The growing ecosystem of open-source e-reader firmware just got a new, unusually cheap piece of hardware to run on. Seeed Studio's reTerminal Sticky is a $50 (€46) ESP32-S3 device with a 10.1 cm (3.97-inch) E Ink touchscreen that ships with its own smart-display firmware but can be reflashed with CrossPoint Reader, the community-built open-source e-reader firmware that already runs on the Xteink X3 and X4, M5Stack M5Paper, and LilyGo T5. That makes it one of the cheapest entry points into the CrossPoint ecosystem, which supports EPUB 2/3 rendering with hyphenation, kerning, chapter navigation, footnotes, bookmarks, and custom fonts loaded from a microSD card. CrossPoint Reader v1.5.0 marks the project's first expansion to ESP32-S3 hardware, with the Sticky as the launch device for that chip family. The same release brought faster book loading via background on-demand indexing (large titles now open in roughly five seconds), offline dictionary lookups, and a UI overhaul.
Under the hood, the Sticky runs an ESP32-S3R8 microcontroller with 8 MB of PSRAM, Wi-Fi 4, and Bluetooth 5.0. The 800 x 480 pixel display manages 235 PPI and four shades of gray, though it lacks a frontlight and uses a glossy panel rather than the matte finish most dedicated e-readers offer. The sensor suite is generous for the price: a temperature and humidity sensor, a 6-axis IMU, a microphone, and an audio buzzer sit alongside three physical buttons and a 750 mAh battery charged over USB-C. The whole device measures 106 x 65.5 x 7.3 mm (4.2 x 2.6 x 0.3 in) and weighs 70 g (2.5 oz).
Built-in magnets let the Sticky double as a fridge-mounted smart display out of the box, managed through a companion mobile app for pushing notes, weather data, or reminders to the screen. But the real draw for tinkerers is that the ESP32 platform means the firmware is fully replaceable. CrossPoint Reader is the most polished reading option today, handling .epub, .txt, and .bmp files with features like auto page turn and focus reading mode. ESPHome 2026.7.0 added the Sticky to its epaper_spi component, which means the device can be configured as a Home Assistant e-paper display panel through ESPHome's declarative YAML workflow rather than custom firmware. OpenDisplay is a third open-source path listed in Seeed's official playground. The ESP32 Arduino and ESP-IDF toolchains leave the door open for completely custom builds as well.
The reTerminal Sticky is available for pre-order now at $50 (€46), with shipping expected in mid-September 2026.
