Forget WiFi Woes, Go LTE All-American
The SparkFun LTE Stick, which utilizes the LARA-R6 from u-blox, is now available to transmit voice AND data over cellular IoT in North America.
Hello everyone and welcome to the first New Product Post from us here at SparkFun Electronics in 2024! We are going to kick it off with only a few new products (don't worry, there are way more next week so make sure to check back on Tuesday) but one is a game-changer when it comes to Cellular IoT while the other is a world-first. Meet the SparkFun LTE Stick - LARA-R6! This little board is perfect for avoiding WiFi dead zones, is capable of connecting you anywhere (in the North American region) and at anytime, opening up a world of possibilities. Let's take a closer look, shall we?
Go Big, Go Small, Go Anywhere with the SparkFun LTE Stick
The SparkFun LTE Stick provides a development and prototyping platform for the LARA-R6 LTE Cat 1 module from u-blox™. The LTE Stick uses the LARA-R6401 version, which supports both data and voice for North America and works with LTE bands used by these mobile networks: AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and FirstNet. The board includes a nanoSIM card slot for users to select their preferred network. Check with your network provider for compatibility with the LARA-R6.
The LARA-R6 works on multiple LTE FDD frequency bands (2, 4, 5, 12, 13, 14, 66, and 71) and includes a host of common features users expect from u-blox modules, including uFOTA (over-the-air firmware update), Root of Trust, secure boot/update, jamming detection, antenna and SIM detection, and much more.
This is a right angle 5mm addressable LED CBI. It sounds boring, but at the time of writing, this is the first one in the world. If you've ever tried to get a project into an enclosure, you know what a challenge it can be. Connectors are a bit of work but also straightforward. Oddly, getting a clean-looking, clear indicator to the outside world is trickier.
CBIs, or circuit board indicators, are a common way to get LEDs through the enclosure wall. The problem is that all the current LED suppliers and CBI models are from the 1980s when Modems were the king and needed lots of link indicators. When we wanted an addressable RGB CBI for our projects and couldn't find one, so we made it!
That's it for this week. As always, we can't wait to see what you make! Shoot us a tweet @sparkfun, or let us know on Instagram, Facebook or LinkedIn. Please be safe out there, be kind to one another! We'll be back with more new products next week so make sure to check back then. Happy New Year from all of us at SparkFun Electronics!
Although I appreciate having the KiCad source files for the board for four SparkFun RGB Addressable CBI LED 5mm - Right Angle devices, the thought occurs to me that (assuming you're not going to make it directly available for shale) how about "Sharing" it on OSHPark?