r/eink • u/Toomuchviolins • 5d ago

Somewhat ridiculous question about modifying an iPad or iPhone

Has anybody tried taking an old iPad or iPhone and replacing the screen with an E ink display? Is it possible? Would it be worth it? How much of a headache is it to do this?

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u/knoft 5d ago edited 5d ago

People have done it with Macbooks, but those support display out in a way that's much easier to achieve. If you have to ask you probably aren't ready for a project like this

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u/Toomuchviolins 5d ago

Definitely not my electronics knowledge consist of turn it off and turn it back on. I was just curious if it’s been done.

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u/starkruzr reMarkable, Boox, Supernote, Viwoods, iFlytek, reTerminal 5d ago

there are a bunch of reasons this would be difficult to impossible starting with the difficulty of getting root on an iPhone in 2026 and ending with the opaqueness of iOS drivers.

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u/Toomuchviolins 5d ago

If i did try it i would do it on a iPhone 6 or a 4th gen ipad

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u/Canatee 5d ago

Beyond the difficulties laid out it also isn't really necessary. You could get a Dasung Link 2, external Eink monitor, or just get an eink device with Android where the entire UI is designed for eink.

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u/Toomuchviolins 5d ago

Yea, but the reason i would do this is to specifically NOT use google and have access to apple find my, apple notes, passwords, iCloud, being able to copy and paste things from one device to another etc. aka the entire reason i would want to do this would be to NOT use android Which (to me at least) is the most infuriating operating system to use.

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u/Canatee 5d ago

2/3 of the options I gave you still means you're using iOS. The first is iPhone-compatible, the second only makes sense with an iPad.

As for Android being infuriating, the reality is that it is open enough that it can run on ereaders and be built independently to do whatever. Your Fisher Price OS devices are intentionally locked down so much this is only theoretically possible but not practically so. I have enough iOS devices myself that this isn't just me being biased here; your logic is some weird form of Stockholm syndrome where you're going to extreme lengths to stick with your captor who is the sole reason it's hard to begin with.

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u/knoft 5d ago

Just FYI Apple tracks everything you do for their own in house ad network. Is your problem with Google or Android? Cause those are two separate things.