Elecrow ThinkNode M9: I Did What Other Reviewers Wouldn't
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In this video
- 00:00 What MeshCore and Meshtastic actually are
- 00:54 Primary vs secondary means of communication
- 01:49 The problem with phone-dependent mesh nodes
- 02:17 Why congested cell towers drain your battery
- 02:52 Dead phone, lost phone, wet phone
- 03:54 Why Elecrow sent me the M9
- 04:27 Hardware tour and T-Deck size comparison
- 05:22 Why I skipped Ripple and flashed WadaMesh
- 07:13 Wi-Fi, offline maps and over-the-air updates
- 07:49 Remote repeater control and the spectrum analyzer
- 08:28 I wrecked the screen, learn from my mistake
- 09:23 The battery life problem and the experimental fix
- 10:46 Lock screen, or how I stopped pocket-texting the mesh
- 12:00 The keyboard. We need to talk about the keyboard.
- 13:16 "How far does it go?" My honest range answer
- 14:32 How easy is it to flash WadaMesh?
- 15:29 Does it work without repeaters?
- 16:06 Teardown: can you upgrade the battery or antenna?
- 16:24 Screen in daylight vs dark mode
- 17:10 Is it rugged? Drops and water ingress
- 18:03 Who is this actually for?
- 20:39 Final thoughts
About this video
Elecrow sent me the ThinkNode M9 to review, so I flashed beta firmware nobody else may be running, tore it open with a guitar pick, dropped it more than once, and carried it in my pocket until I wrecked the screen myself. OOPS.
Two weeks with a standalone MeshCore communicator: full QWERTY keyboard, GPS, 2,300 mAh battery, and no phone required. I skipped the stock Ripple firmware and ran WadaMesh instead, which is still in beta on this board. I also took it to a three day music festival that brought 30,000 people into a town of 28,000, which is exactly the situation a secondary means of communication exists for.
This isn't a "should you buy it" video. It's a "here's what this thing is actually for" video, including the one flaw I don't think a firmware update can fix. :(
Elecrow sent me this unit. The thoughts are my own.
LINKS: Disclosure: Elecrow sent this unit for free. Some links are affiliate links. Opinions are mine, and nobody approved this video before it went up.
ThinkNode M9 (affiliate): awin1.com/cread.php?awinmid=82721&awin…
WadaMesh firmware and web flasher: wadamesh.com
MeshCore project: meshcore.io
LilyGo T-Deck (affiliate): amzn.to/4xWdGjs
CHAPTERS
THINKNODE M9 SPECS
ESP32-S3R8 with Semtech LR1110 LoRa (US915 / EU868)
2.4 inch 320x240 TFT LCD, non-touch
37-key physical QWERTY keyboard
GPS/GNSS plus magnetic compass
Wi-Fi 4 and Bluetooth 5.0 / BLE
2,300 mAh battery, USB-C
126 x 67 x 10 mm, 123 grams
Internal antennas for LoRa, GPS and Wi-Fi/BT
NOTE ON FIRMWARE
WadaMesh support for the M9 is currently beta and only partially supported. Things are moving fast. An update landed while I was recording this video, so check the site for the current state before you flash.
Shoutout to the Chicagoland mesh for putting up with my fat-fingered messages. www.chicagolandmesh.com
