VersaTerm - A Versatile DIY Serial Terminal
What is it?
VersaTerm is without a doubt the most powerful open source serial terminal emulator hardware available. It is a versatile DIY serial terminal that works instantly — no OS to boot, no shutdown required. Simply power it on and you're ready to go.
This kit includes two USB cables as per the GitHub documentation, so you can use a USB keyboard right out of the box without any modifications.
Key Features
- Instant-on / Instant-off — no waiting for OS to boot, no need to shut down safely
- Native HDMI and VGA video output — no conversion, direct signal output
- PS/2 and USB keyboard support — including keyboards with integrated USB hubs
- RS232 and TTL level serial I/O — TTL switchable between 3.3V and 5V
- Wide baud rate range: 50 – 921600 baud (presets and custom)
- Hardware and software flow control: RTS/CTS and XOn/XOff
- Flexible power input: USB or 7–28V DC
- Highly configurable — including user-uploadable bitmap fonts
- Full VT100 attribute support: bold, underline, blink, inverse, double width, double height
- 16 ANSI colors
- VT100 control sequence support — passes VTTest for 80-column VT52/VT100/VT102
- PETSCII mode — supports PETSCII character set, control characters, and C64 font
- Easy to DIY — mostly through-hole soldering, firmware uploadable via USB (no special equipment needed)
Who Is It For?
VersaTerm is perfect for retro computing enthusiasts, embedded systems developers, and makers who need a reliable, feature-rich serial terminal without the overhead of a full operating system. Whether you're connecting to a vintage mainframe, a microcontroller project, a Raspberry Pi, or a classic home computer, VersaTerm handles it all with ease.
Open Source
VersaTerm is fully open source. Hardware schematics, firmware, and documentation are available on GitHub: github.com/denjhang/VersaTerm