Tidbyt stopped updating? Gen 1 and Gen 2 can keep going.

Niblet is the successor to Tidbyt with new firmware that works offline and free support for cloud-hosted apps. It’s easy to install with one click from your browser, and you get the same features and more with the all-new app.

Published 20 August 2026 · Updated 21 August 2026

We’ve all seen this one before. A company builds something genuinely good, the market shifts, the spreadsheet stops working, and one quiet morning the servers go dark and a perfectly healthy device turns into a paperweight. The Tidbyt is no exception. It’s a lovely object — a warm, pixel-lit little screen that actually earns its place on a shelf — and it depends entirely on a backend somebody else pays to keep running. Every frame it has ever shown arrived from a server you don’t own. So what happens the day that server stops answering?

Nothing has to. That’s the point of this page. Niblet is the successor to Tidbyt: new firmware for both generations, a cloud that hosts your apps for free, and a display that keeps playing from its own memory when the connection — or the company behind it — goes away. You install it yourself, from a browser, on the hardware already sitting on your shelf.

Tidbyt Gen 1 · browser installer

Start a Gen 1 migration

Plug in a USB cable and pick the display when Chrome asks. The browser writes the firmware for you — no case to open, no button to hold.

Check the Gen 2 status · See what happens to your apps · Read the steps first

Why a perfectly good Tidbyt stops updating

Nothing inside the display decides what to show. Both generations are thin clients: a 64 × 32 panel, a small microcontroller, and a Wi-Fi radio that asks a server for the next image every few seconds, forever. When that server stops answering, the hardware is still fine and the screen still lights up. It simply has nothing new to draw.

That is what Tidbyt owners have been weighing since the Tidbyt team joined Modal in November 2024. Manufacturing ended, the existing service was said to keep running for current customers, and no end date was ever published. That is a reasonable thing for a company to say and a difficult thing for an owner to plan around, because roughly 100,000 displays now depend on a decision nobody outside the company controls.

Tronbyt answered that first: new firmware plus a server the owner runs, so the display stops depending on anyone else’s cloud. Niblet takes the same position from the other side. We write the firmware and we run the server, and we publish what happens to your display if we ever stop.

What Niblet changes, and what stays

A migration touches two things — the firmware on the board and the service it talks to. Everything you can hold stays exactly as it is.

The display keeps working. Same panel, same enclosure, same power supply, same spot on the shelf.
The firmware is replaced. Niblet writes a complete, checksummed image built for your specific generation.
The service changes. Apps are rendered by Niblet Cloud and managed from the Niblet dashboard or the mobile app.
The apps come with you. Niblet runs the same Pixlet-compatible format, so the entire community catalog — more than 1,000 apps — is already there. More on that below.
It survives an outage. The display keeps its last verified rotation on the device and keeps playing it if the internet drops. Live data catches up when the connection returns.

Do all your Tidbyt apps come with you?

Yes. The whole catalog came across, not a curated subset. Niblet renders the same Starlark and Pixlet-compatible app format Tidbyt used, so every one of the thousand-plus community apps is in the Niblet catalog — weather, transit, sports, calendars, clocks, markets, games, and the odd ones somebody built for themselves at two in the morning. None were dropped.

What does not travel is your configuration. Roughly eight in ten apps need something from you before they light up — a location, a stop, a team, an API key — and a smaller group that leaned on a Tidbyt-issued credential needs a replacement key of your own. We mark which is which in the catalog, so you find out while you are choosing rather than after the app is on the display.

Browse the app catalog →

Does Niblet work on both Tidbyt generations?

Yes. Niblet builds a separate firmware profile for each generation rather than one image that hopes for the best. The two boards drive their panels differently and only one of them has touch, so they are treated as two supported targets with their own wiring maps, controller start-up behaviour, and release images.

Tidbyt Gen 1

Gen 1 is ready now and has the guided browser installer. It talks to the board’s CP2102N USB bridge, so there is no BOOT button to hold and no case to open — plug in a data cable, pick the serial device when Chrome or Edge asks, and the browser writes the image. Setup and pairing happen on the same page straight afterwards.

Open the Gen 1 installer →

Tidbyt Gen 2

Gen 2 is a supported target with its own firmware build. It carries the Gen 2 panel wiring, that board’s display-controller start-up sequence, and its capacitive touch surface: a tap moves to the next app, a hold turns the display off and on again. What is still in progress is the first-install USB and recovery path, which we are verifying on physical Gen 2 units before we hand anyone a one-click installer.

So the honest status is: the software is done and being tested, the installer is not published yet. Until it is, do not run the Gen 1 installer or write the Gen 1 image to a Gen 2 — the images are not interchangeable. The community forum is where the Gen 2 installer will be announced first.

How to migrate a Tidbyt to Niblet

The whole thing takes about fifteen minutes, most of which is choosing apps.

Connect the display. Use Chrome or Edge and a USB cable that carries data, not a charge-only cable. Choose the Tidbyt serial device when the browser asks for it.
Keep a way back. Read the recovery notes and save the factory image before you replace anything. A migration you can undo is a much easier decision.
Install the firmware. The browser writes the complete image to the display. Leave it plugged in until it finishes.
Join Wi-Fi and pair. The display starts its own protected setup network. You send your Wi-Fi details to it locally, then pair the display with your Niblet account.
Choose what it shows. Open the dashboard, install apps from the catalog, and put them in the order you want them.

What a migration does not carry over

Replacing the firmware clears the software the display was running, including its saved Wi-Fi setup. Your old app configuration, API keys, connected accounts, and any images that were pushed directly to the device do not come with it — those live in the service you are leaving, not on the board. You will set up the apps you actually want again, which for most people is a shorter list than they expected.

Two practical warnings. Installing third-party firmware may affect any remaining manufacturer warranty. And while the image is being written, leave the display alone: no unplugging, no closing the tab. If browser flashing does not work on your machine, there is a manual recovery route.

Niblet or Tronbyt — which should you pick?

Both keep your Tidbyt alive, and the difference is who runs the server. Tronbyt is open source and self-hosted, which is the better answer if you want the whole stack on your own machine and enjoy owning that. Niblet is the hosted answer: install the firmware, finish setup, and use the service without deploying anything.

We would rather you keep the display working than pick us. If self-hosting sounds right, the Tronbyt setup guide is a good place to start.

What it costs

Nothing. The firmware and the standard hosted service are free forever for supported Tidbyt displays — no subscription, no per-app charge, no tier to upgrade to. Niblet earns its money from Niblet One, the display we make ourselves. Your migrated Tidbyt is not the business model.

Questions Tidbyt owners ask

Does Niblet work on both Tidbyt Gen 1 and Gen 2?

Yes. Niblet maintains a separate firmware build for each generation, with the correct panel wiring and controller behaviour for that board, plus capacitive touch on Gen 2. The guided browser installer is available for Gen 1 today; the Gen 2 installer is finishing verification on physical Gen 2 units.

Will installing Niblet brick my Tidbyt?

It should not. The installer writes a complete, checksummed image and a manual recovery route exists if browser flashing fails. Save the factory recovery image before you start and do not unplug the display while it is being written.

Can I go back to the original Tidbyt firmware?

Yes, if you saved a copy of the original image before flashing. Niblet replaces the firmware rather than locking the board, so a Tidbyt you have a backup for can be written back over the same USB connection.

Do all my Tidbyt apps still work on Niblet?

Yes. Niblet renders the same Starlark and Pixlet-compatible app format Tidbyt used, and the entire community catalog of more than 1,000 apps came across — none were dropped. What does not transfer is configuration: app settings, API keys, and connected accounts are set up again on Niblet.

Does the display keep working without internet?

Yes. The display stores its last verified rotation and keeps playing it while the connection is down. Live data such as weather and departures refreshes once the connection returns.

Does Niblet store my Wi-Fi password?

No. You enter your Wi-Fi name and password during local setup and they are sent straight to the display over its own setup connection. They are never stored in Niblet Cloud.

How much does Niblet cost for a migrated Tidbyt?

Nothing. The firmware and the standard hosted service are free forever for supported Tidbyt displays. There is no subscription, no per-app charge, and no account tier to buy.

Is Niblet affiliated with Tidbyt or Tronbyt?

No. Niblet is an unofficial successor: independently developed, and not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Tidbyt, Modal, or Tronbyt. Tidbyt is a trademark of its owner and is used here only to describe the hardware Niblet supports.

Why support a display we did not sell?

Because you already own it, and a working object should not become waste over a server bill. That is the whole argument.

It is useful to us as well. Gen 1 and Gen 2 owners get to judge our software on hardware that is already on their shelf, which is a far more honest test than anything we could claim on a product page.

Start your Tidbyt Gen 1 migration →

Niblet is an unofficial successor, independently developed. It is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Tidbyt, Modal, or Tronbyt. Product names are used only to identify the hardware Niblet supports.