Show HN: Trmnl-cards – Turn an XTEINK X4 into a tiny frame for rare cards

Turn an Xteink X4 into a tiny frame for rare cards.

Every 5 minutes your reader shows a different high value card. Cards come from every era, from Base Set holos to modern Special Illustration Rares.

The reader runs TRMNL's open-source firmware, which turns it into a dashboard: it wakes up, downloads a picture from a server, shows it and goes back to sleep. Instead of TRMNL's own server, you point it at this one, which hands out a different card every 5 minutes.

You'll need a computer with Chrome or Edge and a USB-C cable.

Go to trmnl.com/flash, choose your model (e.g. X4), plug the reader in and install the firmware.

When it restarts, the reader creates a Wi-Fi network called TRMNL. Join it from your phone; a setup page should open.

https://trmnl-cards.mdnahian.workers.dev

No slash at the end.

Pick your home Wi-Fi (it has to be 2.4 GHz), enter the password and save.

The first card should appear within a minute. No account or sign-up needed.

Already set up with TRMNL? Hold the power button for about 5 seconds to get back to the Wi-Fi setup page, then follow steps 2–4. Don't hold it for 15 seconds or more, as that wipes the device's settings.

Device Status

Xteink X4 Works. This is what the photos above show.

Xteink X3 Should work. TRMNL has an X3 build and cards are made for its 792×528 screen, but it hasn't been tested.

Xteink X4 Pro Unknown. TRMNL doesn't have a separate build for it.

Other TRMNL devices Will connect, but get the X4-sized image. On screens that stand landscape, cards will look sideways.

A few things to know before flashing:

Prices are TCGplayer market prices for raw (ungraded) cards, refreshed once a week. Graded slabs aren't counted.

A card counts at its most valuable printing, so a card with a $1,300 1st Edition counts as $1,300 even if the unlimited copy is cheaper.

Card data and scans come from TCGdex. The rotation goes through every card once before repeating, which takes about 5 days.

Running your own

All of this is in the repo if you'd rather host it yourself or change the settings (price cutoff, darkness, background).

Not affiliated with Nintendo, The Pokémon Company, Xteink or TRMNL. Pokémon card images © Nintendo, Creatures and GAME FREAK.