Electron: Hardware Discussion

That wouldn’t be hard to offer but the buttons, rgb led etc are all on the top side!

I guess you wont be changing SIM cards too often too? :slight_smile:

OK, I digress: “No user-serviceable parts inside. Take to qualified dealer for repairs.” Which is more likely, to change the SIM card or press the Reset button on an embedded system?

Perhaps my view can be summed up with this: the firmware should be designed to be stable, so you won’t need the buttons. Then if the user wants to switch carriers–well, never mind!

Well. I dont know what’s the point you are driving but as of what i know, i think changing a sim card will require a reset and to do it safely, it requires disconnecting the lipo battery and even charging source.

Things might change as the beta is ongoing but just throwing in my ideas though the team might consider doing what you suggested :wink:

Perhaps I could sum it up this way: One can easily add buttons and/or LEDs to control various aspects of the project (using the Reset pin, and/or controlling an external LED)…but the SIM card isn’t relocatable. Having it sandwiched under the Electron would make changing it very difficult. While it’s unlikely that someone would want to change it, the ability might be nice. (You could always drill holes through the PCB to access the buttons and/or LED.) Just an idea…either way, it’ll be just fine.

@mohit, Any headway on the current consumption? Thanks!

@mohit, On the Electron device, will the battery voltage be monitorable in software directly?

Thanks!

Yes - there is a Maxim MAX17043 fuel-gauge chip onboard, and one of the registers you can read via i2c is the battery voltage, “VCELL”. Resolution is 1.25mV.

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Super!!

@mohit bump on numbers for current consumption for low power and high power modes?

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Bump 2x

It has been an uphill battle trying to optimize the current consumption for low power modes. We are now happy to say that we have finally dialled down the numbers to around 110uA to 130uA in deep sleep mode when powered by the battery alone. The high power mode consumption varies depending on the transmission modes and other factors. This number can be anywhere from 50mA to short transient bursts of 2A. Hope this helps!

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@mohit Will we be able to wake the Electron out of deep sleep by sending a text message at any time?

Not from deep sleep, since the modem is shutdown for maximum power savings but definitely from other low power modes.

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@mohit Would there be any problem powering the electron via the 3.3V pin directly?

Thanks

Unlike the Photon, the Electron needs a minimum of 3.6VDC to power up the cellular modem which it derives from the power management chip regulator (powered either by the battery or VIN). Which means you cannot power the Electron from the 3.3V pin.

Hope that helps!

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