Ulanzi’s TC001 is a compact, Wi-Fi-enabled desk clock featuring a 32 x 8 RGB LED matrix that doubles as a personalised mini-dashboard, appealing to makers and smart home enthusiasts alike.
Ulanzi’s TC001 is a compact Wi-Fi desk clock built around a 32 x 8 RGB LED matrix, and its appeal is immediate. According to New Atlas, it is bright, easy to read across a room and visually distinct from a standard LCD clock. Ulanzi describes it as a small smart display for homes, studios and gaming spaces, with an enclosure designed to sit unobtrusively on a desk or shelf. The hardware also includes a 4,400mAh battery, USB-C charging and a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi connection.
The clock does more than show the time. Ulanzi says it can display the date, weather, stopwatch readings, Pomodoro sessions and simple scoreboard data, while also supporting custom text and pixel artwork. The company says brightness can be adjusted automatically or manually, and that downloadable display apps and community-made pixel art expand what the device can show. That makes the TC001 closer to a small programmable panel than a conventional clock, especially for users who want at-a-glance information without opening an app.
The more technical appeal lies in what sits behind the display. Ulanzi identifies the TC001 as an ESP32-based device, and several of its regional product pages note support for the open-source Awtrix 3 firmware. That opens the door to Home Assistant integration, MQTT-driven alerts, Spotify “Now Playing” screens, YouTube subscriber counters and other custom data feeds. In practice, that turns the clock into a compact local dashboard, which is why it has found favour with makers and home-automation users as well as streamers.
New Atlas notes that the device is already useful in stock form, but becomes much more versatile once customised. Its review also highlights a practical limitation: the 4,400mAh battery is rated for roughly five hours, so most owners are likely to keep it on continuous USB-C power. Even so, the combination of retro-style pixel graphics, simple utility and open firmware support gives the TC001 a broader brief than its size suggests. For buyers looking for a decorative clock that can also surface live data, it occupies an unusual middle ground between gadget and dashboard.
Disclaimer: This content is intended for informational purposes only. Readers are advised to exercise their own judgement, conduct due diligence, or consult a qualified expert before acting on any information provided.
