This ESP32 weather display uses a human presence radar to light the screen when someone's close

Credit: sudu1988 Published Oct 5, 2026, 2:04 AM EDT Simon is a Computer Science BSc graduate who has been writing about technology since 2014, and using Windows machines since 3.1. After working for an indie game studio and acting as the family's go-to technician for all computer issues, he found his passion for writing and decided to use his skill set to write about all things tech. Since beginning his writing career, he has written for many different publications such as WorldStart, Listverse, and MakeTechEasier. However, after finding his home at MakeUseOf in February 2019, he would eventually move on to its sister site, XDA, to bring the latest and greatest in Windows, Linux, and DIY electronics. Sign in to your XDA account Summary ESP32 weather display pulls Open-Meteo and shows time, current, and upcoming forecasts. Millimeter-wave human presence radar wakes the screen only when someone is nearby to save power. Freenove ESP32 board with ST7796 display, touchscreen, Wi-Fi, and 3D-printable stand; supports many languages. Creating a DIY smart display makes for a cool project at home, but how do you solve the problem of it being always on? If energy draw is your biggest concern, an e-ink display can render screens that don't require high refresh rates with minimal draw. However, one clever tinkerer has found another way to save on power: set up a radar that only turns the screen on if someone is close. This ESP32 weather display has a smart power-saving trick up its sleeve More projects should adopt this technology Redditor sudu1988 posted about their latest work on the ESP32 subreddit. It pulls data from Open-Meteo and lets you know what the time is, what the current weather forecast is, and what's coming up in the future. However, it also comes with an optional "human presence radar" that only turns the screen on if it senses someone is actually close enough to read it. Here's how sudu1988 explains it: "The hardware is a Freenove FNK0103S board with an ESP32-WROOM-32E, a 4-inch ST7796 display, and an XPT2046 resistive touchscreen. This board combines Wi-Fi, display, and touch hardware in one module, keeping the external wiring manageable. The human presence radar, which task it is to light up the screen once someone is present, is the Hi-Link HLK-LD2410C millimeter wave human presence radar. I also made a 3D-printable enclosure and stand." It's also a pretty nice project for international users, as they claim that it supports several languages (GB, ES, DE, FR, UA, SE, IT, RU), several time formats, and different temperature units. No more converting Celsius to Fahrenheit in your head and vice versa.