Helium activates wireless network for IoT devices in more than 425 US cities (2024)

FAQs

What is the range of the Helium Network? ›

Depending on conditions, Helium LoRaWAN can reach dozens of miles or kilometers and even connect devices that are inside buildings unlike GPS and cellular signals.

Smart pet collars, environmental sensors, bike trackers, or any compatible IoT device can connect to Helium Hotspots without Wi-Fi or cellular networks, inspiring innovation and enabling new use cases.

As told already, Helium Network is a decentralized wireless network that uses long-range, low-power radio technology to enable devices' secure, low-cost connection over a wide area. The blockchain enables a distributed network of independent nodes that securely store, validate, and relay data from connected devices.

What is the maximum number of devices I can connect to a Helium Mobile Hotspot? Both the Indoor & Outdoor Helium Mobile Hotspots will be able to support 100 concurrently connected devices.

​ Helium's LoRaWAN technology, the combination of the Helium blockchain and LoRaWAN wireless protocol, uses sub-GHz radio frequency between 860 and 923 MHz.

“However, the good news is that we're not running out of helium,” Trønnes says. The Earth's interior is absolutely enormous, and this is where the helium comes from. “It will continue to seep out through rocks and cracks forever,” he says.

By deploying a Helium Hotspot in your home, office, or elsewhere in the wild, you can provide your town with wireless network coverage for low power “internet of things” or cellular devices and earn Helium tokens.

Helium Mobile eSIMs and pSIMs are compatible with most devices that support iOS 14 and newer and Android 11 and newer.

Helium was co-founded by Amir Haleem, Sean Carey, and Shawn Fanning. The project raised over $53 million in four separate funding rounds from 2015 to 2019. The network finally went live in 2019, intending to resolve common issues noted in the sector of IoT, like privacy.

Does it cost money to use the Helium Network? ›

Data Credit Usage​

Unlike traditional wireless networks, the Helium Network has no annual fee, and users only pay for data used. In the original design of the protocol, it was recognized that users of the network would not be comfortable with the volatility that comes with typical token economics.

Helium Mobile Wi-Fi is a new feature that provides additional functionality for Helium Mobile Hotspots by offering connectivity for everyone, even if they are not Helium Mobile subscribers yet.

The helium balloon displaces an amount of air (just like the empty bottle displaces an amount of water). As long as the weight of the helium plus the balloon fabric is lighter than the air it displaces, the balloon will float in the air. It turns out that helium is a lot lighter than air.

Helium-enabled LoRaWAN devices are hardware-secured to protect the traffic from the utilized spectrum. This means the security is built-in since devices using the network have AES private key encryption at the chip level.

There's a finite amount of helium on Earth. The largest reserves are in massive underground pockets in parts of Algeria, Qatar, Russia and the U.S. While the Texas stockpile is the largest source of helium in the U.S., it's not the only one.

There are many choices and we will see how to choose the best Helium Miner antenna for every situation. Some of our customers make stable contacts up to 200 km away. It all comes down to location, elevation, and number of close and far witnesses.

Proof-of-Coverage

Using a system called Proof of Coverage, RAK Hotspots earn more HNT when they're in range of other RAK Hotspots, but need to be at least 300 meters apart.

Scientists estimate that, at the current rate of global consumption, there is a supply of helium for 100-200 more years. There are only a handful of significant sources of helium in the world — the U.S., Qatar, Algeria and Russia, chief among them.