Skip to content

Update your display

Two very different needs bring you here. Choose yours: the first only needs a phone, the second a computer.

I've changed Wi-Fi New box, new password, moving house. Five minutes, no computer needed. I'm installing a new version New features. Requires a computer and a USB data cable.

Change Wi-Fi network

Nothing to install, nothing to dismantle. When the display can no longer find its network, it automatically reopens its own so you can point it to a new one.

  1. Unplug the display, then plug it back in

    On start-up it looks for the network it knows. No longer finding it, it gives up after a few seconds and creates its own network, named SmartLedMessenger.

    If your new box has exactly the same name and the same password as the old one, the display connects to it on its own. There is nothing for you to do.

  2. Point it to the new network

    The rest is identical to the first installation:

    1. On your phone, open the Wi-Fi settings.
    2. Choose the SmartLedMessenger network, with no password.
    3. A page opens. If it doesn't, go to http://192.168.4.1.
    4. Tap "Configure WiFi", choose your new network, enter its password, then "Save".

    Always on 2.4 GHz. If your new box offers Livebox-1234 and Livebox-1234_5GHz, pick the one without the 5GHz label.

  3. That's it

    The display reconnects and picks up where it left off: same settings, same account, nothing to reactivate.

    Your address will be different from this one.

Install a new version

The display's internal software is updated from a computer. Allow about fifteen minutes the first time.

What you'll need

A USB data cable — not the one supplied with the display, which only powers it. A phone charging cable will do if it can also transfer photos.

A Windows computer. The update file downloads below, with no need to ask us for it.

  1. Download the file for your display

    The software depends on the model. Count the light blocks of your banner and look at the colour of the case:

    4 blocks Red or green case Download 4 blocks Blue case Download 8 blocks Red or green case Download

    When in doubt, don't guess. A file that doesn't match your model gives an upside-down or truncated display — without breaking anything, but you'll have to start again with the right one. Write to us describing your display and we'll answer.

  2. Connect the display to the computer

    Unplug it from the mains and connect it to a USB port on your computer with the data cable. The banner lights up: it is now powered by the computer.

  3. Install the transfer software

    Download ESP8266Flasher, a small free utility that does not need to be installed:

    Download ESP8266Flasher

    Launch it. At the top of the window, the "COM Port" box should show a port detected automatically, something like COM3 or COM5.

    Box stays empty? It's almost always the cable: many cords carry power only. Try another one before looking anywhere else.

  4. Point to the update file

    1. Open the "Config" tab.
    2. On the first line, click the gear on the right and choose the .bin file downloaded in step 1.
    3. Check that only this first line is ticked, and that the address shown next to it is 0x00000.
    Never tick the INTERNAL://NODEMCU line

    It would install software that is not ours and would wipe your display's memory: Wi-Fi settings lost, and above all identity lost. The banner would then show "Display not recognised".

    It is not beyond repair — see the troubleshooting at the bottom of the page — but it's one extra operation, best avoided.

  5. Start the transfer

    Go back to the "Operation" tab and click "Flash". A bar progresses for about thirty seconds, then a green dot confirms that it's done.

    Close the software, unplug the display from the computer and plug it back into the mains.

    Your Wi-Fi settings are kept: they are stored in an area the update does not touch. The display reconnects on its own.

Coming from a version earlier than v4.1?

After the update, your banner will scroll an activation code. This is normal, your display is not faulty: the new versions link to your account by this code rather than by your email address.

Enter it once in your customer area — your settings, your account and your personal message-sending address are intact. See how to proceed.

After an update from an older version.

If you run into trouble

The "COM Port" box stays empty

The cable, nine times out of ten. The cord supplied with the display only carries power. Use a cable that can transfer photos from a phone.

If the problem persists with a good cable, the USB chip driver is missing. Write to us stating your version of Windows and we'll send you the file to install.

The banner shows "Display not activated" after the update

This is the expected behaviour if you were coming from a version earlier than v4.1. Note the code on the banner and enter it in your customer area, just once.

Your account and your settings are not affected: activation only links the device to your existing account.

The banner shows "Display not recognised"

The display's identity memory has been wiped — almost always because the INTERNAL://NODEMCU line was ticked during the transfer.

The fix takes two steps. In your customer area, in the "Your displays" box, tap "Detach". The device starts showing a code again: enter it to re-link it. Nothing is lost.

After the update, the display no longer connects to Wi-Fi

A normal update keeps your credentials. If they have disappeared anyway, the display reopens its SmartLedMessenger network: go through the Wi-Fi change procedure above.

Which version do I currently have?

Each display has its own page, reachable from your network. Open its address in a browser — the one it shows at start-up, for example http://192.168.1.55. The version number appears at the top, next to its identifier.

The transfer stops or fails

Unplug the display, close ESP8266Flasher completely, plug it back in, then relaunch the software. A half-programmed display is never lost: you can always start over.

Avoid USB hubs and extension leads: connect directly to the computer.

Any doubt before you start? Write to us — better one question than two operations.