{"product_id":"pixie-chroma","title":"Pixie Chroma","description":"\u003cp\u003ePIXIE CHROMA is a dual-5x7 character display, that can be easily chained to create easy-to-use displays as long or tall as you'd like!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWith its ability to be dropped into any breadboard and coded with any experience level, these displays have a wide range of potential uses, meaning anybody in the maker community can find a use for them!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv style=\"text-align: start;\"\u003e\u003cimg style=\"float: none;\" alt=\"\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0174\/1800\/files\/hello_world_600x600.png?v=1663155804\"\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eTWO BIG NEW FEATURES\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAlong with full RGB control, and an absolute UNIT of an Arduino Library, Lixie Labs are introducing two other big new features with this release: \u003cstrong\u003eQuad Mode\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eShortcodes.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eQuad mode is made specifically for those wishing to drive their displays faster.\u003c\/strong\u003e By optionally sending the data in four parallel streams with Quad Mode, you can expect to see a ~3.75x increase in speed! For example, if you had 12 Pixie Chromas, you can wire four GPIO of your microcontroller to the 1st, 4th, 7th, and 10th Pixie. Each GPIO is now only responsible for the data of three Pixie Chromas compared to only one GPIO feeding all 12. With this, you can run animations, scrolling, and color palettes more smoothly or free up processor time!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNOTE:\u003c\/strong\u003e Quad Mode currently uses hard-coded GPIO pins depending on your microcontroller. To see which pins are needed, visit \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/docs\/class_pixie_chroma.html#af4c7b1051ce21bf03cfd69d30869fa6c\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/docs\/class_pixie_chroma.html#af4c7b1051ce21bf03cfd69d30869fa6c\"\u003ethe documentation for begin_quad().\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe next big feature is \u003cstrong\u003eShortcodes\u003c\/strong\u003e, a \u003cstrong\u003esuper simple way to show icons beyond the alphanumeric ASCII set and easily create animations!\u003c\/strong\u003e Lixie Labs have an extensive library of 230+ built-in icons that are accessible by name within other strings. Whether you want global currency symbols, weather states, schematic symbols, diacritics (àãåâä), or various mathematical typography such as pi, they probably have you covered. And, if we don't, you can make your own with the magical Shortcode Editor.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eShortcode Editor\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOur favorite part of these icons is how easy it is to make your own! With the online\/offline editor, you can create any shape or image (so long as it fits in a 5x7 grid) and the editor will directly show the code that would print that shape!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is one of the most creative outlets for cool display enthusiasts, since you can easily make custom frame-by-frame animations of your own! Lixie Labs are currently working on a way to create looping animations directly within the editor, and are excited to show it when it is complete.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eA NEW STANDARD for ARDUINO LIBRARIES\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLixie Labs pride themselves in how easy their products are to use. They have kept the wiring very simple, with only three wires connected to each breadboard-friendly display. Their code also has many examples that are explained line-by-line so that anybody can understand them. They even include \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/connornishijima\/Pixie_Chroma\/blob\/main\/examples\/04_Minimal_Sketches\/01_Standard\/01_Standard.ino\" target=\"_blank\"\u003etemplate Arduino Sketches\u003c\/a\u003e to skip the parts newcomers find tedious, like \u003ccode\u003e#include\u003c\/code\u003e directives and class definitions. Many advanced projects that even seasoned coders would find challenging are hassle-free with the Pixie Chroma library!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ccode\u003e#include \"Pixie_Chroma.h\" \/\/ Include library\u003cbr\u003ePixieChroma pix;\u003cbr\u003e#define PIXIES_X 6 \/\/ Total amount and x x x x x x\u003cbr\u003e#define PIXIES_Y 2 \/\/ arrangement of Pixies = x x x x x x\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003evoid setup() {\u003cbr\u003e pix.begin( 13, PIXIES_X, PIXIES_Y ); \/\/ ... Use Pin 13\u003cbr\u003e pix.color( CRGB::Blue ); \/\/ ............... Set color to blue\u003cbr\u003e}\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003evoid loop() {\u003cbr\u003e pix.clear(); \/\/ ..................... Clear display\u003cbr\u003e pix.println( \"Hello World!\" ); \/\/ ... Write text on first row\u003cbr\u003e pix.print( millis() ); \/\/ ........... Write the value of millis() on the second row\u003cbr\u003e pix.show(); \/\/ ...................... Show changes\u003cbr\u003e}\u003c\/code\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eAMAZING DOCUMENTATION\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/?section=docs\" target=\"_blank\"\u003ePixie Chroma's documentation\u003c\/a\u003e is complete, accurate, and easy to understand. Each function in the library is fully documented and code examples are sprinkled liberally throughout.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSUPPORTED PLATFORMS\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePixie Chroma is a bit RAM heavy for its effects and color processing. 8 Pixie Chroma PCBs is 560 LEDs, so that's 1,680 bytes just for the color data! Add in the masking tricks, XY mapping and more, and you're unfortunately not going to get a set of Chromas working on an older microcontroller like the ATMega328p with only 2K of SRAM. However, more modern controllers like those from Espressif are perfectly fine! (ESP8266 has 80KiB of RAM!)\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Pixie Chroma library also uses FastLED as a dependency, so FastLED itself also needs compatibility before we can support it here. \u003cem\u003eThis is why the RP2040 is not yet supported. Soon!\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eFully Supported Microcontrollers\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eESP8266 (Adafruit HUZZAH, Wemos D1 Mini, etc.)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eESP32 \/ ESP32-S2 (TinyPico, HUZZAH32, TinyS2)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTeensy 3.x (Possibly Teensy 4.x, not yet tested)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eCurrently Planned Support\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eRP2040 (Needs FastLED port)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eESP32-S3 (Needs testing)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSAMD21 (TODO, has been hard to get)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePixie Chroma is OSHWA certified (\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/certification.oshwa.org\/us002058.html\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eUID US002058\u003c\/a\u003e), Lixie Labs have created an \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/?section=datasheet\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eextensive datasheet\u003c\/a\u003e, and every single function within the library comes with \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/?section=docs\" target=\"_blank\"\u003edocumentation\u003c\/a\u003e.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eFEATURES \u0026amp; SPECIFICATIONS\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDual-5x7 RGB LED matrices\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e3.7 to 5.5 VDC supply\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFast bitmap control\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e8-bit global dimming\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e27.5 mm x 16.5 mm matrix size (10.16 PPI)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e30 mm x 24 mm package\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSUPPORT \u0026amp; DOCUMENTATION\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAs you can see, Pixie Chroma is as easy or as advanced as you need. Luckily, you don't need to dive into documentation to get started - the included examples (File -\u0026gt; Examples -\u0026gt; Pixie_Chroma) provide a template you can easily modify for your own projects.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor further information, you can check out the:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/?section=getting-started\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eGetting Started Guide\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/?section=shortcodes\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eShortcode Library\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/?section=docs\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eArduino Library Documentation\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/connornishijima.github.io\/Pixie_Chroma\/?section=datasheet\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eDatasheet\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEverything is open source and available. Our source code has been fully documented and all PCB designs and parts used are open and available:\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/connornishijima\/Pixie_Chroma\/#readme\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eGitHub\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/connornishijima\/Pixie_Chroma\/tree\/main\/extras\/OSHW\/#readme\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eOSHW\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/certification.oshwa.org\/us002058.html\" target=\"_blank\"\u003eOHSWA certification\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eADDITIONAL VIDEOS:\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=646aZizYhE8\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=646aZizYhE8\"\u003eFRAME RATE TEST\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=dU06MhfMp5E\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=dU06MhfMp5E\"\u003eSCROLLING MODES\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Jxiwyaw3wBM\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Jxiwyaw3wBM\"\u003eTEXT JUSTIFICATION\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=nY9UKWsFX2o\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=nY9UKWsFX2o\"\u003eTEST JIG\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch2\u003eSpecs and Docs\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/connornishijima\/Pixie_Chroma\/#readme\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/connornishijima\/Pixie_Chroma\/#readme\"\u003eSource Code\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"http:\/\/lixielabs.com\/chroma\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"http:\/\/lixielabs.com\/chroma\"\u003eDocumentation\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/connornishijima\/Pixie_Chroma\/tree\/main\/extras\/OSHW#pixie-chroma-is-open-hardware\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/github.com\/connornishijima\/Pixie_Chroma\/tree\/main\/extras\/OSHW#pixie-chroma-is-open-hardware\"\u003eDesign Files\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/certification.oshwa.org\/us002058.html\" target=\"_blank\" data-mce-href=\"https:\/\/certification.oshwa.org\/us002058.html\"\u003eOpen Source Hardware | [OSHW] US002058 | Certified Open Source Hardware\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Lixie Labs","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":40293737037907,"sku":"PIX-CHROMA-R1-1PC","price":22.95,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0174\/1800\/products\/instructions_model.png?v=1663156056","url":"https:\/\/shop.pimoroni.com\/en-eu\/products\/pixie-chroma","provider":"Pimoroni Ltd","version":"1.0","type":"link"}