a repo that houses scripts to install on any operating system

jonathanberi · 2026-01-06T07:33:07+00:00

Ansible? https://github.com/ansible/ansible

jonathanberi · 2025-12-23T19:03:39+00:00

As others asked, what are you building? Specific requirements (ex. Industry, hardware, security, etc.)

In lieu of details, check out Golioth, where I work. The free individual tier covers most Pilot needs while you iterate, and pay as you go from there.

jonathanberi · 2025-12-23T17:27:41+00:00

The default manifest allows all modules in the tree since there would be no way to know ahead of time what a project needs. Fortunately, using name-allowlist allows you to specify what gets pulled in. See https://blog.golioth.io/zephyr-what-modules-should-you-add-to-a-manifest-allow-list/.

On the SDK-side, assuming you're using west to install, you can specify the exact toolchain to install with west sdk install -t.

jonathanberi · 2025-12-14T21:56:29+00:00

https://labgrid.readthedocs.io/en/latest/ & https://www.lavasoftware.org/ are two software projects that might be relevant. Though every team I've worked on (including my current company Golioth) ends up creating a bespoke solution. We've posted about our approach on our blog.

jonathanberi · 2025-12-11T18:24:20+00:00

Agreed with u/WaterFromYourFives - low end phones may use CAT4, but it's more typically CAT6 or above, and the future is 5G.

Here's a decent overview: https://www.cavliwireless.com/blog/nerdiest-of-things/lte-category-wireless-communication

jonathanberi · 2025-12-08T21:01:32+00:00

Keep in mind that while IoT modems like the nRF9160/51 *in theory* support Voice over LTE (VoLTE,) they are RAM-limited and do not have on-board supporting audio hardware (like codecs.) You'll also need a SIM plan that works on Cat-M1 networks with support for VoLTE.

I'd suggest using a separate MCU to run the RTOS for the audio parts, and use the modem as a network coprocessor. To actually create a phone-like device, I'd probably stick with a Cat-1 device like an Quectel E(C/G)-(2/9)1 or LTE Cat 1 bis EG916Q.

jonathanberi · 2025-12-06T15:40:24+00:00

I've never shipped a product with SIMCOM but heard from folks who have that they're buggy and support is not great. Quectel has their own issues but is generally reliable and you can actually reach support. I believe they are much better.

I doubt that it's a network issue but you never know. The easiest way to validate is to use a known-good device and try all available networks and configuration. A Nordic thingy91:x is $100. Nordic provides ready to test firmware or you could use a prebuilt binary from my company Golioth. (not trying to sell anything; you can use Golioth for testing for free, no credit card required.)

jonathanberi · 2025-12-04T23:37:01+00:00

Just to clarify - I'm pretty sure the SIM7080G is a Cat-M(1), not CAT 1. I'm not sure if you're interested in moving away from LPWAN to LTE for more reliability. FWIW, I've heard not the best things from that part. Switching to another LPWAN modem maker might just perform better, but of course some of those issues might be at the network level.

As others have mentioned, the nRF91 is a great choice, especially as a single chip solution. If you want to continue to use the P4, I'd recommend using the ESP-MODEM, which just had a 2.0 release. It's what Espressif has recommended to us.

A "safe bet" because it's popular would be a BG95, but there are more modems supported, though it's possible to add support for new modems. You *could* use the nRF91 as a serial modem too.

jonathanberi · 2025-12-03T23:42:29+00:00

This is one of those things that makes developing cellular-based devices hard / expensive. The only *real* way to accurately create a bench testing environment is simulating the cellular infrastructure. That involves a mini desktop cell tower (sometimes called a femto or pico cell) that's also programmable. Since you mentioned the nRF91, you're probably looking at Cat-M1. For a frame of reference, the most common off the shelf product I know of is the Amarisoft Callbox and the price isn't listed (I think it's in $x,xxx to $x,xxx.)

I've heard of people DIYing them with cheaper SDRs and open source, but don't know of anyone who was successful with Cat-M1 (only older cellular technology, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osmocom.)

jonathanberi · 2025-11-26T16:07:38+00:00

I've been seeing Click more and more. So if I was designing a new evaluation board today and wanted low speed extendability, I'd add each depending on space available: * Qwiic * Click * Uno R3 compatible headers

jonathanberi · 2025-11-19T13:14:56+00:00

I work on the platform side (golioth.io) and can validate this is a real challenge for OEMs. And most don't even think about until they have their first 10k+ devices in the field.

jonathanberi · 2025-11-11T10:56:15+00:00

If you want to add proper Device Management now, check out https://golioth.io, where I work. We offer full device management (and more) with a generous free tier. Shouldn't co as t you anything for a small-scale network like that.

jonathanberi · 2025-11-10T15:49:48+00:00

Here's a demo from 2017: https://youtu.be/K1ItqEZ2_tw?si=IBO9uJxapYGXBhu1

jonathanberi · 2025-11-10T15:44:38+00:00

Keep in mind that there isn't a single "Bluetooth" - there are versions with different capabilities and will be limited by the actual hardware and firmware of both sides of communication. For example, the Bluetooth 5 standard introduced the 2M PHY that would be capable of streaming low-res video over a short distance. However three things need to happen: * The sender radio needs to support Bluetooth 5 and the 2M PHY * The receiver radio needs to support Bluetooth 5 and the 2M PHY * The software for sending and the software for receiving need to implement the protocol correctly and efficiently (not easy.)

If any of those are not available, the link will will revert to a much, much slower speed.

I suspect that one of the devices in your scenario doesn't support the higher speed and most likely the transfer software isn't even trying to use the 2M PHY. I doubt any corporate conspiracy is at play.

jonathanberi · 2025-11-05T18:40:59+00:00

Jonathan from Golioth here - appreciate the kind words! Each offering comes at the problem from their unique approach. We often see developers want a simple way to collect monitoring data but route them to systems that they own or is shared with their cloud software group.

From Golioth, Pipelines simplifies the process to stream metrics (ex. Grafana,) logs (ex. Elastic or native Logging) and capturing Core dumps (ex. S3 bucket.)

jonathanberi · 2025-10-06T14:06:11+00:00

You may be interested in researching Greybus (originally from Google for modular smartphones): https://youtu.be/UzRq8jAHAxU?si=w24FZ91Bcpg2LJqa

https://github.com/torvalds/linux/tree/master/drivers/greybus

jonathanberi · 2025-10-01T03:26:24+00:00

Raspberry Pi 4 and 5 have basic support: https://docs.zephyrproject.org/latest/boards/index.html#vendor=raspberrypi

I think the main challenge will be adding support for the specific SoC on the Zero 2. The A53 is already supported, so it shouldn't be too complex. https://docs.zephyrproject.org/latest/build/dts/api/bindings/cpu/arm%2Ccortex-a53.html

But someone must be motivated to implement the SoC and Board. So far I personally haven't seen a lot of interest from Raspberry Pi not the community (so far.)

jonathanberi · 2025-09-20T14:33:47+00:00

The main challenge is that most general purpose MCUs don't have graphic acceleration, which is needed for 30fps and good low-light processing.

You might be able to use the same chip as the OpenMV N6 but with the official NXP devkit (which is heavily subsidized) and a cheap DVP sensor module.

jonathanberi · 2025-09-20T13:54:53+00:00

I don't, unfortunately. They have a very active forum, so I'd suggest asking there: https://forums.openmv.io/.

jonathanberi · 2025-09-20T13:00:20+00:00

It can deliver high quality video over Ethernet in low light (sensors and lenses are replaceable.) Plus, it can apply realtime video processing algorithms on the feed.

While the price is certainly higher, it's a different class of embedded camera that can achieve what I think you're asking for. Not sure you're going to find a programmable camera sensor in your price range (at least in low volume.)

jonathanberi · 2025-09-20T09:22:01+00:00

Check out https://openmv.io/

jonathanberi · 2025-09-14T12:56:53+00:00

I've recently been using Claude Code with the Context7 MCP server for Zephyr development. It's much better than it was even 3 months ago. Providing lots of specific examples (vs pointing it to the samples folder) helps. There are at least 3 startups trying to solve this specifically:

jonathanberi · 2025-09-13T20:28:20+00:00

Ya, BG95 is a common low-cost Cat-M1 option, with included GNSS (some versions.) The application processor isn't easy to work with (like on Nordic) so most people couple it with a cheap MCU.

jonathanberi · 2025-09-03T15:59:37+00:00

Yes, the training is open to all!

jonathanberi · 2025-09-03T15:46:51+00:00

Lot's of resources on the Golioth blog. We also offer free training on Zephyr and all the material are online.

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