ESP32-S3 Touch LCD works from laptop USB but display becomes corrupted when powered from USB charger

ESPHome
1

Hi everyone,

I am trying to get an ESP32-S3 based touch LCD working with ESPHome.

Hardware:

  • Board: Waveshare ESP32-S3-Touch-LCD-3.5B
  • ESP32-S3
  • Display: 3.5" LCD (ILI9488 based)
  • ESPHome version: 2026.5.3
  • Home Assistant integration via ESPHome Device Builder
  • Power connection: USB-C

The display works perfectly when powered from my laptop USB-C port.

However, when I power it from a USB wall charger, the display immediately becomes corrupted/garbled.

Examples of power supplies tested:

  • Apple iPhone charger (original)
  • Apple iPad charger
  • Brand new Raspberry Pi USB-C power supply
  • Same USB-C cable as used with laptop

The issue happens immediately on power-up. The ESP32 boots, but the LCD image is pixelated/garbled and unreadable.

There is no change to the firmware or cable — only the power source changes.

The same cable works:

  • Laptop USB → display OK
  • USB charger → display corrupted

I have checked:

  • Firmware is identical
  • ESPHome configuration is identical
  • Cable is identical
  • Multiple known-good USB-C power supplies tested

Any advice on where to troubleshoot would be appreciated.

Thanks.

2

Try how it goes with power bank. If you have short usb cable with ferrite bead, try that as well.

3

Thanks
I have tried power bank and al kinds of usb cables, including dumb usb to usb-c & raspberry pi charger, but not much luck.
Waiting for the delivery of ferrite beads.
Hope that brings a change.

4

What about the other functions?
What do the logs indicate?
Is the device on line?

Right now there are too many unknowns.

Try a simple program/config w/o the display to see if everything else works.