Modos Developer Kit Now Live on Crowd Supply!

Introducing the Modos Developer Kit

After years of development, the moment has arrived! The Modos Developer Kit campaign launches today on Crowd Supply, making high-performance open e-paper technology accessible to everyone.

The Problem We're Solving

Like many of you, I spent over 12 hours a day in front of screens, feeling drained and distracted. The digital tools I relied on demanded attention rather than supporting my well-being. I wanted something different: a space free from eyestrain and noise where I could focus.

I quickly realized I wasn't alone. From writers to engineers, digital minimalists to people with visual impairments, professionals across fields shared the same frustrations: constant distraction, headaches, and fatigue. What we all wanted were tools that worked with us, not against us.

That's when I began exploring electrophoretic displays. Unlike traditional screens, e-paper is reflective, offering no flicker or blue light. It's comfortable for hours of reading and writing, works beautifully in sunlight, and only consumes power when the screen is in use. In many ways, it's as close to real paper as technology gets.

Our Solution

Inspired by how Arduino and RepRap made electronics and 3D printing accessible to many, we wanted to bring that same accessibility to e-paper. Despite e-paper clear advantages: low eye strain, no backlight, and paper-like readability, e-paper remained locked behind proprietary systems, inaccessible to developers and makers.

We founded Modos Tech in 2022 to make that change. Our mission is to build technology that respects your time, attention, well-being, and freedom. After overcoming hardware limitations, sourcing challenges, and controller design hurdles, we're proud to introduce the Modos Developer Kit:

Features

1. Powered by Caster, our open-hardware FPGA-based controller
2. Drives e-paper screens at 75Hz refresh rates
3. Low latency with multiple screen-update modes
4. Connects via mini-HDMI or USB-C
5. Cross-platform compatibility: Linux, macOS, and Windows
6. Available in 6" and 13" monochrome kits

Why It's Different

Unlike commercial e-paper products, our kit offers openness and customization:

1. User-defined modes like Hybrid Greyscale, which intelligently switches between fast binary updates and refined greyscale rendering
2. Full control of our driver board through our C API.
3. Broad panel compatibility, including color options

Open Hardware

The Modos Developer Kit is:

1. Built entirely with open-source software
2. Complete design files and source code available on GitHub
3. Documentation covering electrophoretic displays and implementation

Join Our Community

Explore compatible screens on our GitHub repository. For support and discussion:

1. Visit our Discord community.
2. Follow us on Mastodon and Twitter.
   

Get In Touch

If you are interested in supporting us or have any questions, contact@modos.tech.

What's Next

This is just the beginning! Over the next six weeks, we'll be sharing more details about our crowdfunding campaign.

Stay tuned, and thank you for joining us on this journey!