The Japanese company MechaTracks has announced a 4G LTE add-on board (commonly called a HAT) for the Raspberry Pi called 4GPi. The 4GPi is the first commercially produced add-on board which offers CAT4 LTE connectivity for the Raspberry Pi, with 150 Mbps download and 50 Mbps upload speeds. Other existing solutions are bandwidth limited, or are adapters for LTE modems used in laptops, with smaller antenna connectors.
MechaTracks notes that driver support for the 4GPi add-on board is available for Raspbian, the Raspberry Pi specific variant of Debian. Additionally, the 4GPi includes extension pins for the Raspberry Pi GPIO connector, making it possible to use in conjunction with other HATs. The add-on is compatible with any Raspberry Pi model which has a 40-pin GPIO header. Presently, this includes the Pi 1 A+ and B+, Pi 2 Model B, Pi 3 Model B and B+, as well as the Pi Zero and Zero W.
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OpenSource.com : New Raspberry Pi 3 Model A+ unveiled
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 26 2018, @04:42PM
Yeah, just what we need, to make it EASIER to deploy IoT crap. Maybe it should be sold locked out until the developer can demonstrate that he isn't a complete security fuckup before it is allowed to be unlocked.
(Score: 1, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 26 2018, @04:45PM (5 children)
At over $220 USD for one, just no thanks. I can get a cheapo cellphone for under $50 and use that with the Pi.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 26 2018, @06:03PM
Except that this wouldn't need tethering support from the carrier. Is less likely to come disconnected. And it's really not targeted at tightwad, killjoys like you.
Anybody that needs a signal this badly where there isn't wifi has time that's expensive enough to justify going with the right answer rather than the cheap answer. I just don't see other people being interested in this when they can buy an appropriate portable hotspot.
(Score: 2) by opinionated_science on Friday October 26 2018, @07:44PM
i wonder, is that a license or hardware cost?
(Score: 2) by richtopia on Friday October 26 2018, @08:36PM (2 children)
What is so expensive? Clicking on the link I see $99. Still more than I'd like, but I think the custom solution justifies the price.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 26 2018, @09:07PM
$99 is pretty pricy when you can get an equivalent PCIe 4G LTE modem for $25-$50. So, skip the Pi, grab one of the plentiful rk3399-based board and come out way ahead.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday October 26 2018, @09:40PM
Two links in summary. Two products. Two prices.
(Score: 1) by BeaverCleaver on Friday October 26 2018, @09:03PM
Last time I needed a Pi to talk to the cellular network I used a USB modem. Even the Pi's crippled USB should be able to handle a 150Mbps. The other advantage of USB is that you can have the modem on the end of a cable and not have to fool around with external antennas and fittings.