MeshCore v1.15.0 landed on April 19 with updates across all three firmware tracks — companion, repeater, and room server. The headline feature is Default Scope support, a region configuration that simplifies initial setup for new users. But the real depth of this release is in the hardware support expansion.
Default Scope and Region Handling
Default Scope is MeshCore’s answer to a common onboarding friction point: new users often struggle to pick the correct regional frequency settings during initial configuration. With Default Scope, the firmware can now apply sensible defaults based on region, reducing misconfiguration on first boot.
The feature pairs with a new duty cycle CLI command (get|set dutycycle), giving operators fine-grained control over transmission timing — particularly relevant for European deployments where 868 MHz ISM band regulations mandate strict duty cycle limits.
Six New Hardware Platforms
The hardware support list grew substantially:
- Heltec V4.3 — the latest iteration of one of MeshCore’s most popular boards
- Heltec nRF Tracker (T096) — a compact nRF52840-based tracker node
- GAT562 Mesh EVB Pro — now supported as both repeater and room server
- GAT562 Watch — a wearable mesh device
- Muzi Works R1 Neo — expanding the range of compatible hardware
The Heltec Wireless Paper also got companion firmware support, and WiFi companion updates landed for both the Heltec V4 and TBeam 1W.
Binary GROUP_DATA Packets
Under the hood, v1.15.0 introduces support for new binary GROUP_DATA packets. This is an efficiency improvement for group messaging — binary encoding reduces packet overhead compared to text-based formats, which matters on bandwidth-constrained LoRa links where every byte counts.
Radio and Sensor Fixes
Several practical fixes made it into this release. Radio receive gain (rxgain) is now enabled by default, which should improve reception sensitivity out of the box. The supported frequency range has been extended down to 150 MHz, opening up new band possibilities for licensed operators.
On the sensor side, BME680 initialization was fixed, and the Heltec Wireless Paper’s battery voltage reading was corrected — both issues that affected real-world deployments.
Upgrade Notes
The firmware is available through flasher.meshcore.io. All three firmware tracks (companion, repeater, room server) were updated simultaneously to v1.15.0, so operators running mixed node types can update everything at once.
Full changelog and PR references are on the official release post.