FoBE IDEA Mesh Tracker C1 – An nRF52840-based LoRa GPS tracker with sensors, OLED, knob, and more

Designed by FoBE Studio in China, the FoBE IDEA Mesh Tracker C1 is a LoRa-powered off-grid communication device designed for outdoor GPS tracking, sensor data exchange, and mesh networking in remote environments.  Built around the Nordic nRF52840 MCU, it integrates LoRa, GPS, BLE, and motion sensors, making it suitable for location tracking, environmental monitoring, and off-grid communication projects.

The device integrates a GPS module, LoRa transceiver, 0.96-inch OLED display, buzzer, a 3-axis accelerometer, and a 3-axis gyroscope. Other ports include a USB-C port, reserved SWDIO/SWCLK headers, an 8-pin GPIO expansion header, and dual IPEX connectors for LoRa and GPS antennas. There is also a rotary encoder and two user buttons, and two indicator LEDs for controls and status feedback. Power input is provided via a 2-pin MX1.25 battery interface for portable, battery-powered outdoor IoT applications.

FoBE IDEA Mesh Tracker C1 specifications:

• SoC – Nordic Semiconductor nRF52840
  • CPU – 32-bit Arm Cortex-M4F microcontroller @ 64 MHz
  • Memory/Storage – 1 MB Flash, 256 KB RAM
  • Wireless – Bluetooth 5, Thread, ANT, Bluetooth Mesh, 802.15.4 (Zigbee), 2.4 GHz proprietary
• Display – 0.96-inch OLED, I²C interface (P0.27 SCL, P0.07 SDA)
• Audio – Buzzer (2.7 kHz driven by S9013 transistor)
• Wireless
  • LoRa transceiver – Semtech SX1262 with global coverage support: 433 MHz, 868 MHz, 915 MHz, 923 MHz
    • Modulation – LoRa / (G)FSK
    • TX power up to +22 dBm; sensitivity to –148 dBm
    • RX current ≈ 4.2 mA (active receive)
    • 1.8 V TCXO for frequency stability
  • GNSS module – Quectel L76KB-A58 GPS/BeiDou receiver (with GLONASS optional via CONSTELLATION jumper)
    • 1 PPS output (pin P0.08) • WAKE control (pin P0.06)
    • UART pins TXD (P1.09) / RXD (P0.12) • RESET (P0.04)
    • Active antenna power via LNA bias network (47 nH L, 100 Ω R, ESD protection diodes)
• USB – USB Type-C port with ESD protection for power and data
• Expansion
  •  8-pin external header with 6x GPIO pins (from MCU I/O bank)
  • 2x MFP (Multi-Function Port) connectors for GPIO expansion
• Debug – SWD debug header (SWDIO/SWCLK) for firmware upload
• Misc
  • Rotary encoder with push switch
  • 2x IPEX antenna connectors (for LoRa and GPS antennas)
  • 1x chip antenna for BLE
  • Onboard motion sensor
  • Reset and user buttons
  • Power LED, Charging LED
• Power
  • 5V from USB Type-C port
  • 3.3V and 5V GPIO header
  • Battery connector
  • Texas Instruments TPS62825DMQR step-down converter
  • TI BQ21040 Li-ion linear charging IC
  • Battery reverse-protection Schottky diode (B5819WS)
  • Typical input voltage range 3.0 – 5.5 V
• Dimensions – 50 x 50 mm (PCB)

Looking at the board closely, I see solder pads for an NTC (Negative Temperature Coefficient) thermistor and a battery, as well as two MFP (Multi-Function Pin) connectors, which most likely are used to expand the GPIOs of the board.

In terms of software support, the company does not clarify whether the device specifically supports platforms like Arduino, MicroPython, CircuitPython, Zephyr RTOS, and others. But the FoBE Studio GitHub repositories list projects such as fobe-nrf52-arduino and fobe-nrf52-platformio, which are based on Adafruit’s nRF52 core, meaning that the device is at least Arduino and PlatformIO compatible and can run Meshtastic firmware with BLE-based configuration. More information can be found on the project’s wiki.

Previously, we have written about similar products like the LILYGO T-LoRa Pager, which can be used for LoRa for text messaging, the Blackout Comms Cluster pre-configured off-grid LoRa texting and GPS system with cryptographic security, the Wio Tracker L1 Pro battery-powered LoRa node pre-flashed with the Meshtastic firmware for low-power off-grid messaging and GPS coordinates sharing, and the LILYGO T-Deck Pro offline device with a 3.1-inch e-paper display with touchscreen, a Blackberry-like QWERTY keyboard, a GPS module, speaker, microphone, and a 3.5mm audio, as well as IMU and light sensors. You can check those out if you’re looking for similar or more advanced products.

The FoBE IDEA Mesh Tracker C1 is available on FoBE Studio’s Tindie store for $28.96.

Debashis Das

Debashis Das is a technical content writer and embedded engineer with over five years of experience in the industry. With expertise in Embedded C, PCB Design, and SEO optimization, he effectively blends difficult technical topics with clear communication

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