Arduino MKRFOX1200 is the first official Arduino board to feature LPWAN technology thanks to a Microchip ATA8520 Sigfox module combined with a Microchip SAMD21 ARM Cortex M0+ micro-controller, all that in the same form factor as MKRZero or MKR1000 boards.
Arduino MKRFOX1200 specifications:
- MCU – Microchip SAMD21 ARM Cortex-M0+ MCU @ 48 MHz with 256KB flash, 32KB SRAM
- Connectivity – Microchip AT8520 Sigfox module operating @ 868 MHz with 2dB “GSM” antenna connected to u.FL connector
- 2x 14-pin headers for I/Os:
- 8x digital I/O
- 8x external interrupts (0, 1, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, A1 -or 16-, A2 – or 17)
- 7x analog inputs (8/10/12-bit ADC)
- 1x analog out (10-bit DAC)
- 12x PWM pins ((0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, A3 – or 18 -, A4 -or 19)
- 1x UART, 1x SPI, 1x I2C
- 3.3V operating voltage
- DC Current per I/O Pin 7 mA
- USB – 1x full speed micro USB device and embedded host
- Misc – Reset button, LED
- Power Supply
- 5V via USB or VIN pin
- 2x AA or AAA batteries good for up to 6 months (connected via green screw terminals)
- Dimensions – 67.64 x 25 mm
- Weight – 32 grams
Since the Sigfox module is limited to 868 MHz, the board can only be used in Europe, Africa, and Middle East. You’ll get 2-year free subscription to Sigfox network with the board (for up to 140 messages per day), as well as free access to Spot’it geolocation service that allows you to track the board without GPS or any extra hardware. How well that works will depend on the coverage in your area, and I could not find no accuracy information allowing us to compare it to GPS. Just like other Arduino board, MKRFOX1200 is fully open source hardware, and can be programmed with the Arduino IDE. You’ll find the full documentation in the Getting Started Guide.
Official Arduino boards are usually fairly expensive compared to the competition, but I find Arduino MKRFOX1200 to be pretty good value at 35 Euros (Select European website) considering you also get 2-year of Sigfox network access, and geolocation tracking.
Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.
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