He answered my question perfectly (down to the correct estimate of a 3d printed enclosure) and almost immediately, so now let me answer your question:
The "tactical comms" community is filled to the gills with grifters, liars, and thieves.
There is a guy who takes
$375 chinese cell phones, installs
free mapping software on them, and then advertises them for
$1499 (but they're on sale now for only $999!).
There's another guy who used to take public service radios that can only do the 7/800mhz band and sells them at VHF prices because his customers didn't know better. I can't find his instagram page anymore so I assume word got out or the FCC paid him a visit.
And there are guys who take
$33 LoRa devices, add
$10 antennas, and sell them for
$100.
They do this because "off grid comms are cool" and the people who buy this stuff do not understand what it is. It's analogous to people who buy Anderson lowers and PSA build kits and then try to sell them for $2000 as Custom AR15 Setups to people who've never held a gun before.
OP IS NOT ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE
His device is visually similar to the
Lilygo T-Deck which is $53 plus a $7 battery and a 50 cent case. So
rather than come off like an ignorant asshole I asked him to back up his factual claim that the hardware costs were around $150.
Which he did.
Immediately.
His hardware is better and faster. His BOM shows that.
My only question at this point is where his github repo is, because the BOM doesn't include meshtastic-supported hardware that I can tell....but its 1000% possible I just don't see it.
Much appreciated
Here is some technicals I dug into that'll alleviate some of that experience you've had with this stuff floating around the net. I'm glad you have that to share, Nothing wrong with constructive criticism and endeavour done proper . I do applaud.
The BOM was for these that I have listed with the cortex M4 microprocessor purchased from adafruit. Since the moment I have listed these I've been catching up on parts available and info:
Adafruit has discontinued their keyboard featherwing w/ 2.6" LCD screen board. Potentially due to LilyGo creating a more advanced model that has taken over that market. Which I can see why:
LilyGo has an ESP32-S3 series has a:
Xtensa® dual-core 32-bit LX7 microprocessor,
up to 240 Mhz with 8mb of PSRAM & 16mb Flash memory
Compared to Adafruits feather M4 express having a
ATSAMD51J19 - dual core 32-bit Cortex M4 microprocessor, running up to 120Mhz, with 192kb of SDRAM & up to 2mb Flash memory.
Note: PSRAM compared to traditional SDRAM and SRAM has the advantages of higher speed and lower power consumption.
The Lilygo T-deck uses LX7 240mhz processor and does have superior upgrades in processor technology compared to adafruits M4 cortex.
Lora hardware:
Adafruits RFM95W Lora chip is based on the older Semtech SX1272/SX1278 chips. Since then there is newer gen Semtech chips i.e. SX126x series.
"Compared with the SX127x series this new generation offers firstly lower battery consumption, secondly higher transmit power and thirdly better immunitiy to noise on the radio signal."
-Which lilyGo T-Deck also utilizes
To sum it down, I'll be using the LilyGo T-Deck for these builds. It will cost $65 for the board, and I will have to soldier in the GPS unit and eventually the 18650 battery housing. Then 3d print, thread/tap, hand fit, the hardware to the cases. Newer versions of the cases may need to be redesigned for the 18650 model with a proper battery door latching system that doesn't wear out or become junky.
From my browsing, others whom have sold these and similar legitimately, are in the same $150-$160 range as I have listed. I will only sell at a fair value and won't be touching this if its deemed shady.
Firmware:
I will have to make sure the custom firmware on the new devices have stable Bluetooth functionality for those wanting to connect their cellphones to the network for messaging. Meshtasic doesn't have the advanced chat functionality as the custom firmware.
Ill prob end up donating to a developer whom Ill get basic firmware from to help edit and add/tweak functionality as time passes. Profits I make do go back into having more hands on deck with firmware updates, in return will produce more functionality for everyone who has a device. I'll be transparent for those whom are interested in the technicalities.