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Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Fri May 06, 2016 2:31 pm
by Jaysin
Hey all,

My name's Jaysin, I was a member of the previous forum but didn't post anything (I have extreme social anxiety, so sometimes its hard for me to get involved in conversations, in person, over the phone, or online). But I came across a site that had a 3.5 TFT LCD Display for cheaper than Adafruit and it appears to be the same model. I'm not 100% sure yet as I haven't received mine yet (expected delivery will be sometime this month). The site is GearBest.com and the item itself is here: http://www.gearbest.com/development-boa ... 29447.html. It certainly looks the same as the Adafruit one, but if you all would like, I can update once I receive mine to let you know if its usable.

The site also has other components of interest, including an audio amp board that another forum member found on another site (I think it was Aliexpress), that wermy himself said would likely work. I grabbed that also. Its this item here: http://www.gearbest.com/other-accessori ... 26473.html

Let me know if you want some images of the products once I receive them and whether they work well.

One thing I will note however is that I did see some bad reviews for GearBest (apparently they have terrible support if you don't buy shipping insurance and an item arrives either damaged or missing), but I have a colleague at work who swears by them and he just got a IP Cam from them for $40 CAD and it works great, so I'm not ruling them out myself, but I'll give my thoughts and impressions once I get the products.

Take care,
Jay

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Fri May 06, 2016 3:57 pm
by ktechelonbreak
Hey Jay welcome to the forums! The parts look fine, please keep us updated on the progress.

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Fri May 06, 2016 5:29 pm
by crispy_tofu
Yes, please share your progress on the forum, that would be really appreciated! :D

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Sat May 07, 2016 5:18 am
by Deadtime
Hey Jay,

I also just ordered the same screen as you on the site along with some personal stuff that seem rather cheap. SD and USB.

It looked pretty decent and I just hate the long shipping date but oh well. The PCBs will also take a while I can wait. :)

Good luck on your own project!

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Wed May 11, 2016 9:53 am
by Jaysin
Deadtime wrote:Hey Jay,

I also just ordered the same screen as you on the site along with some personal stuff that seem rather cheap. SD and USB.

It looked pretty decent and I just hate the long shipping date but oh well. The PCBs will also take a while I can wait. :)

Good luck on your own project!
Ya, I'm still waiting. A work colleague actually ordered some stuff from them a week before I placed my order and he still hasn't gotten them yet. He also made another order last week, paid about $10 in additional shipping and it arrived Monday, so next time I'll fork out for the shipping as I'm an impatient.

A user in another thread mentioned that the board is 12V and may require a step down. He posted this as an example stepdown that could be used: http://www.ebay.de/itm/201533754108. But it seems that another user got the same board and was able to get it to work without a step down (assuming I understood his reply correctly). So as soon as I get mine (and my Pi should be in this week), I'll see if I can play around with it to get it to work, but I'll probably be relying on the other user to show me how as I haven't done much electronics since I opted for a carrier path in network security, just mild things like replacing the charging port on my sons 2DS.

I was also wrong when I thought it was the same as Adafruit's, I saw the blue board and immediately thought, "OH Adafruit" but never checked back at their offering to realize it was a green board - sorry about that)

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Wed May 11, 2016 10:58 am
by Robvp
I wish I saw this sooner, I ordered from Amazon but I would gladly pay extra 5 bucks to avoid having to disassemble the screen and making sure it will fit

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Wed May 11, 2016 11:29 am
by Deadtime
Jaysin wrote: Ya, I'm still waiting. A work colleague actually ordered some stuff from them a week before I placed my order and he still hasn't gotten them yet. He also made another order last week, paid about $10 in additional shipping and it arrived Monday, so next time I'll fork out for the shipping as I'm an impatient.
No worries, you did nothing bad. I also didn't get anything for over a week now, the order was stuck in processing so I decided to screw it and ask for a refund. I went ahead and started searching for one on Amazon. It's quicker shipping and easier returns.

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Wed May 11, 2016 3:59 pm
by Mad_Duke
Hei guys :)

I’ve ordered this screen:

http://www.buydisplay.com/default/3-5-i ... iver-board

It looks like it should do the job. One question. Does anyone have any idea what are the usual power losses from a 5V -> 12V step up DC-DC converter?

I’m thinking I should maybe just get one of those.

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Wed May 11, 2016 4:35 pm
by Fox
Mad_Duke wrote:Hei guys :)

I’ve ordered this screen:

http://www.buydisplay.com/default/3-5-i ... iver-board

It looks like it should do the job. One question. Does anyone have any idea what are the usual power losses from a 5V -> 12V step up DC-DC converter?

I’m thinking I should maybe just get one of those.
I bought that same screen from Ebay from BuyDisplay. I tried it out but part of the screen gets cut off :( . I attached a photo. I just requested a return today. Beware! Check your screen out before the 14 day warranty.

Re: Alternative store for the 3.5 TFT

Posted: Wed May 11, 2016 5:36 pm
by Mad_Duke
Thanks for the heads up!

So it's not using the left part at all, even during boot? Anyway. Will try as soon as I get it!

Other than that, how is the performance? Brightness, ghosting?...