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Bible Smart Display

A daily Bible verse for your desk.

For a Turing Smart Screen 3.5-inch or similar USB display.

These displays are also sold as “IPS secondary screens”, including on AliExpress. That listing name alone does not confirm compatibility; check the model table below.

Choose your translation · Light blue text · Adjustable brightness · Offline restore

The easiest way: download the app

Recommended for almost everyone. Download a ready-made app—no Python, Git or terminal setup required.

⬇ Open the latest release →

Your computer	Download this file	Install
Windows 10/11 · x64	bibleSmartDisplay-windows-x64-setup.exe	Run the installer
macOS 13+ · Apple Silicon	bibleSmartDisplay-macos-arm64.dmg	Open the DMG; drag the app to Applications
macOS 13+ · Intel	bibleSmartDisplay-macos-x64.dmg	Open the DMG; drag the app to Applications
Debian / Ubuntu · Intel/AMD	biblesmartdisplay_0.4.4_amd64.deb	Open with your software installer
Raspberry Pi OS / Debian / Ubuntu · ARM64	biblesmartdisplay_0.4.4_arm64.deb	Open with your software installer
Other Linux desktops	bibleSmartDisplay-linux-x64.tar.gz / bibleSmartDisplay-linux-arm64.tar.gz	Extract and open the executable

Set up your screen

1. Connect your screen using a USB data cable and close any vendor display software.
2. Open Bible Smart Display from your applications menu. Follow the wizard to choose the screen model and USB port, set the colour and Bible translation, and send a test image.
3. Choose whether to enable daily updates and Start at login, then finish setup. Click Update now for your first verse.

That’s it—you’re installed. You do not need to follow the source-installation instructions below.

Everyday settings

Use the tray/menu-bar icon to change model, colour, brightness, translation, font or interface language. English, Simplified Chinese, Spanish and French are included. Daily scheduling and startup each have their own checkbox. Quitting the tray leaves enabled scheduled updates running during your login session.

Text uses 3× supersampling for smoother edges, while preserving the light lettering style. This applies to the desktop app, previews and scheduled updates on every supported model.

App screenshot

Desktop guide, troubleshooting and removal · Report an issue

Requires a supported desktop OS. Builds are unsigned/not notarized; see the desktop guide for compatibility and platform requirements. Before uninstalling, choose Remove automatic setup and quit the app.

Choose your screen model

Model option	Display	Landscape resolution	Status
usbpcmonitor-3.5	UsbPCMonitor / compatible 3.5-inch	480 × 320	Tested on Ubuntu; default
turing-3.5	Original Turing 3.5-inch	480 × 320	Experimental
usbpcmonitor-5	UsbPCMonitor 5-inch	800 × 480	Experimental
usbpcmonitor-7	UsbPCMonitor 7-inch	1024 × 600	Experimental
xuanfang-3.5	XuanFang Revision B / flagship	480 × 320	Experimental
qiye-3.5	Kipye / Qiye / 奇叶智显 (Revision D)	480 × 320	Experimental

Select the exact model and serial port. Experimental means implemented and covered by simulated serial tests, but not physically tested by this project. These names describe protocols, not guaranteed seller brands.

Not supported: AX206/AIDA64/USB2LCD, Turing 5-inch Revision C, round screens, Waveshare USB-Monitor, GUITION, Fuldho/SmartMonitor and HDMI displays. AX206 needs a separate direct-USB backend, not a serial-driver switch. UsbPCMonitor 5-inch and Turing 5-inch are different protocols.

USB drivers

If your screen already appears as a serial port, try it before installing a driver.

Device / system	Official help or download
Turing/TURZX screen	Manufacturer downloads — choose your exact model
Windows USB CDC device	Microsoft’s built-in USB serial driver — compatible devices install automatically
Windows, confirmed CH340/CH341 chip	WCH Windows driver
macOS, supported WCH serial chip	WCH Mac driver and instructions
Linux	Compatible devices normally use the kernel’s existing serial drivers

WCH drivers are not universal screen drivers. On Windows, check Device Manager → Ports (COM & LPT). If the device has a warning icon, inspect Properties → Details → Hardware Ids and match the driver to that hardware. Full driver guidance →

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Optional: source installation and command-line tools (advanced users)

For developers and enthusiasts only. This is an alternative to the downloaded app, not the next installation step. The commands below run the separate command-line edition. You can ignore this entire section when using the desktop app.

Desktop app source / GUI · CLI / Python

Have your screen, a USB data cable, and an internet connection ready. Close any vendor display software before starting.

Windows

1 · Download

Open the latest release. Under Assets, choose bibleSmartDisplay-windows-x64.zip.

2 · Extract and connect

Extract the ZIP into a folder such as Documents\bibleSmartDisplay. Connect the screen to a USB data port.

3 · Run

Double-click Run-display.cmd. Your verse should appear on the screen.

The console stays open so you can read any messages. The app updates the screen once and exits; set up a schedule for daily updates.

Screen not found? Select its COM port

Open PowerShell in the extracted folder and run:

.\bibleSmartDisplay.exe --list-ports
.\bibleSmartDisplay.exe --port COM3

Replace COM3 with the port listed for your screen. If no port appears, see USB drivers.

Try it without a screen or internet connection

.\bibleSmartDisplay.exe --demo --preview-only

Open %LOCALAPPDATA%\bibleSmartDisplay\preview.png to see the test image.

[!NOTE] The download is a portable console app, not a graphical installer. It is not code-signed. Windows build and preview tests pass; physical Windows/macOS USB testing is still needed. Physical output has been tested on Ubuntu.

Linux

1. Install the prerequisites: Python 3.10+, Git, Python venv support and DejaVu Sans. On Ubuntu/Debian/Raspberry Pi OS, use your package manager to install python3, python3-venv, python3-pip, git and fonts-dejavu-core.

2. Download and install:

git clone https://github.com/dgcarr/bibleSmartDisplay.git
cd bibleSmartDisplay
python3 -m venv .venv
.venv/bin/python -m pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Connect the screen and run:

.venv/bin/python outputs/daily-verse/verse_display.py

If automatic detection fails, run with --list-ports, then --port /dev/ttyACM0, using your actual port. For permission errors, see Linux serial access.

macOS

1. Install Python 3.10+. Download this repository using Code → Download ZIP, then extract it.

2. Open Terminal in the extracted folder containing requirements.txt and run:

python3 -m venv .venv
.venv/bin/python -m pip install -r requirements.txt

3. Connect the screen and run:

.venv/bin/python outputs/daily-verse/verse_display.py

If automatic detection fails, run with --list-ports, then --port /dev/cu.usbmodem1234, replacing the example with your actual port. More macOS help →

Choose a translation

Use --translation with a Bible Gateway version code:

.\bibleSmartDisplay.exe --translation NIV
.\bibleSmartDisplay.exe --translation KJV
.\bibleSmartDisplay.exe --translation RVR1960

On Linux/macOS:

.venv/bin/python outputs/daily-verse/verse_display.py --translation NIV

CSB remains the default. Any single Bible Gateway text-version code can be requested; the passage must be available in that version. PDF/audio-only editions are not supported. Non-English text may need --font with a font covering that language; complex scripts and long unspaced passages are not fully tested.

Add the option to your scheduled task or edit the executable line in Run-display.cmd to keep using your choice. --cached restores the last saved translation; add --translation NIV to require that exact version. A failed lookup never silently replaces your requested translation with a different one. The cache still keeps only one passage.

Make it yours

Defaults are light blue text and 50% brightness. To change them, run from PowerShell:

.\bibleSmartDisplay.exe --color "#ADD8E6" --brightness 50

For Linux/macOS, put the same options after .venv/bin/python outputs/daily-verse/verse_display.py.

Option	What it does
--brightness 25	Dim the backlight; accepts 0–100
--color "#F5F5DC"	Use beige text instead
--cached	Restore the last saved verse without internet
--preview-only	Save a preview without sending it to the screen
--list-ports	List connected serial devices

Options apply to that run. Add them to your scheduled task to use them every day. All settings and saved-file locations →

Update it every morning

Choose your operating system for step-by-step scheduling:

Windows	Linux	macOS
Task Scheduler	Cron	Launchd

Your computer must be running and the screen connected. The first verse needs internet; later network failures fall back to the saved verse. The cache is overwritten, so it does not grow into a collection.

Need help?

Problem	First thing to try
Screen not found	Check the data cable, then --list-ports and drivers
Port busy	Close the vendor display app and other running copies
Wrong handshake or scrambled image	Check hardware compatibility
No saved verse	Run once online without --cached
Window disappears	Launch with Run-display.cmd or from a terminal

Full troubleshooting guide · Report an issue · Build from source

When reporting a problem, include your OS, display model, hardware IDs and the error message.

Credits & licence

Built with help from the turing-smart-screen-python protocol reference by Matthieu Houdebine and contributors. Independent of display manufacturers. Software: GPL v3; upstream files retain their own notices.

Daily reference: Bible League. Passage text: Bible Gateway. Christian Standard Bible © 2017 Holman Bible Publishers. Scripture is not covered by the software licence.