SARA-R5 series - LTE-M/NB-IoT modules with Secure Cloud

u-blox SARA-R5 LTE-M/NB-IoT modules with Secure Cloud are designed to last an IoT lifetime and are 5G-ready with the u-blox UBX-R5 chipset

Built-in end-to-end security with hardware-based root of trust inside discrete secure element
Full security suite with foundation, design and end-to-end security, as well as access control
Accurate and reliable positioning, always and everywhere, with u‑blox M8 GNSS receiver
Optimised ultra-low power consumption
Critical firmware updates delivered and services enabled via uFOTA

A good way to assess the functionality and performance of the SARA-R5 series is to purchase one of the EVK-R5 evaluation kits.

The u-blox cellular product overview provides a useful guide to the technologies used, product selection, product grades and advantages of u-blox cellular modules.

The SARA‑R5 series is based on u‑blox’s UBX‑R5 cellular chipset and the u‑blox M8 GNSS receiver chip. By bringing all technology building blocks in house and having full hardware and software ownership, u‑blox can guarantee long‑term device availability and provide lifetime support of the entire platform, down to the chipset level.

The LTE-M and NB-IoT modules support a comprehensive set of 3GPP Rel. 14 features that are relevant for IoT applications, like improvements to power consumption, coverage, data rate, mobility and positioning. They are 5G-ready, meaning customers will be able to (software) upgrade their deployed devices, once 5G LTE has been rolled out by mobile operators, greatly improving end product scalability and lifetime.

The SARA-R5 series includes three Secure Cloud variants that support u‑blox unique security based services, making these the ideal choice for devices that transmit critical and confidential information. SARA-R5 Secure Cloud modules benefit from the technology ownership of the entire value chain and are combined with an internal, hardware-based, secure element and a lightweight pre-shared key management system that guarantee state-of-the-art security. Thanks to this implementation, the SARA-R5 series offers security-based features and services like local data encryption and decryption, zero touch provisioning, anti-cloning, and secure chip-to-chip communication.

SARA-R510M8S is pre-integrated with the u‑blox M8 GNSS receiver and separate GNSS antenna interface, which provides highly reliable, accurate positioning data in parallel to LTE communication. In addition, the module offers unique hybrid positioning, in which the GNSS position is enhanced with u‑blox CellLocate® data, providing location always and everywhere.
SARA-R510S has been optimized for extremely low power consumption, using less than 1 μA of current in PSM mode, and is ideal for battery-powered applications.

Customers can future-proof their solutions by means of OTA firmware updates, thanks to the uFOTA client/server solution, which utilizes LWM2M, a light and compact protocol ideal for IoT applications.