Slint – Native & resource-efficient GUIs in Rust

Slint is a state-of-the-art GUI toolkit written in Rust, specifically designed for lean, hardware-optimized user interfaces. With our upcoming Ezpire module for Slint, we are preparing the optimal foundation to deploy this powerful framework directly on PHYTEC hardware without tedious configuration.

What is Slint?

Slint is a declarative open-source GUI toolkit that allows you to develop native user interfaces for embedded systems. The application logic can be flexibly written in Rust, C++, JavaScript or Python. to be written.

The UI itself is designed using an easy-to-understand markup language similar to HTML/CSS (the Slint DSL) and is compiled directly into native machine code. The result is an ultra-fast, lightweight GUI stack that requires no heavy runtime environment and runs smoothly even on memory-constrained systems.

Why Slint for Embedded Linux?

  • Maximum Efficiency: The memory footprint (RAM) is minimal. There is no need for a resource-hungry web engine running in the background.

  • Modern Developer Experience: Benefit from features like Live Preview directly in VS Code. Changes to the UI design are instantly visible on screen without the need to recompile the code.

  • Hardware Acceleration: Slint supports native rendering via OpenGL, Framebuffer, or direct Linux KMS/DRM interfaces to make optimal use of the SoC's graphics hardware.

  • Safe and Stable: Because the framework is built primarily in Rust, it offers an exceptionally high level of memory safety and system stability.

What we Deliver: Slint Integration

  • Integration Support: Our Field Application Engineers (FAEs) already have hands-on experience integrating Slint into Yocto environments on PHYTEC hardware. Reach out to us — we can actively support your architecture and integration today!

  • New Evaluation image (Coming Soon): We are currently preparing a dedicated Slint evaluation image specifically for our phyCORE-i.MX 8M Plus (phyBOARD-Pollux).

  • Pre-configured Environment: Our goal is to provide you with a ready-to-use Yocto BSP where Slint, the respective language bindings, and the appropriate hardware acceleration drivers (GPU/KMS) are perfectly aligned out of the box.

Stay tuned – the final image and our comprehensive Yocto quick-start guides will be available here shortly!

Links & Resources / Getting Started

We are currently preparing our specific PHYTEC downloads and images for you. Until the release, you can already familiarize yourself with Slint's lean architecture: