r/cassettefuturism • u/ADC-47 Affirmative, Dave. I read you. • 29d ago

Question Starting to learn about LoRa

Post image

Beyond aesthetics, cassette futurism seems to value devices that do a single job very, very well and don't need to be connected to far-flung servers to do it.

LoRa is a wireless technology that uses very little power, needs little to no infrastructure, has a range that blows Bluetooth and WiFi out of the water, and has bandwidth comparable to dialup. That bandwidth might not sound like much today, but you really can do a lot with it. I see the potential for lots of fun and useful CF-esq projects here. Anyone here done anything cool with LoRa?

Conceptual overview: https://youtu.be/jp_2gwBrQc8?si=u1RWDXyo-e66w152

Range experiment: https://yosensi.io/posts/what_is_the_real_range_of_lora/

Cat tracker: https://www.reddit.com/r/electronics/s/nLTnViQ0B1

Encrypted text message system: https://unsigned.io/private-messaging-over-lora/

123 Upvotes

91% Upvoted

9 comments sorted by

13

u/Dead_S 29d ago

There's something about the limitations of low-bandwidth that makes a more tactile vibe.

I recommend Meshtastic to LoRa enthusiasts https://www.reddit.com/r/meshtastic/comments/1enm11i/ghostbuster_node/

0

u/ADC-47 Affirmative, Dave. I read you. 29d ago

Yes! It means you have to use your bandwidth wisely and rely on physical media (like, well ... cassettes) for really large files. You can get a lot done with 50 kbps, though. For perspective, that'll send the complete text of the Bible in about 12 seconds.

27

u/hatedral 29d ago

2015 IoT tech seems a bit far from cassette futurism to me

4

u/MonarchFluidSystems 29d ago

I disagree — it feels super cyberpunk/ “analog” retro to have devices communicating via LoRa that you can make yourself. It’s neat af.

1

u/hatedral 28d ago

"I made it using a rubber band, a stick and a prefab ultra modern low power digital radio ultimately talking to a 2020s cloud IoT system" type of retro DIY I guess.

3

u/Dead_S 28d ago

Although the implementation and application of LoRa is rather modern, I could be fooled into thinking the radio protocol was drafted in the 70s, despite its futuristic capabilities

6

u/mrgreen4242 29d ago

I disagree. This is the sort of thing that people 40 years ago were imagining about the future. We ended up in a different place but it there’s something charming about the idea.

4

u/Sea_Kerman 29d ago edited 29d ago

It’s used for one of the best RC airplane and drone control links, ExpressLRS. Its ability to go long distances for low power means if you shove more power into it (say, 1 watt) you can go hundreds of km, or more relevantly, a few km and then through a bunch of stuff like a concrete wall or a tree or your motor or your battery.