1.6

New features

Radio

Two of the most recent and advanced sub-1 GHz radios on the market that the SoftRF technology is now able to operate with:

• Semtech LR1110
  • sub-1 GHz band
• Semtech LR1121
  • sub-1 GHz band
  • 2.1 GHz S-band ( Voyager 1 )
  • 2.4 GHz ISM band

new Editions

• Eco Edition and Duo Concept

• Hardware:
  • Espressif ESP32-C6 - two RISC-V cores with 2.4 GHz radio
  • GNSS:
         external Quectel L80-R
  • Sub-1Ghz radio:
         built-in Semtech SX1262
  • Output:
         default: Type-C USB CDC ACM
         optional: Wi-Fi UDP or TCP
         optional: Bluetooth LE
         optional: UART 38400, 8N1
  • Sensor:
         optional: Bosch BMP(E)280

• Card

• Hardware:
  • Nordic Semiconductor nRF52840   - ARM Cortex-M4F core with 2.4 GHz radio
  • GNSS:
         built-in Airoha AG3335
  • Sub-1Ghz radio:
         built-in Semtech LR1110
  • Output:
         default: Bluetooth LE
         optional: USB CDC ACM
  • Battery:
         built-in: Li-Po 700 mAh
  • Sensor:
         built-in: QMA6100P accelerometer
  • Weight
         32 grams
  • Water resistance:
         IP65

• Cozy

• Hardware:
  • Nordic nRF52840 SoC
  • GNSS: external Quectel L76K
  • Radio: built-in Semtech SX1262
  • Output:
         default: Bluetooth LE
         optional: Type-C USB CDC ACM
         optional: UART 38400, 8N1
  • Display:
         built-in: 1.14" 240x135 SPI TFT
  • Sensor:
         optional: Bosch BMP(E)280

Major improvements

Common

• more accurate RF Rx packets counter
• add Airoha AG3335 GNSS driver
• update of FANET (LoRa) plans for IN, IL, KR and NZ world regions
• 15 dBm of max. FANET (LoRa) Tx power is allowed in NA, AU, IL and KR

ESP32

• build is possible for Espressif recent ESP32-P4 SoC
• 'classic ESP32' SoC build is compatible with Core 3.x
• builds and runs on LilyGO T3-S3-EPD and LilyGO T3-C6
• build for ESP32-C6 and ESP32-H2 targets with ArduinoBLE library
• build with Core 3.0.7 for ESP32-C6
• build with Core 3.1.0-RC3 for ESP32-H2 and ESP32-P4
• driver for LR1110 and LR1121 radios is enabled for ESP32-S3 target(s) only

nRF52

• add ICM-20948 IMU sensor
• add QMA6100P accelerometer
• add 1.14" 240x135 SPI TFT display
• add LR1110 and LR1121 radios
• build of bootloader for T1000-E with SoftDevice 6.1.1

RA4M1

• build with Arduino Core 1.2.2 for Renesas SoCs

RP2XXX

• build is possible for recent Raspberry Pico 2 ( RP2350 )
• build with Arduino Pico Core 4.2.0

EFR32

• build with Arduino Core 2.1.0 for Silicon Labs EFR32 Series 2
• sub-1 GHz radio, GNSS and BMP280 air pressure sensor work fine
• build of BLE driver with ArduinoBLE library

CH32

• build is possible for Nanjing Qinheng Micro CH32V307 target
• USB CDC device is Ok
• SX1276, SX1262 and LR1121 radios work fine
• hardware UART works with GNSS module
• I²C OLED display and BMP280 pressure sensor work fine
• external SPI flash memory and micro-SD card reader are doing good

Please, read commits history for more information.

Known issues

• same that previous Release 1.5.1 has ;

Binary downloads and flashing instructions

WARNING

1. This upgrade may reset your SoftRF settings down to factory default values. Please, follow these "backup and restore" procedures prior to executing the update
2. ESP32 only: you may try "Web update" method if your current firmware version is rc7-9 or 1.0-1.5.1, otherwise do:
   • follow First-time firmware installation procedure instructions instead, and
   • make full flash ERASE prior to firmware write operation, and
   • disconnect any of I2C devices from ESP32's GPIO2 pad. See this ticket for details.
3. S76G only: follow these instructions to update your Dongle Edition firmware. It is also recommended to reset your SoftRF Dongle settings back to factory default values by following this procedure.

Prime MkII, MkIII, Badge or Dongle owners! I will reject any claims if you, by any reason, will fail to upgrade or fail to recover after un-successful update!
If you are not sure that you can manage the update successfully - think about to stay on 1.5.1 or to buy a new board with pre-installed 1.6.

Source code build instructions