digital photo frame

[DerDom]

Hey,

I would like to buy an e-ink device (probably an e-reader) to act as digital photo frame for black and white pictures. What device do you recommend to buy?

My requirements:

• good resolution, e.g. 300 ppi
• great contrast and at least 16 shades of gray
• WIFI enabled, so that it can download new pictures
• display of 7 inches or larger
• easy to hack the ScreenSaver

I would like to give the device to grandma, so that she can look at new pictures of her grandson. I saw an implementation with Kindle but don't want to worry about updates killing my jailbreak: https://marios-blog.com/2020/01/22/d...le-paperwhite/

Is there any reader I should consider? Thanks?

[ottischwenk]

Originally Posted by DerDom

My requirements:

• good resolution, e.g. 300 ppi
• great contrast and at least 16 shades of gray
• WIFI enabled, so that it can download new pictures
• display of 7 inches or larger
• easy to hack the ScreenSaver

Try to get an old Tolino Epos 1:
7,8" and no screensaver hack is necessary

[DerDom]

Thanks for the quick answer, ottischwenk. That sounds like a great device for the digital photo frame. I should be able to get a used one for around €80. May I ask

1. Would the Tolino be able to show different pictures on the Sleepscreen (e.g. every hour another one) from the DCIM folder? Or would grandma have to change the pictures in the settings manually?
2. Do you happen to know how I could update the pictures in the DCIM folder of the Tolino remotely?

Thanks!

[DerDom]

Could it make sense to install android on an e-reader so I could run an app like Fotoo?

https://play.google.com/store/apps/d...d=com.bo.fotoo

[ottischwenk]

Originally Posted by DerDom

Thanks for the quick answer, ottischwenk. That sounds like a great device for the digital photo frame. I should be able to get a used one for around €80. May I ask

1. Would the Tolino be able to show different pictures on the Sleepscreen (e.g. every hour another one) from the DCIM folder? Or would grandma have to change the pictures in the settings manually?
2. Do you happen to know how I could update the pictures in the DCIM folder of the Tolino remotely?

Thanks!

Die Tolinos können unter neusten Firmware Versionen von Haus aus 1 Bild als Sleepcover anzeigen, das nur manuell geändert werden kann.
Der Vorteil ist der geringe Stromverbrauch - sleep.
Laufende Anwendungen brauchen natürlich wesentlich mehr.
Außerdem weiß ich nicht, ob die App Android 4.4.2 fähig ist (Tolinos < Vision6).
Inwieweit ein entferntes Bild Update möglich ist - eher nein.

Android von Tolinos zu befreien ist einfach - unter FW 15.2 ist die Suchzahl 1123581321 (Fibonacci).

[Quoth]

I'd not use eInk for even mono. It's black, nearly white and 14 greys.
A 10" LCD tablet will do mono better and do colour. You can keep PSU connected.

Can't beat eInk for reading.

Also you either buy an eink reader that already runs Android, if you want android. I have a recent 7.8" Android eInk and it's poor for photos. Not bad for line art, etchings and similar illustrations.

The Sleep screen can't change without manually waking the ereader.

[DerDom]

Originally Posted by ottischwenk

Die Tolinos können unter neusten Firmware Versionen von Haus aus 1 Bild als Sleepcover anzeigen, das nur manuell geändert werden kann.
Der Vorteil ist der geringe Stromverbrauch - sleep.
Laufende Anwendungen brauchen natürlich wesentlich mehr.
Außerdem weiß ich nicht, ob die App Android 4.4.2 fähig ist (Tolinos < Vision6).
Inwieweit ein entferntes Bild Update möglich ist - eher nein.

Android von Tolinos zu befreien ist einfach - unter FW 15.2 ist die Suchzahl 1123581321 (Fibonacci).

Hey Ottischwenk, der geringe Stromverbrauch wäre natürlich cool. Siehst Du eine Möglichkeit das Python-Skript von Marios-Blog bzw. Nico Hartung auf einem Tolino Epos 1 mit befreitem Android laufen zu lassen? Das müsste man ja ganz gut anpassen können.

[DerDom]

Originally Posted by Quoth

I'd not use eInk for even mono. It's black, nearly white and 14 greys.
A 10" LCD tablet will do mono better and do colour. You can keep PSU connected.

Quoth, I really like pictures on e-ink. It doesn't glow in the dark, is indepentent from a plug and Ionnyk shows what a great frame, passe-partout and image processing can achieve. =)

[Quoth]

Originally Posted by DerDom

Quoth, I really like pictures on e-ink. It doesn't glow in the dark, is indepentent from a plug and Ionnyk shows what a great frame, passe-partout and image processing can achieve. =)

Some images are OK. You need ones specially selected. I used to print my own B&W and I still do photography, but with a 20M pixel DSLR. I can view & edit on a 24" HDR 2K monitor. Living room has 4K HDR. My €200 10" tablet is 1920x1200 and great for photos. But I read on eInk.

[DerDom]

Hey, I now have a device (Tolino Epos 1) and a plan how to get to a digital photo frame, similar to Frame Labs or Ionnyk:

1. Enable adb and fastboot on the Tolino: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=343368
2. Rooting the Tolino with a rooted image of software version 14.1.0: http://cweiske.de/tagebuch/android-boot-image.htm
3. Install python: https://medium.com/swlh/python-on-an...t-4aa56f22070a
4. Run python script: https://marios-blog.com/2020/01/22/d...le-paperwhite/

At the moment I cannot complete the second step. Fastboot lists the device and flashed successfully (see screenshot). However, after restarting the Tolino, it still runs the (unrooted) software version 15.2.0 instead of the rooted version 14.1.0. Any idea of what I am doing wrong, here?

Screenshot: https://forum.alles-ebook.de/cms/att...-13-47-45-png/

[Renate]

Originally Posted by DerDom

Install python...

The first thing we will need to do is download a copy of Python. ... It’s roughly 2000 files.

Lol, no thanks. I have a status display (about equivalent to a photo frame) and it takes roughly 1999 less files.

[DerDom]

Originally Posted by Renate

I have a status display (about equivalent to a photo frame) and it takes roughly 1999 less files.

Hey Renate, what device are you using and how did you get it to work as a status display?

[Renate]

I use my disused ereaders.
It was a B&N Nook Simple Touch (without any light).
I just updated to a B&N Glow 3 (6", black with buttons and front light).

I'm just saying that all ereaders come with tons of infrastructure already and you might as well use that as to look to Python as a panacea.

I'm using my own specific Android app, but it would be just as easy to write to the frame buffer directly on any Linux-based thing.

I use TCP forwarding over ADB so that I don't need to bother with WiFi.

Edit: And it doesn't even have to be rooted to have an app display.

[DerDom]

Thanks for sharing your approach, Renate. My technical understanding of coding Android Apps and Linux is a bit limited. That is why I am having a hard time understanding how I could use the existing infrastructure of the Tolino.

I want to run the photo frame at my mother's house (without any other infrastructure than a wifi network) and I want to run it independently from a plug (just let it charge every other month). Would that work with your setting or do you need to run a server for TCP forwarding? How is the power consumption of the App? Can it wake the e-reader once in a while and switch it off to save power during the rest of the time?

[Renate]

If you were powered all the time, the simplest would be to run a browser that uses refresh:

<meta http-equiv="refresh" content="1"/>

It could use a local page with a remote image.
You could have it hit an HTTP server you set up that would change its content every hit.
You could have it hit your Google Drive or whatever and just push the photos yourself.
A simple app could do the same thing, be more robust and lightweight than the browser.

Once you get into sleep things become more complicated.