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Get Started with Meshtastic

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When the device is in the states below, please don't manually reboot or turn off it. Or else the device can be dead.

  1. Not finishing the message transmission process
  2. Being configured

Video Tutorial​

Part 1: Unboxing Setup​

Part 2: Status Indicators​

Part 3: Flash New Firmware​

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Before flashing the firmware, please ensure you bought the T1000-E for Meshtastic. Please don't flash the firmware to other tracker model that doen't support Meshtastic. Please don't use NRF-OTA to update the firmware, it may cause the device to be completely dead.

Part 4: Troubleshooting Instruction​

Get Started​

Download Meshtastic App:

Power on the device​

Press once to power on the device, there will be a rising melody, and the LED light will stay on for about 1s.

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If the device doesn't respond when you press the button, please charge it first. Do not use the fast-charging charger.

Connect via App​

  • Select the target device on the Bluetooth panel.

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  • Enter the code(default code is 123456) and then click OK to connect the device.

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Configure the LoRa​

In order to start communicating over the mesh, you must set your region. This setting controls which frequency range your device uses and should be set according to your regional location.

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Region List

Region CodeDescriptionFrequency Range (MHz)Duty Cycle (%)Power Limit (dBm)
UNSETUnsetN/AN/AN/A
USUnited States902.0 - 928.010030
EU_868European Union 868MHz869.4 - 869.651027

Refer to LoRa Region by Country for a more comprehensive list.

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EU_868 has to adhere to an hourly duty cycle limitation of 10%, calculated every minute on a rolling 1-hour basis. Your device will stop transmitting if you reach it, until it is allowed again.

Now that you have set the LoRa region on your device, you can continue with configuring any LoRa Configs to suit your needs.

Advanced Configuration​

Connect via Website​

If you want to text messages and communicate with other nodes in the website, you can connect the device to the Meshtastic Website now.

Step 1: Open the Website

Click here to go to the webstite.

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Step 2: Add the new device

Click "+ New Connection".

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There are two ways to connect. You can choose your preferred method.

Method 1: Via Bluetooth

Choose bluetooth method. Choose the device ID in the pop-up window.

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Method 2: Via Serial

Choose serial method. Open the device manager to see which port the device is connected to. Choose that port in the pop-up window.

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Your device will be shown in the list. Click to connect. If the connection succeed, you can see the device status directly on the website.

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Configure Sensor​

SensorDescription
Temperature✅
LightNot supported by the App currently
AccelerometerTo be continued

Temperature Sensor Config

Navigate to Settings -> Telemetry(Sensors) -> Enable sensors.

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Buzzer and LED Config

TypeOutput PIN
BuzzerPWM buzzer25
LED-24

Navigate to Settings -> External Notification -> Enable GPIO -> Set Output Pin GPIO.

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Check External Notification Config for more details.

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After you update the device configuration, the device will restart, which may take some time.

Configure Ringtone​

Navigate to Settings -> Ringtone Config, then enter the RTTTL ringtone string you want to use for external notifications.

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24:d=16,o=5,b=120:g,c6,d6,2g6

Configure GPS​

Please set GPS enabled. You can adjust the update inerval and broadcast interval to obtain a more up-to-date location information.

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For IOS, please turn on the Accurate Location. Otherwise, the positioning may deviate.

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Configure Buzzer​

The buzzer is enabled by default. If you want to disable the buzzer, set Alert Message buzzer, Alert bell buzzer and Use PWM bizzer as the following screenshot.

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Flash Firmware​

Check the Firmware Version​

Navigate to Settings -> Firmware Updates, check the current firmware version.

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⚠️DO NOT FLASH THE FOLLOWING FIRMWARE
​

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DO NOT FLASH OTHER FIRMWARE OTHER THAN T1000-E FIRMWARE, THIS MAY CAUSE THE DEVICE TO FREEZE.

The following firmware will brick your device：

  • nrf52_promicro_diy_tcxo
  • nrf52_promicro_diy_xtal
  • Dongle_nRF52840-pca10059-v1
  • feather_diy
  • TWC_mesh_v4
  • wio-sdk-wm1110
  • wio-tracker-wm1110
  • xiao_ble

Flash the Application Firmware​

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Before flashing the firmware, please ensure you bought the T1000-E for Meshtastic. Please don't flash the firmware to other tracker model that doen't support Meshtastic. Please don't use NRF-OTA to update the firmware, it may cause the device to be completely dead.

Step 1: Enter DFU mode​

Visit Meshtastic Web Flasher.

Connect the device to your PC, select the device to Seeed Card Tracker T1000-E and choose the latest firmware, then click Flash.

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Click Enter DFU Mode, there will be a serial port named T1000-E xxx display, click and connect it, the green LED will be solid, and there should be a driver named T1000-E display.

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Step 2: Flash Erase​

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Before flashing the firmware, please flash the erased firmware first!

Click the trash symbol.

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Download the erase firmware and copy to the driver.

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This process may take some time, wait for the drive to disappear, then open a serial monitor to complete the erase process.

Step 3: Flash Firmware​

Select the latest firmware, and download the UF2 file.

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Copy UF2 file to the DFU drive. Firmware should be flashed after the file is downloaded and the device reboots.

FAQ​

How to check the device name​

Visit Meshtastic Web Flasher.

Click Open Serial Monitor, connect the device to your PC, check the serial log, keyword using nodenum.

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How to reboot the device​

Press and hold the button, then connect the charging cable.

Troubleshooting​

Device never turns on​

  • The device may appear to be powered off when the LED indicator and buzzer are not activated. Before performing the steps below, it is recommended to check the following parameters:

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  • Use a known working USB cable to charge the device continuously for 1–2 hours to ensure the battery has sufficient power to wake up the system.
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Lithium batteries slowly self-discharge even when powered off. A device stored unused for a long time may therefore become deeply discharged and fail to turn on or keep restarting during boot. This is common for lithium-battery devices, not a T1000-E defect.

  • If the device has been stored unused for a long time and cannot start, charge it continuously for up to 24 hours, then try again. The 24-hour charge is only for recovering a deeply discharged battery, not for normal charging.

  • If it still keeps restarting during startup, disconnect the cable and leave the device unused for about 7 days, then charge it again and try to power it on.

  • To avoid deep discharge, do not store the device with an empty or very low battery for a long time; recharge it when it drops below 20% and periodically during long-term storage.

  • If the device still does not respond after charging, perform a hard reset as followed: Unplug the USB cable. Press and hold the button, then plug in the USB cable while keeping the button pressed. Hold for approximately 3 seconds, then release it. This forces a system reset.

  • If still no luck, try re-install the bootloader. Connect a USB cable to a computer. Hold the device button, then connect the device to the computer, see whether or not the a disk pop out in your PC. If so, re-install the bootloader.

Device stuck in boot loop​

Description:

The device will restart repeatedly, and the serial port connects and disconnects repeatedly.

Solution:

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If the device has been unused for a long time, a deeply discharged battery may also cause repeated restarts during startup. Try the battery recovery steps in Device never turns on before the firmware recovery below.

  • Step 1: Try to enter DFU mode manually: press and hold the device button, then quickly connect the charging cable twice, the green LED will be solid on.
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To successfully enter the DFU mode, you need to perform this operation quickly. You may need to try multiple times.

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Device bricked​

Description​

The device not responding, no LED, can not pair with your App.

1) Device can still enter the DFU mode, then try to flash the bootloader.

Flash the Bootloader​

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When you are flashing the bootloader, please make sure the cable connection is stable and DO NOT disconnect it during the flash process.

Step1: Adafruit-nrfutil Installation

For window user, press "Win" key and "r" key, then enter "cmd" in the pop-oyt window, click "Enter". This can open the command line.

For MAC user, press "Command" key and "Space" key, so that you can open Spotlight. Then enter "termial", click "Return". This can open the command line.

For Linux users, open a terminal. On Ubuntu, you can press Ctrl + Alt + T. Use the Linux (Ubuntu/Debian) tab below to install the prerequisites and the tool in a virtual environment.

Prerequisites

Check in your command line that whether or not the python and pip are installed successfully. On Linux, use python3 instead of python for these checks.

python --version
python -m pip --version

Then "Python xxx" and "pip xxx" should appear. If it does not, please try install python again.

For Windows and macOS, install the latest version with the following command. Linux users should use the Linux (Ubuntu/Debian) tab.

pip3 install --user adafruit-nrfutil

Check the installation path:

python -m pip show adafruit-nrfutil

This is the installation location:

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For window user, you may need to add the path manually. Copy the installation location showed in the last step. Then add it as followed:

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Step2: Check your port number

Connect your device to your PC, and check the port number.

For Window User, open your device manager, and go to "port", the port number newly pop out after the device connection is the device port number.

For Mac user, for example:

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For Window user, for example:

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For Linux users:

Put the T1000-E into DFU mode using the button and cable procedure above. The green LED should stay on. Run the following command before and after connecting the device to identify its serial port:

python -m serial.tools.list_ports -v

Use the newly appearing port, typically /dev/ttyACM0. If several ports are listed, compare the results with the T1000-E disconnected and connected. The number may change when the device enters DFU mode, so check again before flashing.

Check the port permissions, replacing /dev/ttyACM0 with your actual port:

ls -l /dev/ttyACM0

On Ubuntu/Debian, serial ports are usually owned by the dialout group. If you get a Permission denied error and the port belongs to dialout, add your user to that group:

sudo usermod -aG dialout "$USER"

Log out and log back in for the group change to take effect, then reopen the terminal and activate the virtual environment again. On other distributions, use the serial-access group shown by ls -l and follow your distribution's instructions.

Step3: Flash the bootloader

In the terminal or command prompt, navigate to the directory where you downloaded the bootloader zip package and execute the following command, replacing the correct port for your device:

--touch 1200 opens and closes the serial port at 1200 baud to request DFU mode before uploading. If the device is already in DFU mode with the green LED solid, omit --touch 1200 and use its current DFU serial port.

  • For Windows:
adafruit-nrfutil --verbose dfu serial --package t1000_e_bootloader-0.9.1-5-g488711a_s140_7.3.0.zip -p COMxx -b 115200 --singlebank --touch 1200

Please change COMXX to your com number. For example, if your device is on com6, change the command to be:

adafruit-nrfutil --verbose dfu serial --package t1000_e_bootloader-0.9.1-5-g488711a_s140_7.3.0.zip -p **COM6** -b 115200 --singlebank --touch 1200

If the serial port changes after this command, follow Step 4 below.

  • For macOS:
adafruit-nrfutil --verbose dfu serial --package t1000_e_bootloader-0.9.1-5-g488711a_s140_7.3.0.zip -p /dev/tty.SLAB_USBtoUART -b 115200 --singlebank --touch 1200
  • For Linux:

Keep the downloaded bootloader package as a .zip file; do not extract it. In the terminal with the virtual environment active, navigate to the folder containing the package. Close any serial monitor or browser flasher connected to the device. Since Step 2 puts the device into DFU mode manually, run the command without --touch 1200:

adafruit-nrfutil --verbose dfu serial --package t1000_e_bootloader-0.9.1-5-g488711a_s140_7.3.0.zip -p /dev/ttyACM0 -b 115200 --singlebank

Replace /dev/ttyACM0 with the port identified in Step 2. If the device is still running application firmware and has a serial port, you can append --touch 1200 to request DFU mode. If it does not respond, press and hold the device button, then quickly connect the charging cable twice as shown above. Once the green LED stays on, identify the DFU port again and use the command without --touch 1200.

Step4: Handle a serial port change

When --touch 1200 switches the device into DFU mode, the operating system may assign a different serial port. If the command reports Touched serial port followed by a port-not-found error, check whether a new DFU port has appeared. This error alone does not mean that the bootloader was flashed successfully or that the device is damaged.

Keep the USB cable connected. On Linux, run the following command again in the active virtual environment:

python -m serial.tools.list_ports -v

On Windows, refresh Device Manager; on macOS, check ls /dev/cu.*. Retry using the newly identified port and omit --touch 1200, because the device is already in DFU mode. For example, if the new Linux port is /dev/ttyACM1:

adafruit-nrfutil --verbose dfu serial --package t1000_e_bootloader-0.9.1-5-g488711a_s140_7.3.0.zip -p /dev/ttyACM1 -b 115200 --singlebank

Use your actual port name. If the port still cannot be opened, check its permissions as described in Step 2 and make sure no serial monitor or browser flasher is using it.

Step5: Confirm the result and reinstall the application firmware

Wait for the tool to finish and print:

Device programmed.

This message confirms that the bootloader transfer completed successfully. Do not disconnect the cable during the transfer. A port change or the appearance of a USB drive alone is not confirmation of a successful flash.

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Flashing the bootloader does not reinstall the Meshtastic application firmware. After the successful transfer, follow Flash Firmware to install it before using the device.

2) Device can not enter DFU mode, but the serial port can be detected.

  • Open a serial port tool

  • Set the baud rate to 1200.

  • Connect the device. The light will flash briefly when you connect it. Keep trying this until the light stays on, means the device can back to DFU mode, then flash bootloader -> Erase flash -> flash the firmware.

3) Device can not enter DFU mode and no serial port display

  • press and hold the device button, then connect the charging cabl. After a disk pop out in your PC, you may see the serial port.

  • If still no luck, please disconnect the charging cable and leave the device for a few days until the battery is completely drained, then connect the charging cable and try to pair it again.

4) If none of the above steps work, please contact the tech support: [email protected]

Firmware flashing failed​

  • No data received on serial port

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Check if the device is in the DFU mode, the green light will be solid when the device is in DFU mode.

  • Can't open serial port

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Check if the port is correct, or try another port.

Unable to Communicate on the Primary Channel​

If the device cannot communicate with nearby nodes or send messages, first check that the LoRa region and modem preset match the surrounding nodes. You should also check whether the default PSK has been changed. A different PSK on the primary channel will prevent the device from communicating with other nodes on that channel.

The easiest way to find this issue is through the mobile app. Open the app, connect to the target device, then navigate to Settings -> Channels. Select the primary channel and check the PSK value. If it is different from the surrounding nodes, update it to the same PSK and save the channel settings.

Check primary channel PSK in the iOS app

Solution

If you are not sure which settings were changed, restore the device to its default settings by following the Factory Reset guide. If only the PSK was changed, set it back to AQ==.

Device automatically turn off​

Description​

  • After the device turning on, it will turn off or reboot automatically after a while.
  • The serial port log ran for a while and then stopped.

This is possibly caused by manually and forcely rebooting or turning off the device when the device is in the following states:not finishing the messages transmission process, being configured......

Troubleshoot​

Click here to perform a flash-erase.

Factory Reset​

If you want to restore to the default settings, you can do the factory reset. There are two methods for you to do the factory reset.

  • Click here to flash erase the device. And then re-flash the latest firmware.

  • Click the Factory Reset Button on the App. The device will reboot with the factory configuration automatically.

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Message Communication Fail​

NodeDB Reset​

NodeDB is the local database that stores information about nodes discovered in the current Mesh network. If you encounter a situation where you can't communicate with a certain node, it might be because your nodedB has stored outdated information for that node. You will need to update it.

Open the app and connect to the target device. Go to Settings->Device->Device Config->Reset NodeDB.

Device settings and Reset NodeDB button in the app

Exchange User Info​

Each node will periodically send its own node information, enabling other nodes in the mesh to "see" and "recognize" it. Two nodes need to exchange their node information with each other in order to be able to communicate with each other. If you are unable to send or receive private messages with another node on the list, you can manually prompt them to exchange information in the app.

Device entry in Settings

Regenerate Private Key​

Each node owns a public/private key pair. To exchange an encrypted private message, the sender encrypts it with the recipient's public key, and only that recipient's private key can decrypt it. Two nodes can therefore communicate privately once they know each other's public key. If one node keeps failing in private-message transmission, try regenerating its private key. After regeneration, delete that node from the other devices' node lists so they can reconnect and obtain its new public key.

Device entry in Settings

Reboot the faulty device to make the configuration function. After the key regeneration, other device needs to reconnect with the node. So it is better to delete the node in other device's node list.

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For more information about the communication with other LoRa chip, please refer to: link

Signal Quality​

  • SNR reflects the quality of the communication link. Normal device usually operates above -7 dB. Device with a SNR lower than -10 dB indicates poor performance.

  • RSSI is determined jointly by the device and its surrounding environment. Normal device usually operates above -110 dBm. Device with an RSSI lower than -115 dBm is considered to have poor performance.

    To achieve the best signal effect, please use the device in an open, unobstructed area with minimal interference for use.

Pogo Pin Definition​

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Resources​

Tech Support & Product Discussion​

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