XBee Series 2.5 replaced by "XBee ZB".

sylvie369

I was just digging around for some information on the Digi site and was surprised to see the Series 2.5 XBee modules labeled "obsolete". I discovered that they have been superceded by a new version named the "ZB":

http://www.digi.com/products/wireless/zigbee-mesh/xbee-zb-module.jsp

I contacted support to confirm. I was told that the Series 2.5 modules have been discontinued, though existing Series 2.5 modules can be converted to ZB - it's only a firmware change, not hardware. The Series 1 (802.15.4) modules remain unchanged (phew!).

I assume that this means that the 2.5s will sift through the supply chain (Sparkfun still has a few hundred, and Digikey has over 1000), and eventually no longer be available, but that people using those modules can·use the "ZB" labeled modules, and upgrade the firmware on their 2.5 modules to make everything compatible.

Parallax only sells the Series 1 modules, so they're not affected. But all of the confusing "are you using Series 1 or Series 2.5?" questions we've been asking will now get a bit more confusing with the "ZB" stuff added to the mix. But eventually it'll be "ZB or not?", which seems easier to me.

Ken Gracey

Yes, and we are adding the ZB modules to our inventory. One of them is already in stock and we're waiting for the second version.

sylvie369, when I was looking into their product line I counted no less than 70 variations of XBee modules. It took days of research to zone in on the few modules that represent 90% of the interest in Digi RF. So many versions were created for specific customers and purposes beyond the needs of a typical user.

Another thing to know about networking. There are two protocols for mesh networking: DigiMesh for Series 1; ZigBee for Series 2. DigiMesh is fully functional mesh networking, except it is not compatible with the industry-standard ZigBee. This means most people should be happy with Series 1 even if they are using them for mesh networking. The exception, according to my discussions with Digi staff, is whether or not the system being put in place may need to be compatible with other industry-standard ZigBee hardware.

My viewpoint is that Series 1 "does it all". Well, at least for most of us.

Thanks for sharing this. It's a continual education working with Digi modules.

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Ken Gracey
Parallax Inc.

Follow me at http://twitter.com/ParallaxKen for some insider news.

kf4ixm

What is the functional differences between the 1.0, 2.5 firmware and the ZB firmware? will the ZB firmware be compatible with the 1.0 that parallax sells or will buyers have to be 'firmware-aware' when ordering the modules, taking care to order 2 zb's instead if 1 zb and one 1.0?

Ken Gracey

kf4ixm, the 1.0 and 2.5 series modules use different hardware and different firmware. They might even operate on different frequencies - would need to check into that.

The ZB firmware is not compatible with 1.0 that we sell. You need to be "firmware aware".

These kinds of questions are common with Digi support, so we're learning to answer them on our own.

However, we will be selling ZB devices shortly (can't take the marketing guts out of me, I guess).

This probably isn't the full scope of technical answer you had hoped for, but what I know from topical research.

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Ken Gracey
Parallax Inc.

Follow me at http://twitter.com/ParallaxKen for some insider news.

kf4ixm

thats a good enough answer for me Ken! (as far as im concerned anyway).
Thanks!

Tracy Allen

You can tell the operating frequency by the part number:
XB24 is 2.4 GHz
XB09 is 900 MHz

Pro models (higher power) have a P after the XB
XBP24

Series 1 devices have either an A or a D in the part number after the frequency to show that they are loaded with either the 802.15.4 firmware or the digimesh firmware respectively:
XB24-A has 802.15.4 firmware
XB24-D has digimesh firmware
After the purchase you can download the firmware from Digi.com, reflash series 1 devices (hardware platform) which supports both types of firmware. Series one devices are more or less interoperable with other 802.15.4 radios, but they have to be put into compatibility mode using the MM command modes 1 or 2. By default the mode is MM=0, to which Digi adds their own header that supports unique features such as signal passing and the node discovery.

Series 2 devices have either a B or a Z in the part number after the frequency to show that they come loaded with either the ZNET 2.5 firmware or the newer ZB firmware.
XB24-B has ZNET 2.5 firmware (obsolete but still in distribution channels)
XB24-Z7 has ZB firmware
Again, you can download the firmware from Digi.com, and reflash series 2 devices (hardware platform), which supports both types of firmware. The series 2 platform is completely different from the series 1 platform. Newer ZB firmware allows much more sophisticated Zigbee compliant networks than ZNET, and far more sophisticated than 802.15.4 networks. That is at the expense of a much steeper learning curve. To start with, you will have to configure the firmware, because there are separate sub-versions within ZB for the end point, router and coordinator, and when you purchase them they will probably all be configured as routers, and you will need to reflash one of them as coordinator.

I first purchased a dev kit at ESC a couple of years ago and was thoroughly in the dark about those differences and thoroughly sympathize with anyone trying to make sense of the unproclaimed differences. The tutorials from Martin Hebel did not work. I highly recommend to anyone getting into this for the first time, avoid thinking that the ZB devices are more powerful, more modern and therefore better. Not the case at all, and one should have a good specific reason (such as zigbee interoperability) that pulls that decision. Note that series 2 does not support low power peer to peer mesh networking.

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Tracy Allen
www.emesystems.com

sylvie369

I agree with every word that has been said here so far (Wow! How often does that happen?).

I've got nothing but standard "Series 1" 802.15.4 modules, and I swear they have a setting for everything imaginable. I fully agreed with Parallax's decision to begin with just the Series 1 modules - they'll do almost everything anyone needs, and it makes sense not to make things too complicated.

I do imagine that I'll buy a pair of 900 MHz modules at some point in the next year or so, to see if I can really get the additional range claimed when I fly one as a transmitter for my rocket-born GPS project (which flew successfully for the first time on Sunday, using a Series 1 XBee Pro).

XBees can be complicated, but they are REALLY worth it. I'm amazed at what these things can do.

Tracy Allen

This year at Embedded Systems West, Digi was showcasing their new m10 satellite modem, and selling the dev kit on the floor for $99, including 90 days of time on ORBCOMM. It's another option to add to the Digi stable of communications options.
www.digi.com/products/wireless/satellite/m10.jsp#overview

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Tracy Allen
www.emesystems.com

sylvie369

Wow, that's really something. It's a bit expensive and power-hungry for my purposes, but wow, is that what lurks in our near future?·

It looks like it's as easy to use as the XBees are. Remarkable.

Tracy Allen

Yes, the m10 looks to be drop dead simple to use. Simpler than an XBee really, because there are not many options! It is limited to ORBCOMM service. They have license for their radios to operate in wide but limited number of countries. For power conservation in remote sites (where else?) they suggested that acquisition would be quite rapid, and if it doesn't succeed in a few seconds, try again a few minutes later. One benefit is that they run from GPS time, so it can be used to synchronize clocks. Messages are short, and doubtless expensive, but it's a funny thing at these shows, the engineers never really know how much things cost to the end user.

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Tracy Allen
www.emesystems.com

kf4ixm

I wonder what the service price is for a year of service on the orbcomm satellite? i checked out the website for a price, but i didn't want to fill out a form then have a salesperson call me every other week for the next 2 years.

I would think it would be so much for so many kb or mb of data, then startingwith you left arm after that, would be nice if it was for unlimited data transfers though.

Edit/Update;
Searching around on google, i found a magellan GSC100 messaging gps that uses the ORBCOMM sats for sending text messages, called GlobalGram. on this website, they state it's $49.95 onetime activation, and $29.95 a month after that. It doesn't mention anything about a maximum number of messages per month, just a 2000 character limit per message.

http://www.datawelder.com/satellite/gps/GSC100/gsc100.html

More ORBCOMM info:
http://www.decodesystems.com/orbcomm.html





Post Edited (kf4ixm) : 5/7/2010 10:38:46 PM GMT