LakeShark Turns the LilyGO T-Display P4 into a Handheld SDR Scanner

CNX Software reports that LakeShark, open-source firmware by Samuel Reynolds (SAMS0N1TE), turns the ESP32-P4 LilyGO T-Display P4 into a handheld SDR scanner. The full write-up is LakeShark firmware turns LilyGO T-Display P4 into a handheld ESP32-P4 SDR scanner.

The primary build is the T-Display P4 SKU with the 4.1-inch 568×1232 AMOLED and 16MB flash. An RTL-SDR Blog V3 or V4 on the board’s USB-A port covers P25 Phase I trunking, analog FM/AM, POCSAG pager decoding, and 1090 MHz ADS-B, decoded on the ESP32-P4 without a PC, Raspberry Pi, or phone. The onboard SX1262 handles LoRa and MeshCore. The L76K GPS and ESP32-C6 (Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth) cover location and wireless links. The interface includes a live waterfall, ADS-B mapping on offline PMTiles, sub-GHz scanning, and a compass-based direction finder. An optional MIX-RF keyboard adds CC1101, nRF24, and NFC. A Flipper Zero companion app can control the unit over Bluetooth or UART.

Version 2.5.0, released September 27, 2026, adds aircraft trails, MeshCore node tracking, and user marks on offline maps, plus a Night theme and spoken callouts. Flash it from Chrome or Edge with the TerminalBay web flasher, or build it with ESP-IDF 5.4.3. Source is on GitHub under GPL-3.0. A shared battery pack for the P4 and the RTL-SDR is still in development. Check local laws before listening to RF signals.

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LilyGO T-Display P4

This listing is the 4.1-inch AMOLED (H753) 915 MHz version LakeShark targets: ESP32-P4, ESP32-C6, 568×1232 capacitive touch display, 16MB flash, 32MB PSRAM, SX1262 LoRa, L76K GPS, 9-axis IMU, rear 2MP camera, speaker, and microphone. LilyGO T-Display P4 — $159.95