LILYGOT-Echo Meshtastic 915MHz LoRa SX1262 Wireless Module NRF52840 GPS RTC NFC TTGO Development Board

I am a Ham (Extra Class), have an MSCS, worked in high tech, and LOVE thislittle device! If you enjoy cool new technology, then YOU will love it too - no matter what level you are at.Opened the box and found NO manual, but, on the small, high-contrast, 1.54" persistent black on white screen was "meshtastic.org". I visited the site and found a whole new world out there with amazing people and hardware that I previously did not know about. You should _not_ expect to just charge it up and start calling friends thousands of miles away, but you _can_ expect to have great fun while learning about "mesh" 2024 style. On YouTube, there are >= 2 excellent videos, created by some of my favorite Ham Radio YouTubers, devoted to emerging mesh technology and this _specific_ device.My rating of 5 Stars is because it is a powerful and relatively inexpensive way to dive into an amazing, state-of-the-art technology.BTW: One does NOT need to hold a Ham Radio license, or be an MSEE to work with mesh, BUT, if you are a Ham, you will have even more fun, and might remember APRS. I look forward to have fun working through this with a 16 year old friend who will have a great time - perhaps setting up a system for covertly messaging friends at school, or collecting qand disseminating weather data, or designing a neighborhood security system or...Enjoy!

I've purchased a couple of these and re-flashed the firmware using Liam Cottles' online RNode Flasher utility. They work very well as Reticulum Mesh Network RNode devices. I have one tethered to a Pi Computer via USB and another paired via Bluetooth to an Android phone running the Sideband chat program. Very reliable connectivity between these devices and other RNode devices.

This is a fine product with some caveats. Mine worked out of the box for about a week before I received the message that I needed to update/flash the firmware which at first appeared to be a daunting task. After searching a number of places I found a YouTube video that showed how us mere mortals can flash the firmware. I felt like the god of electrons when it rebooted and worked. I have to stop now as my medicine finally kicked in.You can do this.

I got this because I’m interested in the mesh tastic idea and I wanted to try something out without having to build my own board and solder and everything else. I have the mesh tastic app on my phone. I somehow found this node. I tried sending messages to it, but I couldn’t seem to figure out how to read them. I have a lot more YouTube videos to watch and tutorials to learn about this more. I work with a physician who is into this type of technology and I told him about it and he is going to build his own board and we’re going to try to communicate.

Easiest way to start meshing.

Everything came in as it was listed, the device came pre-built. The only issue is that the battery does not last long after six months of use and the range seems to be far less than expected. The range with the default antenna and default Meshtasic settings is around 1000 feet.

This device works out of the box. You don't have to flash the software to get started (although you'll probably want to go to the Meshtastic flasher to get the latest version). The small stock antenna is limited so you might want to get a better antenna to get more range.

Still reviewing/figuring out but was rather disappointed to see that I could not use this device with my iPhone because the firmware is MANY versions older than what is required for use with iPhone. It wants me to find newer firmware and a DFU utility for installing it without much by way of instructions. Is it to much to expect that a package with a new retail product would have the most current (or even a recent) version of the firmware? Are these devices such poor sellers that they've been sitting in inventory for more than a year?I may change my mind and upgraded this review after I figure out this DFU situation. Or I may just return it to Amazon and hope some other company sells Meshtastic products that work out of the box.