Photo credit: Spacerower
This DIY project from Reddit user Spacerower might just change how we read digitally. How so? It is a dual-screen e-reader that folds in half to expose two e-ink screens, comparable to a hardback book’s left-and-right spread.
Spacerower’s adventure began with a cracked e-reader screen. The result is a device that pairs two 5.83-inch e-ink displays, each crisp and paper-like, powered by an ESP32S3 chip known for its efficiency. This chip, with 512KB of internal SRAM and up to 8MB of external PSRAM, handles both screens smoothly, using power so efficiently that the device’s dual 1,300mAh batteries can reportedly last over a month on a single charge. An SD card slot stores your library, while physical buttons handle navigation, and a USB-C port keeps things modern for charging. At 16mm thick when closed—each half 8mm—this e-reader is portable to say the least, with the added bonus of the screens being naturally protected when folded shut.
E-readers with only one screen (Kindles, Kobos, etc.) show one page at a time and require you to swipe or tap to advance. This special design allows you to see two pages at once, just like a traditional book. When you swipe one screen, both pages turn simultaneously. E-ink panels, which are noted for their low power consumption and eye-friendly clarity, only require electricity when flipping pages.
Hardware wise, the ESP32S3 chip is the real hero, as it can sleep at 7 microamps and never fully power down. Press a button, and it wakes up instantly and continues where you left off. The dual batteries wired in parallel provide redundancy and longevity. The physical buttons for page turning and menu navigation are a nice touch and the SD card slot means you can carry a library without relying on cloud services.
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