

What's better than a single LED? Lots of LEDs! A fun way to make a small display is to use an 8x8 matrix or a 4-digit 7-segment display. Matrices like these are 'multiplexed' - so to control all the seven-segment LEDs you need 14 pins. That's a lot of pins, and there are driver chips like the MAX7219 that can control a matrix for you but there's a lot of wiring to set up and they take up a ton of space. Here at Adafruit we feel your pain! After all, wouldn't it be awesome if you could control a matrix without tons of wiring? That's where these adorable LED matrix backpacks come in. We have them in two flavors - a mini 8x8 and a 4-digit 0.56" 7-segment. They work perfectly with the matrices we stock in the Adafruit shop and make adding a bright little display trivial.
The matrices use a driver chip that does all the heavy lifting for you: They have a built in clock so they multiplex the display. They use constant-current drivers for ultra-bright, consistent color (the images above are photographed at the dimmest setting to avoid overloading our camera!), 1/16 step display dimming, all via a simple I2C interface. The backpacks come with address-selection jumpers so you can connect up to four mini 8x8's or eight 7-segments (or a combination, such as four mini 8x8's and four 7-segments, etc) on a single I2C bus.
The product kit comes with:
A bit of soldering is required to attach the matrix onto the backpack but its very easy to do and only takes about 5 minutes.
Of course, in classic Adafruit fashion, we also have a detailed tutorial showing you how to solder, wire and control the display. We even wrote a very nice library for the backpacks so you can get running in under half an hour, displaying images on the matrix or numbers on the 7-segment. If you've been eyeing matrix displays but hesitated because of the complexity, this is the solution you've been looking for!
This board/chip uses I2C 7-bit address between 0x70-0x77, selectable with jumpers
Data sheet
Manufacturer BTC Korporacja sp. z o. o. Lwowska 5 05-120 Legionowo Poland sprzedaz@kamami.pl 22 767 36 20
Responsible person BTC Korporacja sp. z o. o. Lwowska 5 05-120 Legionowo Poland sprzedaz@kamami.pl 22 767 36 20
LED display 13.2 mm 0.52 "single, red (635nm), 24 mcd / seg (10mA), common anode, RoHS. LED1-AS-05219BMR-B
No product available!
Module with a 4-element 14-segment display. The board is equipped with a Qwiic connector and communicates via the I2C interface. SparkFun COM-16916
Module with 4-digit 7-segment LED display. The board is equipped with a TM1637 driver and communicates via a digital interface
Module with 8-digit 7-segment LED display. The board is equipped with a 74HC595 driver and communicates via a digital interface
7-segment LED display, 1 digit 20.40mm, two dots, blue color (470nm), 4000ucd (10mA), common anode, Pb-free. LED1-AS-B-08012BB
8-segment display module, 4 digits with commas
No product available!
Module with 4-digit 7-segment display with red digits. The board is equipped with a Grove connector and communicates via a digital interface. Seeed Studio 111020044
LED display 14,20mm 0,56 "single, ultra-red (635nm), 40 mcd (20mA), common anode. LED1-AS-05613BMR-B PBF
No product available!
4-digit 7-segment 0.56 "LED display. Built-in HT16K33 controller allowing communication via I2C bus. Equipped with STEMMA QT connector. Adafruit 5601
No product available!
7-segment LED display, 1-digit 45mm, bright red (648nm), 20mcd (10mA), common anode, Pb-free. LED1-AS-B-18011BMR
No product available!
7-segment LED display, 1 digit 20.40mm, red color (630nm), 6 mcd (10mA), common anode, Pb-free. LED1-AS-B-08011BS
Module with 4-element 14-segment display with red backlight. The board is equipped with a Grove connector and communicates via the I2C interface. Seeed Studio 104020133
No product available!
8-digit, 8-segment LED display module with 16-level brightness adjustment. Communication via the I2C interface. DFRobot DFR0646-R
No product available!
LED segment display that allows you to display four digits consisting of 7 segments and a dot, the display can also display a colon. The color of the displayed digits is red
Adafruit 811 - Yellow 7-segment clock display - 0.56" digit height
7-segment LED display, 1 digit 9.90mm, green color (575nm), 8 ucd (10mA), common anode, red color (630nm), 10 ucd (10mA), common anode. Pb-free. LED1-AS-B-03915BMRMG
No product available!
8x8 matrix or a 4-digit 7-segment display. Matrices like these are 'multiplexed' - so to control all the seven-segment LEDs you need 14 pins. Adafruit 878