Table of Contents
Semtech Packet Radio
Semtech design and manufacture packet radio ICs. Some of their designs may also be manufactured by HopeRF.
ICs
Two product lines exist, one for sensors which are very low power and one for radio gateways which is where the sensors communicate and have packet data forwarded.
Sensor Radio
Various semtech radio ICs exist along with the HopeRF clones. NB Cheap sensor radios can use the RF69 IC which is not LoRa compatible.
| Semtech | HopeRF IC/RFM | FSK kbps | LoRa gen | LoRa kbps | Frequency MHz | Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SX1231 | RF69/RFM69 | 300 | N/A | N/A | 433, 868 & 915 | |
| SX1272 | RF92/RFM92W | 300 | 1 | 0.3 - 40 | 862 - 1020 | NA/EU |
| SX1273 | 300 | 1 | 1.7 - 40 | 862 - 1020 | ||
| SX1276 | RF96/RFM95W | 300 | 1 | 0.018 - 40 | 137 - 1020 | GLOBAL |
| SX1277 | 300 | 1 | 1.7 - 40 | 137 - 1020 | ||
| SX1278 | RF98/RFM98W | 300 | 1 | 0.018 - 40 | 137 - 525 | CN |
| SX1279 | 300 | 1 | 0.018 - 40 | 137 - 960 | ||
| SX1261 | 300 | 2 | 0.018 - 62.5 | 150 - 960 | ||
| SX1262 | 300 | 2 | 0.018 - 62.5 | 150 - 960 | ||
| SX1268 | 300 | 2 | 0.018 - 62.5 | 410 - 810 | CN |
LoRa gen 2 chips have a simpler register API compared to gen 1 and use less power.
| HopeRF RFM | Frequency MHz | LoRa kbps |
|---|---|---|
| RFM95W | 868, 915 | .293 - 37.5 |
| RFM96W/RFM98W | 433, 470 | .1465 - 37.5 |
| RFM98W | 169 | .07324 - 9.375 |
HopeRF RF modules are named RFM and the ICs named RF. NB RFM95 contains an RF96 IC.
Gateway
Only Semtech manufacture gateway devices and subsequently they are very high priced and devices containing them are also hard to get (June 2021).
Modules
Two types of module exist using Semtech/HopeRF ICs. Ones that interface directly to the IC and expose the native SPI bus or others that include a microcontroller with a UART interface which provides a high level API.
SPI modules
SPI modules interface directly to the IC and can be multi-purpose or for the Arduino, RPi, etc.
| IC or RFM | Product | Platform | Features | Data-sheet |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SX1276/SX1278 | Dragino LoRa/GPS HAT | RPi | MT3339 GPS and temperature | Dragino Lora/GPS HAT |
| SX1276 | Dragino LoRa Shield | Arduino | 3v3/5v compatible | Dragino LoRa Shield for Arduino |
| RFM95W | Adafruit LoRa Radio Bonnet with OLED | RPi | 128×32 display | N/A |
UART modules
UART modules contain an intelligent controller and use a high level API. The API may mimic the HAYES AT modem command set or be original.
| IC or RFM | Product | RPi add-on |
|---|---|---|
| SX1276 | RAK RAK811 | Pi Supply / pHAT PIS-1128 |
| SX1262 | EBYTE E22-230T30S | Waveshare SX1262 868M LoRa HAT |
| SX1276 | Murata CMWX1ZZABZ | ARDUINO MKR WAN 1300 |
