Many folks in our maker community find an intriguing device with a familiar microcontroller inside and think, "Will it run DOOM?". Here at Adafruit, of course, that thought crosses our minds, but the more pertinent question is always "Can it run CircuitPython?".
The latest object to make us wonder this is the Xteink X4 eReader, a super slim pocket-sized eReader. It has an ESP32-C3 inside with serial over JTAG peripheral available through the USB port, making it easy to interface with, to load alternative firmware; no teardown required (but here's one if you're curious).
OpenX4 E-Paper Community SDK
There is a fantastic project for the Xteink X4 called the OpenX4 E-Paper Community SDK. It is written for use with ESP-IDF and PlatformIO. The work that's been done with that project made porting the Xteink X4 to CircuitPython super easy.
For working with the Xteink X4 and CircuitPython, Chrome or a Chromium browser like Edge or Opera is required. Other browsers have yet to implement Web Serial, which is needed.
Page last edited March 18, 2026
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