This catalog describes features in the current repository source. It distinguishes implemented behavior from planned integrations and calls out areas that still need measurements on the watch. Release tags define the exact contents of a published firmware build.

Watch apps and interaction

Word-based Pebble-inspired clock face with date and configurable 12/24-hour format.
Two-button app drawer and navigation, with app lifecycle and input routing.
Monthly calendar, daily agenda, and task checklist.
On-demand Wi-Fi hotspot and captive portal for network and CalDAV settings.
Status/diagnostics app, notification history, incoming-call UI, and Now Playing UI.
Monochrome 200×200 e-paper rendering with partial updates where supported. The host preview script uses the production UI renderers and ImageMagick to render notification, call, and media examples.

Time, network, and organizer

DS3231 real-time clock with timezone offset and 12/24-hour preferences.
Pluggable time inputs: Apple BLE Current Time Service and Wi-Fi network time. Companion time is preferred over network time; network sync uses SNTP with HTTP Date fallback for networks that block UDP time requests.
Wi-Fi credentials and application preferences stored in non-volatile settings.
CalDAV event and task retrieval, daily agenda view, supported recurring event expansion, on-watch task completion, and persisted cache.
Hotspot portal supports configuring Wi-Fi and CalDAV account details. Network and time synchronization are initiated by user action.

Bluetooth and companion data

Apple ANCS notification delivery with fragmented attribute assembly, UID matching, a bounded notification pipeline, and recovery when an attribute response is lost.
Notification dismissal always removes the item locally. A remote iOS action is sent only when the notification advertises an action clearly labeled “Dismiss” or “Clear.”
Caller details and incoming-call actions when supplied by Apple notification services. ANCS does not provide a universal dialer or complete call-state interface.
Apple AMS track metadata, playback state, and supported playback commands.
BLE advertising restart/retry handling and optional CTS/AMS/ANCS discovery.
IBluetooth isolates BLE link/advertising transport. ICompanionSource isolates provider identity, availability, capabilities, normalized events, and semantic commands. The current ESP32 board composes Apple services behind these contracts; host tests also exercise a provider independent of the BLE transport.
Android companion support and Linux MPRIS are extension targets, not part of this release.

Power and battery

ESP-IDF power management with FreeRTOS tickless idle and Bluetooth modem sleep configuration, plus inactivity-based automatic light-sleep policy.
DVFS uses ESP-IDF power-management locks for interactive and compute scopes; clock transitions can be recorded in diagnostic logs.
USB ewctl can temporarily force the CPU to 40, 80, or 160 MHz to compare behavior, then restore the configured 40–160 MHz automatic range. The forced setting is volatile and intended for development experiments.
Battery voltage is sampled through the board ADC and mapped to an estimated percentage; low-battery handling is included. This board has no fuel gauge or current monitor, so percentage and runtime are estimates and require physical measurement for validation.

Developer and release tooling

ewctl over USB Serial/JTAG can query firmware/system, battery, BLE, power, and a bounded log ring. It also supports temporary CPU-frequency overrides, CSV power logging, redacted bug-report bundles, checksum-verified release flashing, and decoding flash-backed ESP-IDF panic coredumps with the matching ELF.
make test runs host-side protocol and service tests; make firmware builds the ESP32-C3 firmware.
GitHub Actions builds app and factory images for tagged releases and attaches checksums and flashing instructions.
Tagged releases also include an Arch ewctl package and a pacman repository database. The package-only repository is hosted at https://pkgs-wearables.ersa.dev/; add this configuration, then install with sudo pacman -Syu ewctl:

[ewctl]

SigLevel = Optional

Server = https://pkgs-wearables.ersa.dev/

The package can also be built locally from packaging/arch/ewctl/PKGBUILD. Packages are currently unsigned; pacman downloads them and the repository database over HTTPS. Tagged releases attach the package and matching ersa-ewctl.db and ersa-ewctl.files assets. Build locally with makepkg -si if preferred.
Each board's DeviceInfo supplies its display name, codename, and manufacturer. ewctl status also reports the compiled firmware version; BLE advertising and OTA use the selected BSP's properties. OTA stores the latest manifest at ota/<codename>/ota.json and images at firmware/<codename>/<tag>.bin; Terra (Ampere Terra) currently publishes at ota/terra/ota.json.
The OTA service checks a compact HTTPS manifest, verifies release metadata and SHA-256, downloads in resumable HTTP ranges with bounded retry/backoff, and installs to the inactive app slot. OTA logs expose the current phase, byte progress, and transport or validation failures. Bootloader rollback protects the previous image until the new firmware confirms startup. Existing watches require one USB migration using the release bootloader, partition table, OTA metadata, and app image; the script preserves NVS settings. New devices can be factory flashed directly into the A/B layout.

Useful commands

Run these from the repository root. Close any other program using the serial port first.

python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 status
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 power cpu-freq-get
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 power get-dvfs-state
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 ota
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 power cpu-freq-set 40
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 power cpu-freq-set 0
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 logs --follow
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 power log --interval 30 --duration 3600
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 debug bundle
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 flash release 0.1.3
python3 scripts/ewctl.py --port /dev/ttyACM0 debug coredump

power reports the measured CPU frequency and cpu_test_override_mhz (0 means automatic scaling). power cpu-freq-set accepts only 40, 80, 160, or 0; it acknowledges and reboots in a controlled way so ESP-IDF applies the profile before BLE and peripheral locks start. Zero restores automatic power management. The requested profile survives software restart in RTC memory. The 40 MHz profile can rise to 80 MHz while BLE holds its APB lock. Run power cpu-freq-get after reboot to confirm the measured clock. Rich tables are the default; add --json for machine-readable output.

New firmware saves panic coredumps in the reserved flash partition. Decode them with debug coredump before another panic overwrites the saved dump; see the USB control guide for ELF matching and setup.

Known validation limits

The firmware build and host test suite validate compilation and portable logic. Power consumption, sleep residency, battery runtime, and forced-frequency radio behavior need measurements on the assembled device. Apple features require an iPhone with the relevant BLE services enabled; future Android/MPRIS sources are not implemented.