Observed arrival · 2026-10-29
Lumen Code: files carried by flickering light
Lumen Code transfers files from a screen to a camera as animated colour frames, without a network or pairing.
○Open
⊠Login
$Paid
†Ads
✦Pretty
●Pro
◎Niche
◉Human
⚑Risk
ƒJS
- For
- People transferring files between nearby devices without a network
- Worth noticing
- The protocol is frozen at 1.0, with JavaScript and Rust implementations said to pass the same conformance vectors.
Field notes
The receiving camera can reconstruct a frame from three visible corners, according to the site's explanation, while fountain coding makes missed or blurred frames slow the transfer rather than necessarily stop it. The page lists a 256 MiB file limit and gives a measured peak of 96 KB/s between two phones, while cautioning that real rates depend on the camera. Mobile apps are presented as forthcoming; the browser flow is offered without an account.
Observed signals
Read the marks
Editorial observations of this landing page, not a rating.
○OpenPublic substance visible
$PaidCommerce or pricing visible
✦PrettyNotable craft visible
●ProPolished or operationally mature
◎NicheUnusually specific use
One card from the complete issue