Waveshare 5inch & 4.3inch Display Comparison
Comparison of Waveshare 5” / 4.3” displays, using the two ESP32-P4 integrated touch boards as the baseline. Chip/SoC features are intentionally downplayed — focus is mounting, dimensions, display tech, resolution, interface, lanes, cost.
Baseline: ESP32-P4 integrated displays
| Spec | P4 Touch-LCD-5 | P4 Touch-LCD-4.3 |
|---|---|---|
| Size | 5″ | 4.3″ |
| Resolution | 720×1280 (portrait) | 480×800 (portrait) |
| Panel | IPS | IPS |
| Driver IC | HX8394 | ST7701 |
| Brightness | 280 cd/m² | 500 cd/m² |
| Contrast | 900:1 | 1000:1 |
| Viewing angle | 178° | 160° |
| Interface | MIPI-DSI 2-lane | MIPI-DSI 2-lane |
| Touch | Cap. 5-pt (GT911) | Cap. 5-pt (GT911) |
| Cover | 6H toughened glass, optical bonding | 6H toughened glass, optical bonding |
| Mounting | Dev board, 4 corner holes + 40-pin header | Dev board, 4 corner holes + 40-pin header |
| Cost | $44.99 (no cam) / $52.99 (cam) | $33.99 (no cam) / $42.99 (cam) |
These are self-contained: the panel is bonded to a carrier PCB that holds the P4.
Full comparison
| Display | Outline W×H (mm) | Active (mm) | Thick (mm) | Panel | Res | Interface | DSI lanes | Mounting | Price (1pc) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P4-5 (base) | glass 126.9×70.7 / PCB 118.5×64.5 | 110.3×62.3 | ~13 | IPS | 720×1280 | DSI (onboard P4) | 2 | Dev board, 4 holes + 40-pin | $44.99–52.99 |
| P4-4.3 (base) | glass 114.4×66.8 / PCB 102.5×60.0 | 94.4×57.0 | ~13 | IPS | 480×800 | DSI (onboard P4) | 2 | Dev board, 4 holes + 40-pin | $33.99–42.99 |
| 5″ HDMI AMOLED | 123.5×79.9 | 110.4×63.0 | thin + rear PCB | AMOLED | 960×544 | HDMI + USB touch | n/a (HDMI) | M2.5, standalone monitor | $82.99 |
| 5″ DSI LCD (D) | glass 126.9×70.7 / PCB ~88×56 | 110.3×62.3 | 13.1 | IPS | 720×1280 | DSI | 2 | M2.5 (58×49), Pi on back | $55.99 |
| 5″ DSI LCD (C) | 120.7×77.2 / PCB 121.0×76.0 | 109.0×65.8 | 12.6 | IPS | 1024×600 | DSI | 2 | M2.5 (113×68) + metal stand | $46.99 |
| 50H-800480-IPS | 120.7×75.8 (no-touch) / 127.7×87.5 (touch) | 108.0×64.8 | ~5 (FPC) | IPS | 800×480 | DSI | 2 | FPC-integrated embed | $27.99–32.99 |
| 4.3″ DSI QLED | 106.1×67.8 / PCB 106.0×68.0 | 95.5×54.4 | 14.05 | QLED | 800×480 | DSI | 2 | M2.5, Pi on back | $45.99 |
| 4.3″ DSI LCD | 106.1×67.8 / PCB 106.0×68.0 | 95.5×54.4 | 14.05 | IPS | 800×480 | DSI | 2 | M2.5, Pi on back | $35.99 |
Notes:
- 5″ DSI LCD (D) shares the exact glass outline and active area as the P4-5 — same panel module. Drops into the same cutout; the P4-5 just has a larger controller PCB behind it.
- 4.3″ DSI LCD and 4.3″ DSI QLED are mechanically identical (same PCB/drawing) — IPS vs QLED panel only.
- 50H is the thinnest (~5 mm FPC) — only one suited to truly slim embedded enclosures.
- 5″ HDMI AMOLED is the tallest/widest 5″ and behaves like a small monitor, not an embeddable panel.
AMOLED over DSI: the Waveshare board is HDMI-input only (can’t take DSI), but its glass is the Samsung AMS495QA04 — a 5″ 960×544 panel that is natively MIPI-DSI 2-lane and sold raw by several suppliers, so the P4 can drive that bare panel directly without the HDMI board (see chat notes).
MIPI-DSI lane requirements & ESP32-P4 capability
- ESP32-P4 MIPI-DSI: 1 clock lane + 2 data lanes, D-PHY up to ~1.5 Gbps/lane,
handling up to 1080p display. (Confirmed via Espressif product page + ESP-IDF
esp_lcdDSI docs: examples usenum_data_lanes = 2, 2 data + 1 clock.) - All the DSI panels here are 2-lane (1 clock + 2 data). This includes the 720×1280, 1024×600 and 800×480 modules. Waveshare’s own P4 boards already drive the 720×1280 and (on larger P4-X variants) 1024×600 / 1280×800 panels over the P4’s 2-lane DSI, confirming the headroom.
- Verdict: the ESP32-P4 can drive every DSI display in this list directly (2-lane is both the panel requirement and the P4’s max). It cannot drive the 5″ HDMI AMOLED board directly (no HDMI output), but it can drive the raw AMS495QA04 AMOLED panel inside it (native 2-lane DSI).
| Display | Interface | Lanes needed | P4 can drive directly? |
|---|---|---|---|
| P4-5 / P4-4.3 | DSI | 2 | Yes (onboard) |
| 5″ DSI LCD (D) | DSI | 2 | Yes |
| 5″ DSI LCD (C) | DSI | 2 | Yes |
| 50H-800480-IPS | DSI | 2 | Yes |
| 4.3″ DSI QLED / LCD | DSI | 2 | Yes |
| 5″ HDMI AMOLED (board) | HDMI | n/a | No — board is HDMI-in only |
| AMS495QA04 (raw panel) | DSI | 2 | Yes — native 2-lane DSI |
Sources
- ESP32-P4 (5″): https://www.waveshare.com/esp32-p4-wifi6-touch-lcd-5.htm — docs: https://docs.waveshare.com/ESP32-P4-WIFI6-Touch-LCD-5
- ESP32-P4 (4.3″): https://www.waveshare.com/esp32-p4-wifi6-touch-lcd-4.3.htm — docs: https://docs.waveshare.com/ESP32-P4-WIFI6-Touch-LCD-4.3
- 5″ HDMI AMOLED: https://www.waveshare.com/product/displays/5inch-hdmi-amoled.htm — wiki: https://www.waveshare.com/wiki/5inch_HDMI_AMOLED
- Raw panel AMS495QA04 (Samsung, 960×544, MIPI-DSI 2-lane): https://ifan-display.com/product/5-inch-am-oled-mipi-dsi-ams495qa04-960x544/ ; https://www.youritech.com/products/ams495qa04-original-oled-5-inch-960x544-amoled-mipi-interface-oled-for-gaming.html
- 5″ DSI LCD (D): https://www.waveshare.com/product/displays/5inch-dsi-lcd-d.htm — wiki: https://www.waveshare.com/wiki/5inch_DSI_LCD_(D)
- 5″ DSI LCD (C): https://www.waveshare.com/product/displays/5inch-dsi-lcd-c.htm — wiki: https://www.waveshare.com/wiki/5inch_DSI_LCD_(C)
- 50H-800480-IPS: https://www.waveshare.com/product/displays/50h-800480-ips.htm — wiki: https://www.waveshare.com/wiki/50H-800480-IPS
- 4.3″ DSI QLED: https://www.waveshare.com/product/displays/4.3inch-dsi-qled.htm — wiki: https://www.waveshare.com/wiki/4.3inch_DSI_QLED
- 4.3″ DSI LCD: https://www.waveshare.com/product/displays/4.3inch-dsi-lcd.htm — wiki: https://www.waveshare.com/wiki/4.3inch_DSI_LCD
- ESP32-P4 SoC: https://www.espressif.com/en/products/socs/esp32-p4
- ESP-IDF MIPI-DSI LCD: https://github.com/espressif/esp-idf/blob/master/docs/en/api-reference/peripherals/lcd/dsi_lcd.rst