GlanceAt OLED

GlanceAt OLED is a Home Assistant smart display powered by an ESP32-S3 and a 256×64 SSD1322 OLED panel.

It is designed to sit on a desk or shelf and display useful information from Home Assistant such as:

• Weather
• Upcoming calendar events
• Clock and date
• Custom dashboards
• Notifications from Home Assistant automations

The device runs ESPHome firmware and integrates directly with Home Assistant using the ESPHome API.

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Features

• Native Home Assistant integration via ESPHome
• 256×64 OLED display driven by SSD1322
• Clock + Weather dashboard
• Calendar display
• Custom template support
• Real-time notifications from Home Assistant
• Template switching from Home Assistant UI
• OTA firmware updates

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Hardware

The GlanceAt display uses the following hardware:

• ESP32-S3 DevKitC
• SSD1322 OLED Display (256×64)
• SPI communication interface
• USB-C power

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Repository Structure

The repository contains two firmware configurations.

glanceat-oled.yaml      Full firmware used on devices
glanceat-base.yaml      Minimal ESPHome configuration for development

templates/
  template_selector.h
  clock_weather.h
  calendar.h
  custom.h

Full Firmware

glanceat-oled.yaml contains the complete firmware used by the device including:

• template selector
• weather integration
• calendar integration
• notification system
• Home Assistant sensors

Base Configuration

glanceat-base.yaml provides a minimal configuration for developers who want to build their own firmware from scratch.

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Quick Start (Users)

Most users do not need to compile firmware.

The device ships pre-flashed and can be set up directly in Home Assistant.

1. Power the device

2. Connect to the WiFi network:

   glanceat-oled Fallback
   password: glanceat

3. Open the setup portal:

   http://192.168.4.1

4. Enter your WiFi credentials

5. Add the device in Home Assistant

Full setup guide available at:

https://labs.smarthomeshopuk.com

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Home Assistant Requirements

The default firmware expects the following entities in Home Assistant.

Weather entity

weather.forecast_home

Calendar entity

calendar.glanceatcalendar

These values can be modified in the firmware using the substitutions section.

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Notifications

The display supports notifications triggered from Home Assistant using the ESPHome service:

show_notification

Example service call:

service: esphome.glanceat_oled_show_notification
data:
  message: "Dinner is ready"
  duration_ms: 5000

Notifications temporarily override the display template and return to the previous screen once the duration expires.

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Development

Developers can modify the firmware using ESPHome.

Install ESPHome:

pip install esphome

Compile and upload firmware:

esphome run glanceat-oled.yaml

The first flash must be performed via USB. After this, firmware updates can be installed using OTA updates.

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Display Templates

The display rendering system is implemented in C++ header files located in the templates folder.

templates/
  clock_weather.h
  calendar.h
  custom.h
  template_selector.h

Each template defines how information from Home Assistant is rendered on the OLED display.

Developers can modify existing templates or create new ones.

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Why API Encryption Is Disabled

The firmware intentionally disables API encryption so that the device can be automatically discovered by Home Assistant without requiring a pre-shared key.

Advanced users may enable encryption if desired.

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Documentation

Full setup guides are available at:

https://labs.smarthomeshopuk.com

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License

MIT License

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Credits

ESPHome
https://esphome.io

Home Assistant
https://www.home-assistant.io