The difference in one sentence
DAKboard runs in the cloud, Vista-Board runs on your own device. With DAKboard your calendars, photos and settings live on their servers, and the board stops working without internet. With Vista-Board everything stays in your home — data only leaves your network if you connect an online source such as a Google calendar.
Side by side
| Vista-Board | DAKboard (free) | DAKboard (Essential) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | €2.99/month or €29.49/year (about $3.20) |
$0 | $6/month ($5 billed annually) |
| Calendars | up to 6 | 2 | 5 |
| Runs | locally on your device | in the cloud | in the cloud |
| Solar output, battery, grid draw | yes (Fronius) | no | no |
| Electricity price over the day | yes (Tibber) | no | no |
| Car charge level | yes (Tesla) | no | no |
| Works offline | keeps showing last data | no | no |
| Free trial | 30 days, full features | free forever, limited | — |
DAKboard prices and limits from dakboard.com/pricing, retrieved 12 Aug 2026.
Two things to know upfront
- Vista-Board is not open source. If that is what you are after, look at MagicMirror — it is free and open, but expects you to configure modules yourself.
- There is no permanently free tier. You get 30 days with everything included; after that it costs €2.99 a month. DAKboard's free tier is genuinely free, just limited to two calendars and one fixed layout.
What speaks for Vista-Board
- Your data stays home. Calendars and photos do not land on someone else's servers. If your internet drops, the board keeps showing what it last loaded.
- Energy at a glance. Solar output, house consumption, grid draw, battery level, electricity price and car charge — DAKboard offers none of this, on any tier.
- Cheaper. About $3.20 versus $6 a month, with more calendars than the Essential tier.
- Runs on hardware you may already own. Raspberry Pi 2B and up, or any small Linux machine.
- No account with the vendor required. You install the software and that is it.
What DAKboard does better
- A genuinely free tier that does not expire.
- Ready-made hardware. They sell a plug-and-play unit for $80. With Vista-Board you source the Pi and screen yourself.
- Several screens from one account — better if you run multiple displays in a business.
- Touch operation and screen loops for shops and reception areas.
- A company behind it. Vista-Board is built by one person. That means short paths and fast replies — but also no corporation as backup.
Which one fits you?
| Your situation | Better choice |
|---|---|
| You have solar panels and want to see generation and usage | Vista-Board |
| Your appointments and photos should not leave the house | Vista-Board |
| You already own a Raspberry Pi | Vista-Board |
| You want to pay nothing and two calendars are enough | DAKboard (free tier) |
| You want to unbox a finished device and plug it in | DAKboard |
| You run several screens in a company | DAKboard |
| You want open source and enjoy configuring things | MagicMirror |
Switching from DAKboard
If you already run DAKboard on a Raspberry Pi, you do not need new hardware — just different software on the same SD card. Setup takes 5 to 30 minutes depending on the model, either through three terminal commands or a ready-made card image.
Your calendars connect the same way as before: through the address of your Apple, Google or CalDAV calendar.
Looking at more options? The family calendar display guide compares reused tablets, MagicMirror, DAKboard, Skylight Calendar and Vista-Board for families that want a wall calendar without cloud lock-in.
Try it free for 30 days
Full features, no payment details required. If it does not fit, it simply expires.