LoRa appears to be one of the most popular long range lower power WAN standards, at least based on the number of hobbyist boards coming to market, but hardware is not exactly cheap with modules such as Microchip RN2483 & RN2903 LoRa modules selling a little over $10, and development board such as LoPy normally going for at least $35. If large scale IoT is ever going to take off, prices will have to go lower, and AFAIK we are still waiting for the promised sub $2 Weightless chips. But if Elettronica In tweet is to be believed some Sigfox modules made by Korean company Wisol are selling for just $2, likely in larger quantities.
WiSOL SFM10R1 is made with RCZ1 (Radio Configuration Zone 1 – ETSI – Europe), while SFM10R2 module is made for RCZ2 ((Radio Configuration Zone 2 – FCC – North America).
SFM10R1 key features and specifications:
Chipset – ON Semiconductor AX-SFEU-1-01 Sigfox Ready RF Transceiver SoC
RF
Tx Freq./ Data rate : 868.13MHz/ 100bps
Rx Freq./ Data rate : 869.525MHz/ 600bps
Max Tx Radiated Power: +14 dBm
Rx Sensitivity: -127 dBm0
Power Supply – 1.8V to 3.6V
Power Consumption – Tx: 60 mA (max); Rx: 15 mA (max); Idle: 2 μA
Dimensions – 15.0 x 13.0 x 2.21 mm
Weight – 0.85 grams
SFM10R2 module specifications:
Chipset – ON Semiconductor AX-SFUS-1-01 Sigfox Ready RF Transceiver SoC
RF
Freq. bands : 902~928MHz
Data rate : 600bps
Tx Output Power : +24dBm(max.) @600bps
Rx Sensitivity : -129dBm(min.) @600bps
Power Supply – +2.7V~+3.6V
Power Consumption – Tx: 200mA (max), Rx : 40mA (max) @ 3.3V
Dimensions – 20.0 x 13.0 x 2.21 mm
Weight – 1.1 grams
The company also provides two similar evaluation boards: EVBSFM10R1 (RCZ1) or EVBSFM10R2 (RCZ2) with either module with an on-board Debugger, a USB connected UART port, 2 tack-switches and 4 LEDs, an unpopulated header with 6 digital and 4 analog I/Os, as well as an SMA antenna and USB cable for debugging. I don’t have any info about software since you need to register as a company to get the full details.
The European module and evaluation board are now sampling, while the North American hardware is still in under development. There’s no word about the evaluation board price. You’ll find some more details on Sigfox Wisol page, as well as Wisol’s own website.
Tweet LoRa appears to be one of the most popular long range lower power WAN standards, at least based on the number of hobbyist boards coming to market, but hardware…