Hi there,
I would like to announce our group effort that sparked a lot of interest in the discord channel, a meshtastic core pcb with the +30dbm ebyte e22-900m30s module.
Key aspects were high flexibility and minimum size/component count, all you need to add is a 5V power source and you are up and running.
PSRAM, OLED, GPS (with switchable 3.3V rail for power saving), user button and usb2serial converter are optional, so one can easily add the features required for the specific use case.
The hardware is compatible with the new 1W diy target, however some special features (power supply control, battery voltage sensing, switchable 3.3V rail and so on) still need to be implemented.
You can check it out at:
The PCB is nearly finished, as soon as the initial prototype is assembled and tested we will add our first official release. We are also planning to release some daughter-PCBs in the future, solar charging, lipo power managing, …
Nice work.
It’s funny I stumbled onto this project yesterday. I was googling something thebentern told me and his github repo showed up with contributions to this.
We are currently working on an automated build process that is compiling all the required files for an SMT assembly service at JLCPCB. So there is no need to get a third party involved! If you don’t feel like hand soldering you just order the complete PCB from JLC (you still need to solder the ebyte rf module but the pads are large and easy to solder).
All footprints are easy to solder by hand and we also compile a very nice iBOM that makes hand assembly very user friendly.
I would also add that poor Lilygo production quality control is one of the (albeit minor) factors driving this project. I, along with others have had T-Beam failures. Having a simplified ESP32 target with very few parts and failure points is an important thing personally. The higher powered radio is a big factor, but I like the fact that we have a true open sourced design that’s not too complex for a hobbyist to be able to put together on their own.
Large scale manufacturing can come later as interest arises and the design proves itself.
When the project is mature enough you can upload the release files to JLCPCB and order assembled PCBs, you just have to solder on the ebyte e22 rf modem. And this is really easy since I’ve included pads that are larger than necessary.
You also have to provide your own usb-uart converter, this is by no means a plug and play and user friendly solution. This project is just a core-pcb that you have to include in your own projects.