Getting a zBitx on Wifi without USB OTG

Just bought a zBitx radio from HFSignals. The attraction is for portable use on digital modes without needing a computer as it has a Raspberry Pi built right in.

Mine arrived, unfortunately, without the microUSB OTG adapter. I've ordered one but thought I'd try to get it connected to Wifi without needing an external screen, keyboard, and mouse.

Following the disassembly instructions (which are excellent) I removed the battery compartment.

The micro SD card is visible and you'll need tweezers or pliers to pull it out (it's not a push to eject style holder).

I plugged the card into a mac and opened the boot directory. The trick is to create a text file called wpa_supplicant.conf in the following format:

ctrl_interface=DIR=/var/run/wpa_supplicant GROUP=netdev

update_config=1

country=<YOUR_TWO_LETTER_COUNTRY_CODE>

network={

    ssid="<YOUR_NETWORK_NAME>"

    psk="<YOUR_NETWORK_PASSWORD>"

    key_mgmt=WPA-PSK

}

Also, a file simply named "ssh" should be created to enable ssh. (I did this as a matter of course and am not sure if it was required).

After putting the SD card back and powering up, the device, named "sbitx" appeared on my network. I was able to ssh in as pi@sbitx.local:

The default password is hf12345

Once on the network the zbitx was able to synchronise its clock so FT8 works.

The web interface at http://sbitx.local is quite impressive. It streams audio to the browser so can be used remotely. Default password is 123

I really like that it runs on 2x18650 batteries attached to the side. I wish other QRP radios could work like this.

The radio has both a Pi Pico and a Raspberry Pi. The source code is here.

One thing that I found disturbing is that I searched high and low for the off button. Being a linux computer I have a strong feeling about just yanking out the power chord but that seems to be the recommended approach.