Helium Hotspot LoRaWAN Gateway also Earns Cryptocurrency

Helium Hotspot

We covered MatchX M2 Pro LPWAN Crypto-miner yesterday, and at first, I really thought that combining LoRaWAN gateway with cryptocurrency mining was really just a gimmick. But after talking with others, I found out that MXC Foundation HashDash used with the MatchX gateway was not the only such solution, and I was introduced to Helium Hotspot. A Helium Hotspot is a LoRaWAN gateway that also allows you to earn HNT cryptocurrency, and it could more than just prove a way to fund the deployment of public LoRaWAN networks, as as we’ll see below some people or companies are making some serious money, while others not so much. A DIY Helium Hotspot can also be made from a Raspberry Pi 3/4 and a RAK2245 Pi HAT. Helium Hotspot key features and specifications: SoC – Quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 application processor System Memory – 1GB RAM Storage – 64GB Storage Connectivity Ethernet Dual-band […]

MatchX M2 Pro LPWAN Crypto-Miner Supports LoRaWAN and Cryptocurrency Mining

MatchX M2 Pro LPWAN Crypto-Miner

A few years ago, I received MatchX.io MatchBoX outdoor LoRaWAN gateway for review, and eventually tested it with RAK811 LoRa tracker once I got a node to play with, and made sure I did not break any local laws. But now the company has come up with an unusual gateway with its MatchX M2 Pro LPWAN Crypto-Miner that acts as a traditional LoRaWAN gateway, as well as a cryptocurrency miner. I’m a bit perplexed by the solution as miners are notoriously power-hungry, but let’s have a look. MatchX M2 Pro specifications: SoC – NXP i.MX 6UL (MCIMX6G2CVM05AB) single-core Arm Cortex-A7 processor @ up to 528MHz System Memory – 256MB DDR3 RAM Storage – 256MB NAND FLASH, optional SSD up to 32GB or industrial SD-Card Networking & Wireless Connectivity LoRa Radio – SX1302 chipsets, 16 frequency channels Supports EU868, US915, AS920, AS923, AU915, KR920, IN865 regions 2.4Ghz 802.11b/g/n WiFi 4 GPS […]

BaHa Box Smart Automation Hub Features Allwinner H2+ or NXP i.MX 6ULL Processor (Crowdfunding)

BaHa Box

Most devices on the market are designed with a single brand of processor, but for their BaHa Box smart automation hub, xPoint Products decided to offer either Allwinner H2+ or NXP i.MX 6ULL versions. Why is that? Easy: Allwinner H2+ processor provides a cheaper solution for the residential market, while NXP i.MX 6ULL wide temperature range makes it more suitable for commercial applications. Both versions of BaHa Box smart hub run Linux on 256MB RAM, and offers Ethernet, WiFi, and Bluetooth connectivity, with options for Zigbee and Z-Wave. The hub supports over 2,000 devices and can work either connected to the cloud, or “offline” without internet. BaHa Box specifications: SoC Residential-grade version – Allwinner H2+ quad-core Cortex-A7 processor Commerical-grade version – NXP i.MX 6ULL Cortex-A7 processor System Memory – 256MB DDR3 Storage MicroSD card slot Residential-grade version – 256KB flash Industrial-grade version – 256MB flash Connectivity 10/100M Ethernet, WiFi, and […]

RAK2287 Mini PCIe LoRaWAN Concentrator Module Supports up to 500 Nodes per km2

RAK2287 LPWAN Concentrator Module

RAK Wireless launched its first Mini PCIe LoRaWAN concentrator module in 2018 with RAK833 mPCIe card featuring Semtech SX1301 LoRa baseband chip. It was soon followed by RAK2247 mPCIe with a very similar design but some tweaks to increase its maximum transmission power and range, and improve thermals and stability with the addition of a heatsink. The company has now introduced a new version with RAK2287 Mini PCie LoRaWAN concentrator module being mostly inspired by RAK2247 module but replacing Semtech SX1301 by Semtech SX1302 LoRa transceiver that’s suppose to reduce current consumption (and heat), lower the BoM cost, and able to handle a higher amount of traffic. The new mini PCIe card also adds u-blox ZOE-M8Q GPS system-in-package to provide GNSS functionality. RAK2287 key features and specifications: LoRa Connectivity Semtech SX1302 LoRa Transceiver with 2x SX1250 Tx/Rx front-end Tx power – up to 27dBm Rx sensitivity – down to -139dBm […]

ThinkCentre M75n IoT Nano Desktop Features a 6W AMD Athlon Silver 3050e Processor

Earlier today, we wrote about AMD 3015e dual-core/quad-thread Zen processor with 6W TDP found in some upcoming education laptops from Lenovo. We also noted that two other recent 6W AMD processors had been introduced by the company AMD 3020e and AMD Athlon Silver 3050e. When looking for AMD 3020e I got ACER ASPIRE A314-22-A8ST 14″ laptop with 4GB RAM and 256GB SSD listed for 9,590 Baht ($309 inc. 7% VAT) – but out of stock – on several Thai websites, but after switching to a US VPN all product reference disappeared, except for Lenovo Ideapad 3 soon getting an AMD 3020e model. None of the laptops are available now, but at least that means AMD does not only target the education market with its 6W SKUs. But when I searched for AMD Athlon Silver 3050e platforms, I realized Lenovo made an announcement last June about ThinkCentre M75n IoT Nano Desktop […]

TTGO T-Lite W5500 ESP32 WiFi & Bluetooth Board Comes with OLED Display, Optional Ethernet Add-on Board

TTGO T-Lite W5500 ESP32 Ethernet Board

If you like tiny boards with Ethernet,  TTGO T-Lite W5500 development board may be an interesting option,  as the ESP32 board comes with a built-in OLED, and female headers to connect an Ethernet add-on board called W5500 Gateway Module. LilyGO TTGO T-Lite W5500 specifications: SoC – Espressif System ESP32 dual-core WiFi and Bluetooth SoC with 520KB SRAM Storage – 4MB flash Display – 0.96-inch OLED display (SSD1306 driver) Connectivity 802.11 b/g/n WiFi 4 up to 150 Mbps, and Bluetooth 5.x BR/LE via ESP32 SoC, on-board ceramic antenna or external antenna (selectable with a resistor?) Optional Ethernet via SPI Ethernet board based on Wiznet W5500 USB – 1x USB Type-C port for power and programming via CP2104 USB to TTL chip I/Os 8+6 through holes with GPIOs, SPI, ADC, Touch, 5V, 3.3V, GND Operating voltage – 2.7V-3.6V Misc – Boot & Reset button, 40MHz crystal oscillator Power Supply – 5V/1A via […]

Rock Pi E SBC Comes with WiFi, Bluetooth, Two Ethernet Ports, and Optional PoE

Rock Pi E

Radxa has launched several Rockchip boards from the higher-end Rock Pi N10 (RK3399Pro) and Rock Pi 4 (RK3399) SBC’s, to the low-end and tiny Rock Pi S powered by an RK3308 Cortex-A35 processor. The company has now launched Rock Pi E single board computer equipped with the popular Rockchip RK3328 quad-core Cortex-A53 processor and designed for router & gateway application with two Ethernet ports, WiFi, and Bluetooth. Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) also comes as an option. Rock Pi E specifications: SoC – Rockchip RK3328  quad-core Arm Cortex-A53 processor @ up to 1.3 GHz System Memory – 256MB, 512MB, 1GB, or  2GB DDR3 Storage – MicroSD card slot up to 128GB, eMMC module support ( 16GB / 32GB / 64GB / 128GB) Video & Audio – 3.5mm AV output jack (Not 100% sure whether composite video is supported) Connectivity 1x Gigabit Ethernet port with PoE support via an additional HAT 10/100M Ethernet Wireless […]

Brume-W Pocket-Sized Wireless Gateway Runs OpenWrt or Ubuntu (Crowdfunding)

Brume-W Pocket-Sized Router

GL.iNet Brume-W (GL-MV1000W) is a “pocket-sized wireless gateway for edge computing” that supports high-speed VPN up to 280Mbps with WireGuard, AdGuard ad-blocking software (AdGuard), and Tor. The device features three Gigabit Ethernet ports and built-in 2.4 GHz WiFi 4 connectivity, but it also supports Alfa AWUS036AC and AWUS036ACS USB WiFf USB dongles for users wanting dual-band WiFi 5 (AC) networking. The router ships with OpenWrt pre-installed, but also supports Ubuntu. Brume-W specifications: SoC – Marvell ARMADA 88F3720 (aka ARMADA 3720) dual-core Cortex-A53 processor @ 1.0 GHz with packet processor/network accelerator System Memory – 1GB DDR4 Storage – 16MB NOR flash and 8GB eMMC flash, MicroSD card slot up to 256GB Connectivity 3x Gigabit Ethernet ports (1x WAN + 2x LAN) Built-in 2.4 GHz 802.11b/g/n WiFi 4 up to 300 Mbps with external WiFi antennas Support for external 802.11ac WiFI 5 USB dongles USB – 1x USB host port, 1x USB-C […]

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