nRF5 action!

[Nca78]

@alowhum said in nRF5 Bluetooth action!:

@nca78 said in nRF5 Bluetooth action!:

https://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Nordic-nRF52832-BLE-4-0-4-2-5-0-USB-UART-BLE-dongle-for-computer/420533_32862480389.html

Cool!

If you buy one, buy the "black" version, it's a bit bigger but it's because it has a PCB antenna, range will be better.

[Toyman]

@nca78 I don't recognize any LDO on the PCB while it has USB power supply. How is 5V converted to 3.3v?

[alowhum]

@toyman said in nRF5 Bluetooth action!:

@nca78 I don't recognize any LDO on the PCB while it has USB power supply. How is 5V converted to 3.3v?

I was wondering the exact same thing!

[scalz]

small internal dcdc converter

[Nca78]

@alowhum said in nRF5 Bluetooth action!:

@toyman said in nRF5 Bluetooth action!:

@nca78 I don't recognize any LDO on the PCB while it has USB power supply. How is 5V converted to 3.3v?

I was wondering the exact same thing!

Look at bottom of page 6 and top left of "schematic" on page 9 of the CP2104 datasheet. It can supply up to 100mA.
https://www.silabs.com/documents/public/data-sheets/cp2104.pdf

[NeverDie]

Can someone please provide a link to the module being discussed? I tried looking on Aliexpress, and I don't see anything which matches.

[Nca78]

@neverdie it's this link, in the description on aliexpress you can see the internal PCB "module"
https://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Nordic-nRF52832-BLE-4-0-4-2-5-0-USB-UART-BLE-dongle-for-computer/420533_32862480389.html

[Toyman]

@nca78 Got it. So it's kinda Arduino Nano, but nrf52-based.

[NeverDie]

@nca78 said in nRF5 Bluetooth action!:

@neverdie it's this link, in the description on aliexpress you can see the internal PCB "module"
https://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/tag-connect-llc/TC2030-CLIP/TC2030-CLIP-ND/2605371

? Plug of nails?

[Toyman]

@neverdie https://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Nordic-nRF52832-BLE-4-0-4-2-5-0-USB-UART-BLE-dongle-for-computer/420533_32862480389.html

[NeverDie]

I dropped "Bluetooth" from the title of this thread because the thread instead evolved into the MySensors alternative to Bluetooth.

[alowhum]

How hard, or how much work, would it be to create a version of the MySensors gateway that works on one of those dongles?

[Toyman]

@alowhum my understaning, it should work out of the box

[alowhum]

Really? So something like:

• Upload gateway sketch to it (how?)
• Select "serial connection" in Domoticz?

[NeverDie]

@alowhum You'd still need a programmer

[Toyman]

@neverdie ...and some nifty soldering skills in order to connect to SWDIO/SWDCLK pads

[scalz]

i don't think you need extraordinary soldering skills, pads on bottom looks easy ;) (pretty sure these are the programming pads)

The right question, imho, would be: can you expect from this dongle the range you would expect from a gateway ?? regarding chip antenna performance and maybe its gnd counterpoise..

[Toyman]

@scalz said in nRF5 action!:

pretty sure these are the programming pads

they are even "labeled" on the x-ray picture below

[scalz]

@Toyman yep, this confirms what i said, not difficult to access.
I didn't read the description..just looking at the pcb layout was enough to tell me poor rf range + no basic usb spec design rules (latter point is maybe not the most critical for most of people, but it just shows 1) designer wasn't aware ?? 2) this is what you get for cheap money, whereas missing parts would have cost few cents..).
Just saying, because maybe this dongle can work well enough for some people.

[Toyman]

@scalz actually, it might be ideal as a REPEATER given the form-factor. You just insertt it into any cheap USB charger and voila.