Technology 03 For a full comparison of e-paper technology routes — E-Ink, cholesteric LCD and ultra-stable LCD — including colour, cost and high-heat fit, see our e-paper technology comparison.
Electronic shelf labels, e-paper display modules, and wireless gateways — the display technology behind AiEinkSmart retail systems and EinkSmart art frames, engineered in-house.
Capabilities
Classic Series — 4-Color ESL
Source: Classic Series specification V1.0 (PDS-AES-CLASSIC-V1.0). Confirm against the signed datasheet before quotation.
Choosing a label size
Label size is a merchandising decision first and a cost decision second. Bigger labels carry more information but need more rail space and a larger battery.
| Model | Display | Typical use | Content it can carry |
|---|---|---|---|
| AES-0213 | 2.13", 250 × 122 px | Dense dry-grocery shelves, pharmacy, cosmetics | Price, short name, barcode or QR |
| AES-0266 | 2.66", 296 × 152 px | Standard grocery and convenience shelves | Price, unit price, promotion flag |
| AES-0290 | 2.90", 296 × 128 px | General merchandise and electronics | Price, name, spec line, QR |
| AES-0420 | 4.20", 400 × 300 px | Fresh produce, deli, wine | Origin, unit price, promotion copy |
| AES-0750 | 7.5", 800 × 480 px | End caps, counters, warehouse zone signs | Large price, promotion graphics, zone information |
Display and resolution from the Classic Series specification V1.0. Typical uses are guidance; final sizing follows a fixture survey.
How an ESL update works
Understanding the update path explains both battery life and why stores keep working offline.
A price is changed in ERP or in the AiESL platform and queued for the affected labels.
The store base station receives the update and sends it to each label over a BLE 5.2 private protocol on 2.4 GHz, with encrypted signalling restricted to the store domain.
The label wakes from sleep (under 1.8 µA), redraws the e-ink image (under 20 mA during refresh) and goes back to sleep. E-ink holds the image with no power.
The label reports back, and a roll-call confirms every label in the store shows the new price.
Why e-paper
E-paper is reflective and bistable: it uses ambient light like printed paper and only draws power when the image changes.
Classic Series labels run more than five years at four refreshes a day, with replaceable cells.
Over 170° viewing angle and no backlight, so labels read clearly under store lighting and do not glare.
Black, white, red and yellow inks let promotions stand out without a separate paper tag.
No power is drawn to hold an image, which is why the same technology suits EinkSmart art frames.
Content updates and OTA firmware upgrades go through the base station.
E-Ink, cholesteric LCD and ultra-stable LCD trade off colour, temperature range and cost; see our comparison.
FAQ
Classic Series labels are rated at more than five years at four refreshes a day. More frequent refreshes shorten that, so battery life is estimated from your promotion schedule.
The rated range is 0–25 m in non-open environments. Base-station count is planned from the store layout during the survey.
Updates use encrypted signalling with store-domain restriction, so a label only accepts updates from its own store system.
Yes, for qualified OEM programs. Custom sizes, enclosures and firmware are available; see Manufacturing and our guide to ESL OEM and ODM.
That is ghosting, and it is managed with a periodic full refresh. Our ESL BOM breakdown explains ghosting, panel grading and battery behaviour.
E-Ink is one brand of electrophoretic e-paper. Cholesteric LCD and ultra-stable LCD are other routes with different colour, temperature and cost profiles; our technology comparison covers all three.