First of all, a big thank you all for supporting XTRX campaign and congratulations to everyone interested in SDR! The $108k/120% funding raised for XTRX so far is the best evidence that it’s time for off-the-shelf, embedded SDR solutions.

When we launched the campaign we had some stretch goals in mind and one of them ($100,000) has just been hit, so we’ll add a more precise temperature monitoring chip for better calibration.

If we hit $160,000 before the end of the campaign, it will allow us to upgrade the TCXO DAC to 16-bit resolution. With a 16-bit TCXO DAC and GPSDO, we can go below 1 ppb reference clock stability. A great feature if, for example, you’re building a distributed antenna array, and something you’ve never seen with low-cost SDRs.

In the meantime, next week not only marks the end date of the XTRX campaign, but also a commercial launch of the first network where Fairwaves has supplied everything from BTS to a core network, billing system, seamless integration with Wi-Fi, and interconnect with the global SS7 network. This news is relevant to XTRX because the UmSITE BTS in that network is built with Fairwaves SDR technology. Unlike many SDR companies, we design SDRs because we use them in our own products, and we make robust and high-performance SDRs because this is what we need ourselves. At the same time, unlike telecom companies who design good SDRs, we make those SDRs available to everyone to foster innovation and lower the barrier to entry.