| Remote control lock | The panel has no IR remote control. |
| Temperature | The panel does not report its temperature. |
| Ethernet | The panel connects over Wi-Fi only. |
Sleep and battery
- The panel goes to sleep after the Sleep Time set in the Samsung E-Paper app. A sleeping panel is offline in signageOS and cannot receive commands or new content until it wakes up.
- With Network Standby on, the panel stays connected while it sleeps, so it can be woken up remotely. This uses more battery.
- Every content change uses battery. Animations, fast slideshows or clocks drain the battery quickly, so change the content as rarely as you can.
Screen refresh
Samsung requires the screen to be refreshed at least once every 3 days to protect the panel cells and prevent ghosting. The panel refreshes every day at the Refresh Time set in the Samsung E-Paper app. Applets can change this time, or refresh the screen right away, with the JS API.
Content tips
- The panel shows 6 colors and dithers the others, so high-contrast content with large text reads best.
- Design for the panel's orientation, set in the Samsung E-Paper app.