Meshtastic Compatible Lilygo Lora Devices

[@redwind3475]

I love the T-watch and would love to see more content on it!

[@kenGPT]

Absolutely! Range, actual runtime, change the brightness or turn off when not in use to save battery? Touchscreen enabled replies with onscreen keyboard? stuff like that.

[@SpaceGuy101]

I agree. There is not much information on it out there so it would be amazing

[@callsigncrypter9010]

Literally just ordered a T-Deck

[@DirtyPlumbus]

I built a couple of the T-decks and bought 3d printed enclosures for them. They're pretty nice. You've just given me a reason to dig out T-watch and play with it. Lol

[@kurti4432]

Can you attach a larger antenna to the T-Deck? Or use a directional Lora antenna?

[@DirtyPlumbus]

@@kurti4432 it comes with an antenna, but it's similar to your usual cheap wifi "wire". I'm sure if someone was really determined they could figure out how to get an sma connector on it for more antenna options, but it wouldn't be an easy task.

[@singletona082]

@@kurti4432I'm 90% sure you can get an SMA adaptor and mount the thing through whatever case you want ot use and have a proper antenna sticking out the top.

[@Funkteon]

All I’m trying to do is send a simple text message over 40 km (with barely any obstructions) from one Meshtastic device to another. But, of course, the minute you nerds get involved, your absolute inability to communicate like normal humans turns a straightforward task into deciphering some kind of technical Rosetta Stone. The wall of nonsense jargon and the utter lack of user-friendly hardware is almost laughable. It’s like that scene in the Ashton Kutcher 'Jobs' movie where they deliver a circuit board and call it a "computer" - because obviously everyone just knows how to plug it into thin air and make it work, right? Then Wozniak's all, "Your customers are the problem if they can’t use this," in response to the shop owner's very valid points about customer know-how, and it takes Steve Jobs to silently agree with the shop owner that people want things that work out of the box. Well, congratulations, nerds! You’ve Wozniak’d the hell out of LoRaWAN and Meshtastic - not in the genius way he kind invented the home computer, just in the elitist gatekeeping way he spoke to the shop owner. This stuff will never hit the mainstream like CB radios did in the ‘70s because you insist on making it as inaccessible as possible. Keep it up, and you'll still be talking among your tiny user group in ten years from now while the rest of us have moved on. It's been almost 4 years now, and Meshtastic is barely any easier to set up than it was in 2020 when it first hit public general availability.

[@DirtyPlumbus]

@Funkteon you have some valid points, but you also seem to miss some. CB is dead. Ham radio requires licensing, and anything Apple is hooked to the grid and spying on you. You'll also find gatekeeping in all the examples you mentioned. While I don't necessarily agree with gatekeeping, everything that goes mainstream goes to crap. There are many different skills involved in this hobby, and if you don't know what you're doing, you can get yourself into trouble. But on the other hand, there are so many options that people can't really tell you what to do without limiting your options. It's best to choose a path and research, struggle, and learn. All that said, you can buy the new Lilygo T-deck Plus with Meshtastic pre-installed, pick up a couple antennas to extend their range, and if you have a line of site you should be good. If you don't have a line of site, you may need to buy and program a node to place up somewhere to create it.

[@dadudle]

PLEASE do a full install guide for the T-watch s3 please!

[@williamwiese9963]

Great video, as someone like myself looking to buy my first Meshtastic hardware, this was very helpful possibly a T-Beam Supreme seems interesting to me. Thank you.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Glad I could help

[@TonyHoldenEsquire]

Two T-Echo's, one in 433, the other is 868, a T-Beam Supreme, a Heltec Tracker and two Heltec V3's. I'm having some fun playing with this kit.

[@424442]

I'm looking to create a streamlined communication network for festivals using Meshtastic to prevent losing sight of each other. The configuration involves incorporating GPS location with a compass and potentially incorporating two repeaters. I'm seeking devices with prolonged battery life and compact dimensions. Could you provide advice on device selection and stability?

[@inoutmodule]

hello, thanks for sharing this video with us, I'm using T-deck, and t-Beam v1.1, and I'm looking forward to test T-Beam Supreme soon

[@MyTube4Utoo]

A great overview. I'm loving the Meshtastic stuff. Thank you. A new subscriber.

[@jessen00001]

3:32 I am geekin so much out over this hardware 😍

[@Liberty4Ever]

My WisBlocks finally shipped from RAK Wireless in China, after a two week delay. I'm now glad that I spent $28 on expedited air shipment, so I paid to compensate for their lengthy shipping delay. They should arrive in two days. I chose the WisBlocks because they don't use the power hungry ESP32 processors. I'm setting up a local off-grid network so my family can text even if there is no power, no internet and no cellular service. I'm using a relatively large 6W solar panel and four 18650 batteries at each node which would probably power devices with the ESP32 processors but I wanted the lowest power I could get for worst case operation. Otherwise, the Lilygo T3S3 would have been a good option.

[@castirondude]

yes I'm doing the same thing. I want to build a couple of them and set them up,test on them for a while. If it all works then I was thinking of offering them up to a local wireless internet provider, see if they're willing to put them up on their towers.

[@daveevans9809]

I'd like to see a video on using these for MQTT control of remote ports for switching etc.

[@jasonmhite]

I'd love to see some battery and range testing for the watch. I've been pondering getting one, though is it really only TWO hours battery life? I didn't realize it was that bad, that kinda dampens my excitement.

[@witalijlewandowski2384]

ESP32 is great for stationary nodes, but for mobile like watch we need nrf52 to be more accesible in lora devices. There is nRF52840 arduino compatible module (nice!nano clone) only few buks more then esp32-c3/s3 modules. But if we want it with lora - we can have only great final product like T-echo (imo it's really how lora device should be done, but the price is like real product too, not the way to play with technology for cheap like we do with heltecs/t-beams). Second option is wisblock - not even finished device, but high quality modules and high price... I'll like T-echo in form of motherboard without screen and case (e-paper is great for standalone device, but what value it gives for node we use with phone? Screen is ~1/4 of device price. I think if lilygo/heltec use nRF52840 for a bit pricier modules than esp it can upgrade portable clients and allow us to use more compact solar panels for stationary nodes.

[@TheRealASN]

would love to see some range testing on the watch been looking to get into meshtastic and the watch makes sense

[@stuartmccloud307]

This is like Dexter Fletcher does Lora Radio. Loving It!

[@stevecarlisle3323]

I would like to see more info on sensor interface, which has been mentioned in the docs. Things like battery condition, and environment conditions at the site. Thanks again for all your videos. 🇨🇦

[@TechMindsOfficial]

That’s coming later today :) great timing!

[@stevecarlisle3323]

@@TechMindsOfficial Oh Man, your the BEST 😉🇨🇦

[@fotografm]

The current T-Beam version is 1.2 and not the 1.1 you showed. The version 1.2 has the better SX1262 chip. Great video !

[@Talie5in]

The T-Beam he showed and as he commented, was from a year or more ago. Hence the older version he has.

[@adrianobueno6984]

I would like to see the range of the T-Watch S3

[@alw7315]

i've got over 3km on it so far, its better than you think.. has to be line of sight though.

[@TechAirSpace]

I just made a video about T-Deck. I'm loving it! Meshtastic is amazing.

[@armstrongskyview2810]

Please create a video on the watch

[@Robert-cd5zr]

Is ESP32 what we should avoid for long battery life? If so, any chance of a similar breakdown of non-ESP32 devices?

[@singletona082]

Honestly would love a dedicated LoRa t-watch video as i'm interested in getting one and pairing with my phone. That way I know more what i'm getting into and what it can do besides Meshtastic. What i want to know in specific: 1. Range. How far can this thing see? Am I kinda stuck spending that first hop to a nearby node that's got an actual antenna or can I see a few miles out with this thing on? 2. Is there a way to conserve power? IE turning off wifi, keeping it to a watch face while using the meshtastic app on the phone? Or possibly even after using the phone for setup just seeing what the latest message(is) are and turn both bluetooth and wifi off to save power? 3. What else can I do while Mesh is running? it'd be kinda embarrassed if my watch can't tell time. 4. Any chance at stuffing a larger battery in the case? Two hours is pretty.... not optimal. 5. Other than Meshtastic, what can I make it do? Is it a case of 'either you can mesh OR you can use it as a hobby project'? 6. The antenna being in the band concerns me. I assume that does not mean the band can be swapped without the LoRa functionality breaking? 7. Let's get diabolical here. If you were to take this thing apart so you have just the watch face and however the antenna connects. Would you be able to get an SMA connector adaptor, plug in a longer life battery, and turn it into a non-watch mesh node? At that point ya get a t-beam or other device but 'well may as well go whole hog.' Thank you for your consideration and time.

[@alw7315]

I have the T watch, shame the battery life only last 2 hours, fairly sure it does infact have a RTC. they're working on a firmware update for it though to make it at least a usable watch let alone a Mesh node.

[@SveinWisnaes]

I live in the mountains of Brazil and would love to set up a node/base station. What is needed?

[@losttapes1705]

Love the watch. Needs an antennae that goes up your arm.

[@randomalleycat]

I really like that T-Deck 3d printed case! 😉

[@TechMindsOfficial]

It's so good! Really impressed with the quality and work that's gone into designing it. The designer must be really really awesome! 😋 Thank you for your hard work 😀

[@randomalleycat]

@@TechMindsOfficial you should check out the slim version if you haven’t already, really makes it feel like a finished device!

[@markcrosby5393]

I need to hear this guy quote some famous Moss lines from The IT Crowd! "I came here to drink milk and kick ass Jen. And I've just finished my milk" - Seriously though, I love your videos. Very well explained. I just cant get over how much you sound like Moss! :-)

[@TechMindsOfficial]

So many people say that, I just don’t see it personally lol.. maybe I’ll slip that like into one of my future videos, see if anyone spots it!!! It will be at random :)

[@castirondude]

9:05 you can also go into "Display" and change your display units from Chinese to US/UK , this does NOT automatically update with the region. At first I thought the settings were not working but the radio aspect and the display aspect are just on separate pages.

[@HamTechRadioScannerDrones]

I just discovered this so techy .

[@morecambeanglersandtrawler1074]

How much is the watch and can upgrade the antenna??

[@IndependentNewsMedia]

Please can you do a range test with the watch on flat ground point-2-point, my assumption is a aerial in the strap limits the range, and can you set the watch up as a relay/ repeater with your other devices via MTTQ server, which purposefully will then relay large amounts of data, to see how long the battery lasts. Keep up the good work, God bless.

[@sorinl8467]

About LilyGo device without GPS: Check Meshstatic forum if you want to add this. Also an user button can be added and a temperature/ humidity sensor. And it's suported by firmware!

[@KH07734]

The Developers should work on having the devices auto adjust for different modem speeds. It would be nice to have a device further away use slow mode and then adjust itself to talk to a device set in fast.

[@Kaimera23]

Great overview of these devices. 👍🏻 I have a T3S3 and am trying to establish if it can be used via PoE with a T-Eth-Lite board to allow power and LAN connectivity to the web interface for remote location installs outside of Bluetooth range. Anyone done this or know if it’s possible?

[@chrissewell1608]

This seems to be very popular in England & Europe's mainland. But, do you know of any maps online, that may show mesh nets, in the USA? I am very interested in getting into meshtastic, but want to know if any other people in my area are already setup!

[@castirondude]

There are definitely videos of people doing it in the US, but it seems to be pretty local. I want to try building a bunch and do reliability testing, then if they are proving reliable I want to offer them to a local WISP that covers a ~50 mile radius area.

[@GamingAmbienceLive]

i am glad these things are taking off, i will wait for them to get better and get one too, the age of analog walkie talkies is over, UHF and VHF are dead unless you have military satellite UHF bandwidth, so its either LORAWAN or HF radios, long distance is king, UHF/VHF repeaters for analog audio is simply obsolete

[@daveevans9809]

Excellent info - thanks!

[@danadkin8652]

I have a ttgo lora32 v2.1-1.6 and have added buttons and a bn-180t gps device. seams to be working well but there not many stations in the English SE corner

[@miltonch76]

Is there a way to have meshtastic and factory firmware working together on the T-watch s3?

[@notsrynot]

I work in radio and have recently become a big fan of your channel. I’m just now getting into the SDR side of RF thanks to the Hackefone and seeing how great it can be as a quick and easy way to diagnose certain in-field troubleshooting without having to bust out my freedom R8100. Anyway I have a bunch of random radio gear I’m willing to donate to you if you’re interested as I don’t think I’ll ever have a chance to tinker on your level. Just give shoot me a way to best get in touch and I’ll give you a list of stuff I have and we can go from there

[@jetskiwillywilly7970]

Where can you ask questions? I have 2 devices...im transmitting from phone to heltec, to heltec but thats where it ends. the last blue tooth transmission isn't completing to 2nd phone. this is true for both directions.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Go into Bluetooth settings on your phone and “forget device”. Then re-pair them together.

[@Funkteon]

All I’m trying to do is send a simple text message over 40 km (with barely any obstructions) from one Meshtastic device to another. But, of course, the minute you nerds get involved, your absolute inability to communicate like normal humans turns a straightforward task into deciphering some kind of technical Rosetta Stone. The wall of nonsense jargon and the utter lack of user-friendly hardware is almost laughable. It’s like that scene in the Ashton Kutcher 'Jobs' movie where they deliver a circuit board and call it a "computer" - because obviously everyone just knows how to plug it into thin air and make it work, right? Then Wozniak's all, "Your customers are the problem if they can’t use this," in response to the shop owner's very valid points about customer know-how, and it takes Steve Jobs to silently agree with the shop owner that people want things that work out of the box. Well, congratulations, nerds! You’ve Wozniak’d the hell out of LoRaWAN and Meshtastic - not in the genius way he kind invented the home computer, just in the elitist gatekeeping way he spoke to the shop owner. This stuff will never hit the mainstream like CB radios did in the ‘70s because you insist on making it as inaccessible as possible. Keep it up, and you'll still be talking among your tiny user group in ten years from now while the rest of us have moved on. It's been almost 4 years now, and Meshtastic is barely any easier to set up than it was in 2020 when it first hit public general availability.

[@LordGryllwotth]

Instead of a full keyboard a smaller formfactor with dial buttons instead would be neat also!

[@TonyLing]

Thanks Paul

[@MrtrenchTrucker]

What about the one that includes audio via 2.4ghz?

[@Wheeze_NL]

Nice comparison, but why do you call the 18650's "vape style"?

[@Chasing_The_Dream]

Commonly used in vape pens by people who wish to get popcorn lung. The battery has nothing to do with the poor health choice.

[@chrissewell1608]

How are people setting these out into the wilds of the world? Do people just pop them into trees in public parks? Place them at home & work (only?). Or are people asking businesses to install & power them, for the Ham Radio community? I have questions!?... 🤔

[@castirondude]

That's a really interesting thought. I was thinking of giving a bunch to a local wireless ISP and ask if they'd be willing to put them on all their towers (200+ feet tall and often on hilltops). Ask a few farmers to put them on top of their barns. Things like that. But as you say there are probably many more viable ideas.

[@ffemtrich2986]

I was under the impression that the Beta versions of meshtastic is actually the stable ones and the Alpha versions are the tester versions. Which is backwards of all other software development terms.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Yeh they are, but personally I use the Alphas so I can report back bugs etc

[@ThePlumbeus]

The normal definition would be no version modifier for stable releases, beta for tested feature complete development versions and alpha for testing of new features that probably still cause issues.

[@utkinvasily]

Is it possible to engrave Russian letters? Does mishtastic support Russian language?

[@eyhtwozed2606]

All these will make you look like 007 agent

[@joecizin9357]

👍👍

[@johnhall3827]

great take it every where and have another tracking devise .

[@S7EVE_P]

Beta releases are more stable usually.

[@rustyevolution6298]

A battery that lasts only 2 hours makes this watch a useless product to me.

[@HobkinBoi]

I can see an appeal if they used an nrf52840 over an esp32. Power consumption is so much better.

[@thedyslexicengineer7308]

@@manitoba-op4jxthat’s not the case for the 6th gen. I have 2 days of charge time

[@iaincampbell4422]

My apple watch which was the first edition with cellular still does a day and a half after having had it since ?2018? I never use the cellular mode mind you. My android smartwatch is doing 7 days on a 45 min charge....so 2hrs is ridiculous...sadly deal breaker for me too.

[@CreossCross]

@@manitoba-op4jxyou must have had a defective watch cause I go 2 days without charge with regular use throughout the day and wearing it to sleep

[@alexsimon9083]

Yup was an immediate right off for me

[@breadsticks98]

Steve mould is that you

[@sharpfang]

I'm still waiting for an extra-cheap device so you can add a small solar battery, a small li-ion battery, and drop it on random roofs building guerrilla network of repeater nodes.

[@kerbalairforce8802]

How cheap are you talking about? A T-beam can be had for less than $30.

[@madcarew5168]

Can't get eff all from UK!!!

[@paulsengupta971]

Do you mean buying the stuff? I just order through AliExpress, it usually gets here in a week or so these days.

[@madcarew5168]

@@paulsengupta971 same.

[@interproservice]

Anyone from Poland? :D

[@chrissmith7655]

Too much messing for what it does.

[@jblack3761]

If flashing a device with a webpage is too much hassle, you should probably stay away from any sort of open source projects. That being said, the t-deck and t-echo both come with the firmware pre installed so literally the only thing you need to do is download the app and pair the device with your phone. If that's too much effort, then you might want to stay away from like, doing things in general.

[@huizachedeoro3784]

​@@jblack3761what does it do?

[@mstrickk1]

I disagree. I've never had a micro A or micro B port die. Had many Cs die.

[@TechMindsOfficial]

Its not the port dying thats the problem. Its the fact that USB Micro are just plain shite! The connectors brake and it doesnt matter how careful you are with them. USB C is far stronger and will out last USB Micro for sure. IMO

[@mstrickk1]

@@TechMindsOfficial Not the experience I've had. I'm extremely careful with everything I own. C has a 50% failure rate for me, where I've only had 3 micro cables die on me ever. That's like 5% in my case.

[@pclutch]

Shit is too complicated

[@davidm1635]

i have two t-echo's, great kit. 73 de kk4zuu