Hello there, just wondering what’s the difference between these two? I compared what’s written on the web-site, but they seem to list different features, so I can’t compare them. Does that mean that they’re totally different? What would I use each of them for? I was thinking of ordering the RF-24G cause you can load them up with data and send it all at the same time. Does the other one do this?
nrf24l01 is the newer chip. it is a bit low power, a bit better sensitivity and double the datarate. i think if you want better range for now then go for RF24G as it has a tuned microstrip antenna. on the other hand the nrf24l01 comes with a chip antenna whose performance is not yet known.
but i may be wrong so please wait for other posts before decision
Can anyone else out there give me some more advice on this?
Ok. To get an L01 from an N01 (24G), this is the obvious changes I remember:
NRF24N01-> NRF24L01
-Remove second recieve channel
-Increase max possible data rate from 1Mbit/s to 2Mbit/s
-Add in PAN capability (8 unit network, w/ 1 transmit 7 recieve capacity)
-Add automatic resend of unack’ed packets
Note: The L01, if set up right, is backwards compatible with the 24G
Other than the additional tuning of the 24g MAY give better range, the L01 has many extra nice features. The auto-resend of packets is probably one of the nicest setups, since you don’t have to make your own acknowledge system. The only real loss is the second recieve channel, but with the PAN system and the increased max data rate (although you need double the bandwidth), this can be compensated for somewhat.
I noticed that if you use the Enhanced ShockBurst configuration with the 24L01, it seems like you can only talk to 6 other devices, and all their addresses have to be known up front. Am I just reading this wrong? The project I am working on would definitely benefit from the auto-ACK and -retransmission, but there’s no way to know the addresses beforehand.
I think you need to know the address of the all channels on the L01 before you can talk to it. one of the channel address is completly user settable. It can be set the same for all devices and used as a braodcast channel. The receiving device can then tell its other 5 address to the initiator.
i think its a way… any other ideas /code examples!
ok, so it sounds that the 24G has two channels and just less speed, but more range? Can I use one channel for sending and the other for receiving? Just using two tranceivers and having two-way comms? This “auto-ACK and -retransmission” thing. Is it worth going to the NRF24L01 for? is it difficult to do myself? I really don’t know much about this wireless stuff. I just wanted a way to send data between two points (and maybe back again).
The L01 is basically the 24G on steroids. Now that the L01 module has an SMA mount it’s range could be well beyond the 24G. Keep in mind the 24G has the nRF2401a which is a much older chip. The L01 is the 2401a on steroids AND it’s comm interface is much better.
It’s designed to work with SPI, therefore, it will talk back to the uC and let it know if it’s alive (as opposed to the 2401a where you have to either test with direct mode or an actual link).
Basically the L01 is the chip to go with.
ok, that sounds good. How come the new can only go 10m and the old one more? “Long range: 280mts @250Kbps ; 150mts @1Mbps”. Is there a way to extend the range of the new one? Bigger antenna or more power?
i think at the endof the day L01 is the better module. I am not satified with the chip antenna and the way it is placed on the pcb. thats why its range is so less. ANT24 chip antenna is not very good antenna anyway and mounting it with a ground pad going underneath it should completly shift its performance. so i think the best thing to do is to buy the L01 SMA version and use an off to shelf antenna with it.
if you still want to go with the 24G module, then i think doing auto tranmit is software is not that difficult. All you have o do is to send an ACK packet back from the reciever. and the transmitter switches to reciver mode waiting for the ACK for a given time. after that if it does not recieve ACK it can send the DATA again.
brainwav:
ok, that sounds good. How come the new can only go 10m and the old one more? “Long range: 280mts @250Kbps ; 150mts @1Mbps”. Is there a way to extend the range of the new one? Bigger antenna or more power?
Keep in mind you are talking about two different things: transceiver and antenna.
The transceiver mearly modulates the signal; the antenna is actually what “broadcasts” the signal. A chip antenna is working on fractions of wavelengths and thus it’s gain is reduced. Not to mention 2.4GHz is a very poor band for propagation anyways (think what resonates at 2.45GHz → WATER! Thus you’ll lose massive amounts of energy).
I do agree with the bad placement of a ground pad under the chip antenna. While it may have seen like a good “gimmick”, it definitely hampers the radiation behavior of the antenna. Best to go with the SMA mount.
Plus don’t believe the range on the 24G. The Sparkfun MIRFs were tested to that range. The 24G comes from the Laipac marketing department (per an older post by sparky). Now, it DOES have greater range, but probably not the numbers listed
(Random nitpick: water doesn’t resonate at 2.45GHz. Microwave ovens are careful to operate at a frequency at which water doesn’t resonate, so that the microwaves can penetrate to the inside of the food.)
"A microwave oven uses a magnetron microwave generator to produce microwaves at a frequency of approximately 2.45 GHz for the purpose of cooking food. Microwaves cook food by causing molecules of water and other compounds to vibrate or rotate. The vibration creates heat which warms the food. Since organic matter is made up primarily of water, food is easily cooked by this method. "
Don’t you mean http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microwave_oven ? And it appears the article has been corrected to something closer to wiml’s explaination.
i just clicked on your link and first paragraph of microwave oven discription says
“A microwave oven works by passing microwave radiation, usually at a frequency of 2450 MHz (a wavelength of 12.24 cm), through the food. Water, fat, and sugar molecules in the food absorb energy from the microwave beam in a process called dielectric heating.”
anyway i am not a microwave expert, i just read it of wiki anyway
takecare