Board Versions
An important thing to know when buying the LTE CAT-M/NB-IoT shield is which one to choose! There are two versions of the SIM7500:
Generally speaking the suffix denotes the region. For example, "A" for "AT&T in North America" and "E" for "European". The "V" indicates Verizon certification in North America, "SA" is for South America (and Australia), the "JC" version is specifically for Japan and has been fully approved by Japan's JDDI carrier, and the "JE" version is for SoftBank & Docomo in Japan. Now in order to really understand where these modules will operate it is necessary to check the LTE "bands" of operation for each version. Below is a list of which bands each version supports:
- SIM7500A: Tri-Band FDD-LTE (B2/B4/B17) and Dual-Band UMTS/HSDPA/HSPA+ (B2/B5)
- SIM7500E: FDD-LTE (B1/B3/B7/B8/B20) and WCDMA/HSPA+ (B1/B8). Also supports GSM/GPRS/EDGE (900/1800 MHz)
- SIM7500V: FDD-LTE (B4/B13)
- SIM7500SA: FDD-LTE (B1/B3/B5/B7/B8/B28) and Dual-Band WCDMA/HSDPA/HSPA+ (B1/B5)
- SIM7500JC: LTE-FDD (B1/B18/B19/B26)
The important things to note here are the LTE bands, 3G bands, and 2G/2.5G support on the SIM7500E version. If you're in Australia, you're better off just using the SIM7500SA and if you're in Japan just get the SIM7500JC. Also, if you're in the US and you want Verizon certification, get the SIM7500V. For other countries or choices it's best to look up the cellular bands in your country with this handy frequency checker. For example, the LTE bands used in the United States are shown below:
Now what you want to do is make sure the module version you're using (7500A or 7500E) supports at least some of the LTE bands used in your area. LTE coverage is quite a universal thing so this is much easier to match up than the SIM7000 LTE CAT-M/NB-IoT shield. However, please note that if you are targeting a specific cell carrier (like AT&T or Verizon), you should first determine which bands they operate on in your country. In the frequency checker site you can click on the bands and get more info about them, including which carriers use which bands.
You can order any of the above versions on my website.
NOTE: This tutorial is meant to be supplementary information only and I leave it up to you to make the final decision on which version to order. I am not liable for any operation failure resulting in selecting an incorrect module and you are fully responsible for researching if this module will work for you! That being said, I do offer prompt technical support and try my best to resolve any issues.