I got my T-Deck Plus this morning 
Also here is a pic of the solar node on my car:
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I have a T-Echo in my car with GPS.
I plugged it into the usb in the back of my car and it never drains the battery.
I have an amazing car antenna (it’s probably the best one i own and I have a few).
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005004701840134.html
Im pretty new, when you guys say line of sight, how extreme is that? Like would the walls of my house or of a wooden barn cause trouble?
Yes. You may get signal you may not. Mostly not
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This means that you can see the other antenna from the top of your tower. Now climb back down!
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Well, I know what I would/ wouldn’t do…
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So i just got my Cardputer ADV LoRa module in the mail and the antenna that came with it says that its 868mhz, but im in the US so that isnt the standard, will i need a different antenna, or will the one i have right now work anyway?
I got a connection today at a costco gas station, 1 became 3 and 3 became 19 and suddenly I was connected to most of the nodes in Ann Arbor. I also think id like to set up a permanent node at home, and i was wondering what the cheapest way of doing that would be/are those MichMesh nodes available for purchase or anything?
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I have been playing with a few nodes lately.
The Seeeed Xiao WIO SX1262 modules are dirt cheap with the ESP32S3 and make ideal powered nodes.
The T1000 card sized one is really good for range I’ve found, but they have some quirks with compatability but they’re still well priced and it’s a pocket sized package.
I also got a MeshPocket powerbank and really like the form factor, as I often have a similar sized power bank anyway.
The one that really impressed me was an Aliexpress solar powered one, which included a RAK4631, D4 solar panel and seemed to be packaged nicely for $53 USD delivered. It seems to be surprisingly good in Northern Hemisphere winter with a couple of 2500mah 18650 cells in. Waterproofness is something I need to check though and I think I’ll be adding silicone grease and maybe an extra seal.
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IKR. I’ve been able to achieve something like 40km with 0 hop with good line of sight with the T1000 card and been able to talk with people that are 100km away with 2 hops. Max distance with 2 hops for something like 150km but that’s when somebodys been on an airplane and only been able to see the announces.
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This is a pretty neat add on
A MagSafe charging mod would make it even better
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I have a couple of the Heltec Mesh Pockets (10000mah) they are great as stand alone devices. Over a month’s charge if used on their own. Works as a wireless power bank with massage. And a handy screen for checking messages without opening the app.
Only complaint is the connector between the circuit board and battery is weak so in rugged applications it can come loose and makes it look like the device is struggling to boot.
In retrospect I with I went for the 5000mah version as the 10000 is quite heavy and bulky.
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Hmmm… I have two 18650s and a rak 19003 sitting on my desk…
The solar panel is about 6in by 2in for reference..
I lack a plan for how to mount the antenna, but otherwise I feel like this isn’t entirely stupid for a “slap it on my car while camping” node?
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The magnetic solar cases have a built in battery and would work better than that solar light for affixing to a car.
Otherwise you could get a right angle n type adapter and attach it to the side triangle of that case
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