Building a Pair of MeshCore Radios

I spent this weekend building a pair of MeshCore radios. MeshCore is a decentralized mesh networking platform that uses LoRa radio hardware for secure text-based communications - no internet required. Unlike Meshtastic where every node relays traffic for every other node, MeshCore only relays through dedicated repeater nodes. This makes the network potentially more efficient and reliable - regular nodes aren't bogged down forwarding everyone else's messages.

The build was based on Heltec V3 boards. I grabbed a pair of kits from Amazon along with some better antennas, 3D printed cases for them, and used batteries I already had on hand. The whole thing came together over the weekend without too much trouble.

They're named XN-WC0 and XN-WG0. Both are working and talking to each other.

Range

Without any repeaters in the area, range has been around 1-2 km. That said, my testing did absolutely nothing to optimize for range - radios sitting on their sides inside of cars and houses is not exactly ideal conditions. For how little power these things use, that's honestly not bad. With proper antenna placement or a repeater or two in the mix, it would likely be much better.

The catch

There are no other nearby MeshCore users yet. A mesh network is only as useful as the number of nodes on it, and right now my mesh is a network of two. That may improve over time as the project grows, but for now it limits the practical utility.

What's next

For now I'm going to keep one active at home and maybe take the other with me when I travel. They're quite neat little devices and if a larger local network develops they'd become genuinely useful. Until then, it's a fun thing to tinker with and keep an eye on.