FONA 808

Adafruit cellular platform - SMS and IoT over celluar

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sanderdb01
 
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Joined: Thu Jun 01, 2023 11:44 am

FONA 808

Post by sanderdb01 »

I am working on a project POC that requires a cellular connection, so we decided to get the FONA 808 from adafruit (https://www.adafruit.com/product/2636). I also got the suggested SIM card (https://www.adafruit.com/product/2505). I finally got the chance to sit down and set it all up, but when I contacted Ting about setting up plan, they said that they do no provide a "2G only" plan, and did not seem to be able to help. I also know how 2G and 3G seem to be phasing out pretty quickly. Has anyone else recently gotten the FONA 808 and got it to work with a cellular service? Does Ting's basic service still work with the 808? Or did I just waste money and need to find a new route to go? Thanks.

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rskup
 
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Re: FONA 808

Post by rskup »

Not an EE, just a cell board hobbyist, but um ya, 808 not a good choice in the US, you should be looking at 4G boards. What capabilities do you need? I might be able to recommend some boards to look at. Also curious, is this for business, or maybe college project?

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sanderdb01
 
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Re: FONA 808

Post by sanderdb01 »

rskup wrote: Thu Jun 01, 2023 9:30 pm Not an EE, just a cell board hobbyist, but um ya, 808 not a good choice in the US, you should be looking at 4G boards. What capabilities do you need? I might be able to recommend some boards to look at. Also curious, is this for business, or maybe college project?
Yeah we figured. We started looking at alternative solutions today. We are currently considering the Arduino MKR GSM 1400 to get us started. We are looking for something that is easy to develop on, and not too "closed" (eg. particle io uses their own dev platform, so makes integration of outside products a bit more involved). We also need it to be scalable, prefer GPS capabilities but not necessary, and able to run on battery power.
Also, thanks for the reply

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rskup
 
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Re: FONA 808

Post by rskup »

If the MKR GSM 1400 is still using the SARA-U201 chip that looks to be 3G, with a 2G backup. 3G is gone. 2G EDGE is still working but not necessarily everywhere and only through T-Mobile until April next year.

Did you need voice? Am wondering since the 808 had it.

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