Waveshare ESP32-S3-Touch-LCD-2
2" 240x320 IPS LCD (ST7789T3, SPI), CST816D touch, TF card, QMI8658C.
Building for it
A project is made for one toolchain, picked when you start it. All three can drive this board:
| Toolchain | |
|---|---|
| Arduino (C++) | Every board, every widget and every peripheral here. The most control, and the most to set up. Start a project |
| MicroPython | Change a screen by editing a file on the board. No compiler once it is flashed. Start a project |
| ESPHome | No compiler to install, and the panel can join Home Assistant as real entities. Start a project |
At a glance
| Part | Detail |
|---|---|
| Maker | Waveshare |
| MCU | ESP32-S3 Xtensa LX7 dual-core @ 240 MHz, 512 KB SRAM (+ 2-16 MB PSRAM on most modules) |
| Display | Sitronix ST7789, 240 x 320 px, SPI (4-wire serial), 16-bit colour |
| Touch | Hynitron CST816S (capacitive, I2C) |
| Backlight | GPIO 1, dimmable (PWM) |
| Memory | 16 MB flash, 8 MB octal PSRAM (N16R8) |
| Graphics library | GFX Library for Arduino |
Display pins
ST7789 on SPI (4-wire serial): SPI clock 80 MHz, host SPI2_HOST, RGB colour order, inversion on.
| Signal | Pin |
|---|---|
| SCK / CLK | GPIO 39 |
| MOSI / SDA | GPIO 38 |
| MISO / SDO | GPIO 40 |
| CS | GPIO 45 |
| DC / RS | GPIO 42 |
| RESET | not connected |
| Backlight | GPIO 1 |
Touch pins
CST816S: I2C address 0x15, 400 kHz, shares the display bus.
| Signal | Pin |
|---|---|
| SDA | GPIO 48 |
| SCL | GPIO 47 |
| INT / IRQ | GPIO 46 |
| RESET | not connected |
Also on the board
- I2C (GPIO 48 / 47) - SDA GPIO 48, SCL GPIO 47
The preset adds these to the Hardware tab with the board, so a sensor can go straight onto the connector.
Check your revision. Pins from Waveshare's demo code and schematic (https://files.waveshare.com/wiki/ESP32-S3-Touch-LCD-2/ESP32-S3-Touch-LCD-2-Demo.zip). Wiki spec table says 'USB Type-A' and 'LCD type ISP' - copy errors; the features list and schematic show USB Type-C wired to the S3's native USB.
Designing for it in LCD Wizard
- Choose Waveshare ESP32-S3-Touch-LCD-2 on the Hardware tab (or use the button above) and every pin on this page is filled in. The export writes the sketch,
lcd_pins.h, the GFX Library for Arduino configuration,lv_conf.handplatformio.ini- a project that builds for this board as it comes. - The CST816S is capacitive and needs no calibration. The firmware resets it and checks it answers on every boot.
- The backlight is dimmable: give a slider or a button a Set backlight action.
- With PSRAM the LVGL memory pool can live there, leaving internal RAM for everything else.
- Screens are designed for 240 x 320 px in either orientation, with LVGL 9 or LVGL 8.
The parts
ST7789. Excellent colour and tolerates 80 MHz SPI. Many modules have no CS pin - tie it low and set CS to -1.
CST816S. Single touch plus gestures. Standard on 1.28" round GC9A01 modules. Needs RST wired.
ESP32-S3. The only common Arduino target with a hardware RGB565 LCD peripheral. PSRAM is effectively required for RGB panels.
GFX Library for Arduino. Moshi Liu's library. Best QSPI/AMOLED and RGB coverage. Configured in code.
The pinout on one page
Every pin above, laid out to print and keep beside the bench. Generated from this preset, so it says exactly what the designer writes into lcd_pins.h.
Download the pinout (PNG)Open it as SVG
From the people who made it
The board’s own documentation. Pinouts on vendor pages do sometimes disagree with the hardware in front of you - where this page and that one differ, trust your board and tell us.
- The vendor’s product page
- Vendor documentation
- Schematic (PDF)
- Waveshare demo code (pins read from here)
Designs for this board
Nobody has published a design for this board yet. Publish yours from the designer and it appears here and in the gallery.
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- Quick start - from an empty screen to firmware on the board
- Boards and displays - presets, controllers, pins and touch in the designer
- Flashing and configuration - PlatformIO, the Arduino IDE and first-boot checks
- Troubleshooting - a white screen, mirrored image or touch that misses