📦 Detailed Setup & Connection

Complete walkthrough of the setup process from unboxing to your first album cover display.

⚙️ Device Settings

Access your device settings at beatframe.local (only available when connected to the same local network as your BeatFrame).

Main Dashboard

The main page displays:

• Device ID: Your unique device identifier
• Connected Network: The WiFi network your device is using
• Current Weather: Weather information for your configured location (if enabled)
• Brightness: Current brightness level

Settings Menu

Click the "Settings" button to access detailed configuration options:

Weather Configuration

Enable and configure weather display for the clock screensaver. See the Weather Configuration section for details.

Brightness Control

Choose between:

• Auto Brightness: Automatically adjusts based on ambient light detected by the sensor
• Manual Brightness: Set a fixed brightness level

Display Mode

Select your preferred screensaver when no music is playing. See the Display Modes section for all available modes.

Cover Transition

Choose how album covers transition:

• Crossfade: Smooth fade between covers
• Slide Up: New cover slides up from bottom
• Slide Left: New cover slides in from right

Sleep Mode

Configure when the display turns off to save energy. Set the idle timeout period.

Timezone

Manually set your timezone for accurate clock display. BeatFrame cannot automatically detect timezone changes (e.g., daylight saving time).

Device Actions

• Back: Return to the main dashboard
• Restart Device: Reboot your BeatFrame without unplugging (useful for applying settings or troubleshooting)
• Unpair Device: Disconnect from Spotify and reset pairing (WiFi settings remain intact)
• Factory Reset: Completely wipe all settings and data, returning device to factory state (use only for severe issues)

⚡ Power Consumption

Understanding your BeatFrame's energy usage and efficiency.

Real-World Comparisons

To put BeatFrame's power consumption in perspective:

Energy Cost Calculator

Based on typical usage patterns (average 6W during use, 1.5W standby):

Power Management Tips

• Use Auto Brightness to automatically reduce power consumption in dark environments
• Enable Sleep Mode to turn off the display after a period of inactivity
• Darker display modes and album covers naturally consume less power than bright content
• The power adapter is optimized for the device's actual power draw (~6W typical)

🌤️ Weather Configuration

Add weather information to your clock display.

Setup Instructions

1. Navigate to beatframe.local and open Settings
2. Click "Configure" in the Weather section
3. You'll be redirected to beatframe.io
4. Search for your city or location in the search bar
5. Select the exact location from the results
6. Click "Save"
7. You'll be redirected back to beatframe.local with weather configured

Weather Display Timing

Weather is a resource-intensive feature. After configuration or device restart, it may take 1-15 minutes for weather to appear on screen. Updates also occur with a similar delay.

Note: Weather is only displayed in Clock mode.

Weather Icons Reference

Your BeatFrame displays different icons for various weather conditions. All icons are shown in authentic pixel-art style as they appear on your device (12×12 pixels, enlarged for clarity).

0

Sunny

Clear sunny day

1

Clear Night

Clear night sky

2

Cloudy

Overcast clouds

3

Rainy

Moderate rain

4

Stormy

Thunderstorm

5

Snowy

Snow

6

Foggy

Mist or fog

7

Partly Cloudy

Few clouds (day)

8

Partly Cloudy Night

Few clouds (night)

9

Light Rain

Drizzle or light rain

10

Heavy Rain

Heavy rain

11

Sleet

Rain and snow mix

12

Windy

Strong wind

13

Blizzard

Snow with strong wind

14

Haze

Atmospheric haze

15

Overcast Light

Broken clouds

🎨 Display Modes

Choose from various screensavers that appear when no music is playing. Access these in Settings > Display Mode.

🔧 Troubleshooting

Solutions to common issues you might encounter.

Red "ERROR" Screen with "Retrying"

If your BeatFrame displays a large red "ERROR" message filling the screen with smaller white "Retrying" text below:

What to do:

• Restart your device using any available method:
  • Via settings at beatframe.local → "Restart Device"
  • Or unplug the power adapter and plug it back in
• After restart, monitor if the error reappears
• Please contact support and report:
  • What you were doing when the error appeared
  • How often it occurs (one-time or recurring)
  • Your Device ID (from beatframe.local)

This error screen helps us identify and fix issues in the firmware. Your report is valuable for improving BeatFrame!

Device Won't Connect to WiFi

• Verify you're connecting to a 2.4GHz network (5GHz is not supported)
• Double-check your WiFi password
• Make sure the network has internet access
• Try restarting the device by unplugging and replugging
• Move the device closer to your router

Pairing Code Expired

• Pairing codes expire after 10 minutes
• Restart your device to generate a new code
• Have your Spotify credentials ready before starting

Not Redirected to Setup Portal

• Manually enter 192.168.4.1 in your browser
• Try a different device (iPhones work best)
• Disable mobile data on your phone (force it to use WiFi only)

Album Covers Not Appearing

• Verify you're actively playing music on Spotify
• Check that your device is paired (visit beatframe.local)
• Ensure your BeatFrame has internet access
• Try restarting the device from settings or by unplugging
• Unpair and re-pair your device if issues persist

Weather Not Showing

• Wait 15 minutes after configuration (weather is resource-intensive)
• Verify you're in Clock display mode
• Check that weather is configured at beatframe.local
• Restart the device and wait another 15 minutes
• If still not working after 15 minutes, contact support

Auto Brightness Not Working

• Ensure the light sensor in the upper left corner is not covered
• Check that Auto Brightness is enabled in settings
• The sensor needs clear line of sight to ambient light
• Try cleaning the sensor area gently with a soft cloth

Display Issues or Freezing

• First solution: Restart the device via settings or power cycle
• If restart doesn't help, try Unpair Device and go through setup again
• For persistent issues, perform a Factory Reset (this wipes all settings)
• Contact support if problems continue after factory reset

Can't Access beatframe.local

• Ensure your device is connected to the same WiFi network as your BeatFrame
• Try using the device's IP address instead (find it in your router's connected devices)
• Some networks block local domain resolution - try accessing from a different device
• Restart your BeatFrame and try again

💡 Known Issues & Tips

Concentric Waves on Some Covers

If you occasionally see concentric waves (like during first boot) instead of an album cover, don't worry! This is the default visualization shown when Spotify's CDN is temporarily unavailable for that specific cover.

Solution: Simply skip to the next track - it usually resolves itself automatically.

Game of Life Behavior

The Game of Life display mode includes special behaviors:

• Automatically resets every 5 minutes to prevent stagnation
• Random events occur every couple of minutes to keep things interesting
• This is intentional behavior, not a bug

OAuth Redirect Issue

If you need to log in to Spotify and aren't automatically redirected back to the authorization page:

• This is a known quirk with Spotify's OAuth flow
• Simply visit beatframe.io/pair again with your code
• You should now see the authorization screen since you're logged in

Best Practices

• Keep your device connected to a stable 2.4GHz WiFi network
• Regularly restart your device if you notice performance degradation
• Keep the light sensor in the upper left corner unobstructed for best auto-brightness performance
• Contact support when encountering issues - your feedback helps improve the firmware
• When reporting issues, include: what you were doing, what happened, and any error messages

Internet Requirement

Support

Need help? Contact support via:

• Telegram: @a_shi_o
• Email us with detailed information about your issue

When contacting support, please include your Device ID (found at beatframe.local) and a description of the problem.