Bench notes · LoRa · Meshtastic

Solar Meshtastic repeater: build or buy?

Off-grid mesh messaging is booming. Cheap LoRa radios pass text messages hop to hop with no mobile coverage and no subscription. What turns a few handhelds into a real network is a solar repeater on a hill, and the Adelaide Hills, with their gullies and patchy coverage, need plenty of them.

The two options

• Buy: Seeed's SenseCAP Solar Node P1-Pro, about A$199 with batteries and GPS. Unbox it, bolt it up, done in an afternoon. Prices vary a lot between stores, so shop around.
• Build: a RAK WisBlock starter kit, a 6 W panel, two 18650s and a sealed box, about A$150. It takes a weekend, but you can repair and expand every part.

Three things that matter more than the hardware

• Height beats hardware. A cheap node on a ridge beats an expensive one in a gully every time.
• Check the panel voltage. The RAK board's solar input wants about 5V. Measure your panel in full sun before you plug it in.
• Meshtastic or MeshCore? Volunteers have built 26 MeshCore repeaters across Adelaide, and the two networks don't talk to each other. Check what covers your area first.

My take: buy one to learn what a good node looks like, then build the next one.