Haruki Toreda has designed a compact gadget that goals to supply a quick-start platform for these within the Meshtastic mesh community mission — and which operates solely standalone, with no need to connect with a smartphone or laptop computer.

“HelTXT Lite [is] an reasonably priced entry-level gadget designed for individuals who want a dependable communication resolution for off-grid eventualities,” Toreda explains. “This compact unit is a standalone communication gadget that does not require a smartphone for operation. Ultimate for preppers, emergency conditions, outside adventures, or anybody seeking to get began with Meshtastic with little technical information, the HelTXT Lite integrates seamlessly into the Meshtastic LoRa platform, enabling you to construct a dependable mesh community with a number of gadgets.”

Constructed atop the LoRa radio commonplace, Meshtastic is designed to supply off-grid communication between two or mode nodes arrange in a mesh infrastructure — permitting extra distant nodes to mechanically route their messages by way of intermediaries. Sometimes, a Meshtastic radio is used with a smartphone or pc over Bluetooth or USB — however standalone communicators are an possibility for individuals who solely need to carry a single gadget.

The HelTXT Lite is constructed round an Espressif ESP32 microcontroller with a 915MHz LoRa transceiver, linked to a compact antenna projecting from the highest of the gadget. There is a compact 0.96″ single-color OLED show to the highest, above a small tactile M5Stack keyboard for message entry and management. An built-in 1.1Ah battery offers energy to be used on-the-go, chargeable through a USB Sort-C connector.

The HelTXT Lite is now out there to order on Toreda’s Tindie retailer at $79.99, and is claimed to be totally appropriate with present Meshtastic nodes; the 3D printable elements have been revealed, with a full invoice of supplies and wiring directions, to Printables beneath the Inventive Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 Worldwide license.