To turn on you must LOOONG press.
i just found a newer 2.3.12 !! firmware version for this device on heltec page !
succesfully installed and have it running on the capsule
dont know how good this works yet.
these two links:
https://docs.heltec.org/en/node/esp32/capsule_sensor_v3/wireless_boot.html
https://resource.heltec.cn/download/Heltec%20Capsule%20Sensor%20V3
still does not work with sleep in tracker mode,
so,
on my device runtime is about 40 minutes after full charge…
so still somehow “bricked” device 
can not recommend ordering this device any more…
it is unusable…
maybe someone could 3D print an extention tube , that fits a 18650 into the tracker…
that could make it usable…
I drew and printed a housing for the capsule sensor.
Now I can power the sensor with an 18650 and a step up converter.
it now fits into a 40mm tube with a screw cap so that it is watertight.
but with this software it only lasts 1 day.
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1 day is still not enough…
heltec really did some false promises here,
has anyone tested the “original Lora firmware” that is not meshtastic?
Just to close this out.
Heltec support shared 2.3.13 firmware with me directly. This resolved the lack of GNSS fix, so the device is now working well. (albeit not for very long !)
I will be trying kilroy’s sleep mode next.
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i found some 2.3.12 on their download page.
tried that, but still no sleep mode .
hopefully 2.3.13 will do the job
please report
I just got both of mine running 2.3.13. Download the zip file from the releases page and get the firmware file firmware-heltec_capsule_sensor_v3-2.3.13.83f5ba0-update.bin
Once you have that file, hold down the power button for about 15 seconds until the blue light comes on steady.
Follow the instructions here to connect to the SSID:
https://docs.heltec.org/en/node/esp32/capsule_sensor_v3/wireless_boot.html
Once you are connected, erase the app firmware.bin in the first partition, don’t delete the nvs partition.
Then in the upper right choose the -upgrade.bin file from above, select the app partition and change the firmware name in the box below to ‘firmware.bin’ instead of the long name. Upload the file.
Once it is uploaded, click on ‘Run’ under Run this Firmware in the app partition. Once this is done, power off the device by holding the power button until all the lights go off.
Power it back on until the white light starts to flash and you are now updated to 2.3.13.
After that, connect to it with your app and do a Factory Reset and set it up like any other meshtastic device (default pin is 123456)
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does it run in “tracker mode” on that firmware? “sleep-send position-sleep”…
Not sure but you can see the changes here:
But now that it is part of the build platform, the Meshtastic dev’s should be able to get it working better now. Just sucks that the update process is complicated.
Thanks for all the information. I got my new capsule updated to the latest firmware. Set device into tracker mode with Bluetooth disabled. 10 minute location checks and upload and the power graph is attached. 2 hours. Device is not going to deep sleep.
Anyone had any success getting decent battery life?
same here… no sleep.
Okay I am testing something. My Powers for coding are poor, but my ability to spend hours randomly clicking stuff is legend!
I got VSStudio up and running, pulled parts of the new Heltec Capsule variant and stuff them into the Heltec V3 thing, adjusted the couple of pins that are different, Build the firmware and uploaded it via the wifi method. I was hoping this might work as they are virtually the same hardware and internal connections it seems.
It now has the Power saving option listed that the Heltec V3 has, So i’ve setup the admin channel, diabled bluetooth, set to tracker and just started it testing.
Will report back in 2 hours if its dead or still going
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I forgot to ask, Is anyone having issues charging or turning the capsule on and off? Was fine the first time I hooked up the charger, but since then if it goes flat which is pretty quick as we know, I have to hold down the power button while connected to the charger for 3 seconds before it will start charging. Then because the button is virtually non-functional I have to take it out of the plastic case and clamp the magnetic connector onto it?
Seems like a very half finished product unfortunately.
LyndonBlack, Im probably stating the obvious here, but for the device to sleep in tracker mode Power Saving also need to be activated.
I managed to sleep the Heltec Tracker Board with this, and from what I can see, the Capsule is just a shrunk down version of that board.
I think that’s right. The thing with the heltec capsule is that it doesn’t have the power save option. Hence the fact they only last 2 hours. The firmware is a mess for it at the moment.
I will check out the tracker board firmware as well. I wasn’t sure which modules had it but saw that my v3 had it so ran with that.
As for this test it’s returning the damn position every 1-2 minutes so not getting a chance to sleep.
Too bad they havent figured out the sleep function for the capsule yet. Looks like a pretty nice formfactor.
LyndonBlack:
The Heltec Wireless Tracker board is actually a very good option. It has surprised me. Sure, it uses +200mAh when aquiring position, but it goes dead flat when sleeping. Currently testing it with one hour updates. With an hour long pause it needs aprox. 30-40 seconds to aquire a position, transmit and go to sleep. With shorter intervals Ive had it down to 15second and less. Theoretically one can get +120days with a 21700 5000mAh battery updating every hour.
For long period tracking this board is pretty good, but for shorter period with faster (hours-few days) for use in a dog collar or the like the RAK 70003 with the RAK gps module will draw less current and last longer on the same battery.
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I am also playing with the HT-CT62 for the tracker I am attempting to make, small and low lower, and waiting for some RAK wireless items to arrive. Hoping the RAk stuff has a more established meshtastic ecosystem. The Heltec units are fairly recent it seems and very limited support.
It’s for a cat collar, so even the Capsule it too large, hoping if I can get the firmware working I can separate the boards inside it and lay it flat into a flexible TPU printed collar attachment.
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firmware 2.3.16 seems to improve gps functionality and batterylife somewhat (with defaults after factory reset)
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