TI OMAP2/3/4 Display Subsystem framebuffer driver
Legacy framebuffer support for the display controllers built into Texas Instruments OMAP2, OMAP3, and OMAP4 application processors, which powered smartphones, tablets, set-top boxes, and embedded boards from roughly 2007 through the mid-2010s and still appear in some industrial systems today.
recommendation
Worth keeping but documenting its niche: this is the older fbdev-style driver for OMAP display hardware, and the kernel already ships a modern DRM/KMS replacement at drivers/gpu/drm/omapdrm that should be preferred for new deployments. It still receives small upstream fixes (a platform_driver API adjustment in late 2024 and an mmap fix in 2026), and TI continues to sell OMAP3530 chips into legacy and industrial markets, so removing it would strand working systems. New users should be steered toward omapdrm.
repository signals
sources
- lore.kernel.org
Non-treewide functional fix for omapfb_mmap was posted in April 2026, showing current upstream maintenance activity.
- lore.kernel.org
omapfb was still being adjusted for platform_driver API churn in October 2024, indicating it remains build- and runtime-relevant upstream.
- ti.com
TI still listed OMAP3530 as ACTIVE and orderable, so at least part of the OMAP3 hardware family remained sold new in 2025.
- git.kernel.org
Upstream provides DRM_OMAP as the DRM/KMS display driver for OMAP2/3/4 boards, which is the natural replacement for legacy fbdev omapfb.
codex reasoning notes (technical)
Local Kconfig read via shell shows FB_OMAP2 depends on DRM_OMAP=n, which marks omapfb as the legacy alternative to omapdrm. lore_file_timeline on the directory path returned no events, so I used lore_activity on omapfb-main.c instead; that produced 2024-2026 functional maintenance and stable backport traffic, with no confirmed removal-thread evidence from the allowed-budget queries. Web search found TI's OMAP3530 product page marked ACTIVE/orderable, so hardware is still sold, but likely only in legacy/industrial niches rather than broad new deployment. Recommendation is keep-annotate: legacy fbdev driver, low modern deployment, but not dead and with a clear upstream DRM replacement.