I’ve got a couple of XBee Adapter Module, now the question is which XBee’s to get to use with Gadgeteer, and then the next question is which USB Stick to get for my computer to talk to those XBees running with my Gadgeteer stuff, any suggestions? As this point flexibility of function is more important then range.
Thanks
@ Duke - each of the radio types come in a regular and pro version. The pro versions get you more range, so you can rule those out. 802.15.4 (faka Series 1) will do a star topology. Zigbee (faka Series 2) will do a mesh topology. If you’re just looking for point to point (2 modules), either will suffice. Key point - these two radio types do NOT inter-operate, so stick with one type.
I personally like Adafruit’s XBee Adapter kit, as it breaks out a 0.1" header, which you can wire to any most any uC, or FTDI friend. The USB XBee kit Adafruit sells comes from Parallax, I believe. Sparkfun also has one. The combo of the adapter kit and FTDI friend is a bit more expensive, but gives you the most options. The friend is nice to have for lots of other serial stuff, too.
I recommend the adafruit kit because I’ve found it the most reliable when using Digi’s X-CTU config software. The app seems to be REALLY fussy about USB cables and various hardware.
faka - formerly also known as
First of all, don’t buy any USB dongles, It’s better to buy this: http://www.sparkfun.com/products/8687 You will save some money and will be able to use it with different XBee. It will also allow you to upgrade firmware in your XBees.
As for XBee module type, ransomhall pointed out the basic difference between them. If you want any node to send data to any other node within range, than go with the series 1. If you want to have hops then go with series 2.
So two of these hooked up to XBee modules:
XBee XB24-Z7CIT-004 http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10415
one of these
XBP24BZ7SIT-004 http://www.sparkfun.com/products/10419
hooked up to a XBee Explorer USB http://www.sparkfun.com/products/8687
Gives me a workable option to connect all 3?
Thanks
I recommend against getting the chip antenna, unless you are not ever going to use these for anything other than short range testing. Also, if you want to go long range, as with the second one you listed, you’ll need two of the pro models, not just one, and your chip antenna models will have to be within their range of one of the pro models to work.
Short answer to your workable solution - no. Go with 3 of the same antenna type/range.
I am confused. One is Series 2.5 and the other one (Pro) is Series 2B. On the pro module it said that it is not compatible with 2.5.
This blurb from SF is confusing. The second sentence should not be there because 2.5 is depreciated. BTW - if you look at the Digi site, all the product names have been changed to more accurately reflect what they actually are. All the “Series X” stuff is gone thankfully. Unfortunately, not many of the retailers have updated their sites to match, creating even more confusion.
Actually the long range one was for the hacker in me as I thought it might be interesting to build a scanner type device if possible and range would be nice to have, otherwise as long as it can cover the home and yard, I’m good for my testing for now.
The chip antenna was really for storage as they are going to get stuffed in my module toolbox (I need a new one as I’ve vastly out-grown the existing pink and purple http://creativeoptionscrafts.com/product.asp?product=20 ) when not in use, so I figured it was less likely to get broken.
Architect, I think XBee could do a lot to reduce product confusion around their stuff. I’m sure once I get into it, I’ll figure it all out, but its a bit of a barrier for new users/customers for sure which is not what you want as a business. I have a boat load of things I want to try building so sometimes projects like this get skipped just because of product confusion.
Thanks
@ Duke Nukem - go with the whip antenna instead of the chip antenna. You can bend the whip antenna in order to fit inside a small enclosure. I have and older version of the chip antennas that give me a very weak range. The current version is supposed to be better but i didn’t test it. You can find some info here: Whip vs. Chip | Frontier Nerds
@ Architect - the most important thing to remember is that you can’t mix 802.15.4 modules with Zigbee modules.