The devices

SenseCAP T1000-E

nRF52840

On its battery: days, depending on how often it reports

The easiest of the lot, and the only one you cannot get the band wrong on.

The size of a credit card and sealed shut: nothing to solder, no case to buy, no cell to source. Charge it, open the Meshtastic app and it is talking. If this is your first node, or a present for someone who does not want to learn any of this, it is this one.

This is the only one on the list you do not have to get the frequency right on: it is a single part covering 863 to 928 MHz and the region is chosen in the app, not at checkout. Seeed's own wiki says so and its bullet points repeat it in all three stores. Its listing states no band, and here that is not a gap: there is no fixed band to state.

Built-in antenna: it comes fitted and cannot be swapped.

Comes with its battery: it turns on the moment you open the box.

LILYGO T-Echo

nRF52840

On its battery: days to more than a week

The pocket one, with an e-paper screen.

It draws the least power of all of them. E-paper only spends when it changes, so you can leave it on in your bag all weekend without thinking about the battery. It has GPS.

Its listing does not say whether an antenna is included. That is not a no: it simply does not say, and we do not make it up.

Comes with its battery: it turns on the moment you open the box.

ThinkNode M5

ESP32-S3

On its battery: over 48 hours, per its own listing

The one that arrives assembled, with a case, an e-paper screen and a battery in it.

It is the opposite of a bare board: it comes closed, with its 1200 mAh battery and an e-paper screen that reads in sunlight and spends nothing when it does not change. Of the ones you can use the day they arrive, this is the most complete.

It comes with an antenna. You can swap it: its connector is RP-SMA.

Comes with its battery: it turns on the moment you open the box.

M5Stack Cardputer Adv

ESP32-S3

On its battery: a few hours

The pocket one with a keyboard, for people who already know their way around.

It is the only one with a keyboard that still fits in a pocket, and it arrives built, with its case and its battery. But it is NOT the device to start on, and that has to be said before anyone orders it: its radio is sold separately — without it this is a little computer, not a node — it gives no coverage to the neighbourhood, which is what a fixed node with an outdoor antenna does, and apps for the old Cardputer do not run on the Adv, which reads its keyboard a different way.

The antenna comes with its radio, sold separately: an RP-SMA 3 dBi, per the cap's listing.

Comes with its battery: it turns on the moment you open the box.

And if you bought the Cardputer, it is missing the radio

M5Stack's official LoRa 1262 cap gives it the SX1262 — the same radio the other boards carry — and GPS. Without it the Cardputer is a little computer with a keyboard, not a node: it powers on, looks perfect, and finds nobody.

It is sold separately and comes in no Cardputer box. Check before you order: this is the mistake that leaves the device pretty and mute.

$24 USD · price read on 2026-08-31

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LILYGO T-Deck Plus

ESP32-S3

On its battery: tens of hours

The one that needs no phone: it brings its own keyboard and screen.

Every other one is driven from your phone over Bluetooth. Not this one: you type on it directly, so it works when the phone is out of battery or when you want a device that depends on nothing else.

Built-in antenna: it comes fitted and cannot be swapped.

Comes with its battery: it turns on the moment you open the box.

T-Lora Pager

ESP32-S3

On its battery: depends on the cell you fit

The one that looks like a pager: colour screen, keyboard and NFC.

LilyGO's newest, and the closest thing here to a finished pocket device, with a 2.3-inch colour screen. It sits down here rather than up top because it needs a cell bought separately, and the 18650 is exactly what this guide cannot sell you.

It comes with an antenna. And it cannot be swapped: it is soldered on.

Comes with its battery: it turns on the moment you open the box.

T-Deck Pro

ESP32-S3

On its battery: on mains or on a LiPo

The keyboard one with an e-paper screen, for writing properly.

It is the T-Deck Plus's sibling with e-paper instead of LCD: readable in sunlight, far lower power draw, antenna built in. If what you want is to write long messages without pulling out your phone, this and the Plus are the only two on the list with a keyboard.

Built-in antenna: it comes fitted and cannot be swapped.

Comes with its battery: it turns on the moment you open the box.

RAK WisBlock Starter Kit

nRF52840

On its battery: days to over a week

The one that arrives assembled, with the software already on it.

It is the only one you do not have to set up: it ships with the Meshtastic firmware already installed, so you power it on, pair your phone and it is talking. It carries the same low-power chip as the T-Echo — days to over a week on one charge — and costs a little over half as much. It is also the maker Meshtastic lists first in its supported-hardware documentation.

It comes with an antenna. You can swap it: its connector is IPEX.

The battery is NOT included. You add: A LiPo battery with a JST connector.

LILYGO T-Beam

ESP32-S3

On its battery: tens of hours

The one with GPS and a swappable 18650 cell, to carry and to leave running.

It is the cheapest with GPS and a replaceable battery: when it runs out you swap the cell up a mountain instead of hunting for a socket. In exchange, the ESP32 chip draws about ten times what the T-Echo does.

It comes with an antenna. You can swap it: its connector is IPEX.

The battery is NOT included. You add: A FLAT-TOP, UNPROTECTED 18650 cell. Button-top and protected ones run close to 70 mm and will not fit the holder.