About

Who is Bobcat?

Bobcat is an IoT product and service provider for decentralized network users. We are committed to building better products and servicing the People. Powered by China’s leading LPWAN technology company and crypto VC, Bobcat combines the best of both worlds to offer its customers the optimal mining experience. The engineering team at Bobcat consists of seasoned industry veterans from tech, R&D and manufacturing companies such as Ericsson, IBM, Foxconn, and so on. The team’s rich and extensive experience in Internet of Things, product design, and manufacturing quality control ensures Bobcat Miner 300 is a craft of premium quality.



How many miner models will Bobcat carry?

A decision will be made by Q3 2021 on whether we will launch a second model this year. Currently our key focus is to make Bobcat Miner 300 a top-notch quality product for all users.



How can I be a part of the Bobcat community ?

We highly encourage everyone to join the ‘bobcat’ channel on Discord inside the Helium community. However, you can also check us out on Twitter, Linkedin, Tiktok, Instagram and Youtube. You can also subscribe to our newsletter. Go to the bottom section of any pages on bobcatminer.com for details.



Highlights/Differentiation

Why choose Bobcat Miner 300?

Bobcat Miner 300 is powered by EasyLinkin, who is a leading LoRaWAN Gateway manufacturer and invests heavily in its own R&D capabilities. In addition to designing and manufacturing LoRaWAN gateways and modules, Easylinkin owns more than 200 LPWAN related patents and has so far raised $85 million in total funding. Easylinkin’s gateways and solutions have been deployed across 100+ cities in China and abroad. It has deployed Lora networks for Alibaba in Hangzhou City, 510,000 LoRa water meters in China, and 55,000 LoR electricity meters for Indonesia and Mongolia.



How does the Bobcat Miner 300 compare to other Helium compliant miners such as RAK, Nebra, and Syncrob?

Bobcat Miner 300 uses an enhanced 4dbi antenna, this provides more coverage than most of our competitors on the market. It uses a 64GB eMMC flash instead of an external SD card. The flash is welded on the motherboard to avoid loose connection, and also has a longer life expectancy of up to 10 years because it allows 3000 write cycles, compared to 500 write cycles allowed by an SD card. Bobcat Miner 300 also uses a quad-core ARM processor, which consumes ultra-low voltage, running on no more than 0.12kWh per day.



Device

How much internet does a miner consume per day?

Here is an awesome article written by the community on this. Quoting from the article: So the TLDR is budget for 30gb between receive and transmit. Is that a lot? According to some sources, Netflix consumes between 20-60gb/month. So, bringing a Helium miner into your home is like having another roommate who watches a lot of Netflix.



What is Bobcat’s min and max operating and storage temperature?

It’s operating temp is 0-60C, and storage temp is minus 40 to 85C. See the specs here. See a tweet about the thermal chamber stress test. More lab test photos here.



Do I need an Ethernet cable to connect to the Miner ?

Bobcat supports both Ethernet and Wifi.



Should I be concerned about radiation?

No. The miner’s transmit power is lower than cell phones.



Is there an outdoor enclosure for the Bobcat ?

Bobcat Miner 300 is an indoor unit. No outdoor enclosure has been officially endorsed or tested by Bobcat. If the unit is placed in a sealed outdoor enclosure, make sure there are proper ways to disseminate heat. Read more here: https://www.bobcatminer.com/post/sunburning-your-miner-could-be-fatal The blog addresses a number of topics including: (1) things to be aware of when you use an outdoor enclosure; (2) outdoor tests done by users; (3) what to avoid; and (4) examples of customer installations.



Can Bobcat be powered via USB/COM port?

Bobcatminer provides a power adapter with input voltage of DC12V. It cannot be powered via USB/COM port.



Does Bobcat support PoE?

No



What Miner Frequency Should I Purchase?

Currently, we are only offering US915, EU868, and CN470, but we are actively working to support additional regions. In the meantime, please use this link to check the type of model that is best suited for your region.



Antenna

Do I need to buy a LoRa antenna to boost the miner’s range?

Bobcat Miner 300 comes with an enhanced 4dBi antenna which provides wider coverage than 2dBi antennas. We suggest you try this first before deciding. For optimal miner placement, check out these awesome articles on where to place the miner and how it mines.



What are the antenna specs ?

Detailed specs here. Connector images here. You can also go to the antenna channel on Discord inside the Helium community to find out more information on alternative antenna options, installation tips, and coverage, etc.



Can we update an antenna ? What connections / cable are necessary?

Yes you can upgrade the antenna, though we strongly suggest you first try our enhanced 4dbi antenna that provides wider network coverage, meaning better Proof of Coverage. However, if you do decide to change an antenna, please check the product images, and antenna specs on the website with connector images: https://www.bobcatminer.com/product-page.



The US and EU stock antennas look shorter than the CN antenna. Are all of them 4dBi?

Yes. All of our stock antennas are 4dBi. The length of the antenna is proportional to the wavelength of the frequency band. The frequency wavelength of 470 mHz is roughly twice



Payment

How Do I Pay with Cryptocurrency?

Please note that we now only support ERC20 USDC now. Payment Instruction Guides: Coinbase - Video | Text Binance - Video | Text



I Underpaid or Overpaid My Order

Unfortunately, overpaid or underpaid orders will be canceled. Bobcat will refund the amount the was sent, minus the transaction fee. To initate the refund, please contact refund@bobcatminer.com and complete this form.



How Do I Get My Money Back If I Used the Wrong Network and/or Wrong Token?

We are unable to assist any customers that submitted payment with an incorrect token or network.



How Long Do I Have to Submit A Payment?

All payments must be submitted within an hour of the payment link being generated. The payment link will expire and you will need to restart your order.



How Long Will It Take to Receive My Refund?

Refunds will be issued within 1-3 business days from the time you submit the refund request.



Orders and Shipping

I received a payment confirmation from Mugglepay. Is this my final order confirmation?

Yes. If you have successfully paid an order, you will receive a payment confirmation from Mugglepay, which is also the final order confirmation. You do not need another email from Bobcat to confirm this. It may take up to 1 hour to receive the notification. Make sure to check your spam folder too.



How do I process a refund?

Unfortunately, Bobcat Miner DOES NOT process refund or allow order cancelation unless the device is deemed defective. Please read our return and refund policy here.



How soon can I expect my order?

Orders are processed and shipped on a first come first served basis. The sooner you place an order, the faster you will receive your device and start mining! Shipping estimates for orders paid before 12 pm PDT on 5/1 will be 8-12 weeks. For orders paid after this date and time, shipping estimates will change to 12-20 weeks.



Does Bobcat Miner have warehouses in other countries?

Currently, Bobcat uses the dropshipping method to ensure the fastest delivery possible once the hotspots are manufactured and roll off the production line. However, we do plan on setting up distribution centers in the future in different countries to stock inventory.



How can I add my VAT or tax number to my order?

Please contact partner@bobcatminer.com and our team will help you.



What is included in the package?

Bobcat Miner 300 device, LoRa enhanced antenna, power adaptor and screws. For more information click here.



I want to check my order status. What should I do?

Situation 1: If your order numbers is smaller than #12729 (you paid via Paypal) and you have received an order confirmation from bobcat, it means we have received your payment and order information, you’re all set and purchase will be fulfilled from 8-12 weeks from your order date. You do not have to follow up with us. The next steps will be we follow up with you to provide shipping and tracking updates. Situation 2: If your order number is between #12729 and #13567 (you paid via wire transfer), we are verifying all received transfers in our bank account right now. As long as you have followed the wiring instructions, emailed us your order number and bank receipt, please wait for us to reach out to you to confirm payment. The team is processing the orders and verifying each wire transfer receipt matches the amount received and the order number provided. We’re sorry it’s taking time for us to respond. You do not have to follow up with us. The next steps will be we follow up to confirm we received your bank transfer. We’re trying to complete this step by mid April. As long as your payment is successfully received, your order will be fulfilled within 8-12 weeks. Situation 3: If your order number is bigger than #14260 (you paid via USDT or CC), and you have completed payment either via USDT or Credit Card. See the next question below on how to check your payment status. If you paid after 4/10/2021, you should also receive a payment confirmation email from mugglepay - check spam first before contacting mugglepay if you paid after 4/10 but did not receive payment confirmation (see Payment section in this FAQ).



I’ve paid through Mugglepay using my credit card/USDT. How do I check my final order status?

Open the ‘Order created’ email confirmation that was sent to you when you placed the order, click on the ‘View Order’ button, you will see the next page with ‘Thank You!’ at the top left corner. Note: Sometimes the redirect does not refresh automatically to reflect USDT payment status. In this case, click on View Order, if you get directed to a page that says ‘Pay Now’, click on it and you should see the page shown as ‘Paid’ at the top right corner;



When will I know which batch I'm in?

Batch info will be released only when miners are set to ship.



When wil I receive my tracking tracking info?

Tracking information will be sent 5 days after the batch annoucement is made.



I paid using coinbase commerce, but did not receive an order confirmation email from Bobcat. I do, however, have payment confirmation from my trading platform. How do I confirm my order is successful?

We're aware that some people have correctly paid USDC token via the ERC20 network but still did not receive a confirmation from Bobcat. We have found one possible cause, and will update this on our website soon: You need to do your KYC verification with coinbase before you make the order, if it is your first time using coinbase. We've seen cases where customers make an order, get directed to coinbase for payment, while as a first time user, they are asked to do identification, which they promptly do, and then complete the transaction. It seems like this is one (if not the only) of the root causes why some people do not receive our confirmation email, because though the transaction is successful, the payment is considered delayed. If this is what happened to you, simply fill out the refund form and choose **late payment** among the options given, and you will be taken care off within 72 hours, and a confirmation number will be generated for you.



Why have I not received my tracking number?

Tracking information is not available until your miner is ready to ship. If you do not make the batch cutoff number listed here https://www.bobcatminer.com/shipping-update, you will not have a tracking number. We announce the cutoff information 5 days before we ship the batch, and tracking information will be provided roughly 1 week after the batch announcement. If it has been 2 weeks since we announced your batch number, you will need to email delivery@bobcatminer.com to request more information.



Can I change my shipping address?

To change a shipping address, you will need to email customer@bobcatminer.com. We will need you to confirm the name, order #, shipping address, and phone number associated with this order. You must submit this request using the original email address associated with this order. All requests sent in from other email addresses will be ignored. While we will try our best to accommodate this request, we cannot guarantee your request will be met, as it is up to our operations team to determine if this change is feasible.



Why is my order No. more than millions of orders shipped now?

Your order number does not reflect the total number of miners sold and should not be used to try and estimate delivery times. Please follow us on twitter and check out our shipping page, as well as our blog for for updates and batch information.



I was charged for VAT twice and I need a refund

If you have been charged VAT a second time at customer clearance delivery, Bobcat will refund this portion. Make sure to fill out this form ONCE. We will collect the information, reach out to customers and process the refund once a month.



Regulatory

Is Bobcat FCC/CE certified?

Yes, Bobcat is FCC and CE Certified. FCC Grantee Code is: 2AZCK Grantee Code Registration Number: GC358658 FCC ID: 2AZCK-MINER300 Click here for CE Certification



What is the HS code?

HS Code：8517629900



What frequency/model do I need for my country? Will Bobcat Miner 300 work in my country?

You can consult the frequency plan guide on this website - find out which frequency plan matches your country. Similarly, you can also check here for your country's support.



Do I need approval from local authorities to start mining ?

You will need to check with your local authorities the procedure. Bobcat Miner is not responsible to obtain approvals in your country for mining.



Helium

Why earn HNT & use Helium?

Millions of compatible devices can use The People's Network and each device requires Data Credits (DC) in order to send data to the Internet. Fixed in value, DC are created by 'burning' HNT, reducing the total supply to achieve a Burn and Mint Equilibrium. The more devices using DC, the more HNT will be burned. Helium’s wireless network based on LoRaWAN is best suited for low-power scenarios like sending data to and from sensors using low-cost radio waves, eliminating reliance on more costly networks like cellular and WiFi. It’s fully peer to peer and leverages a robust network of hotspots connected to the network. With just 100 to 200 hotspots, the network can usually cover most cities. In return for hosting hotspots, hosts can earn $HNT for providing access to the LongFi network.



A high level overview on earnings in different neighborhoods

Compared to other cryptocurrencies there isn't a constant amount of HNT earned per day by the units due to the variations on a setup to setup basis. Take a look at this coverage map to see what others in your region are earning.



How are Tokens Earned?

Hotspots earn HNT for building and securing network infrastructure and transferring device data. The amount of HNT distributed to Hotspots depends on the type of “work” they perform based on the value to the network. This validation of network contribution is accomplished by a new work algorithm called Proof-of-Coverage (PoC). To participate in PoC there must be multiple Hotspots at least 300 meters apart in an area, but still within range of each other (up to many miles depending on environment). Single Hotspots earn less as they can only issue Challenges over the internet, and can’t participate in Proof-of-Coverage. After the first year, distribution amounts adjust.



Resources

Community Tools

1. Network Overview A snapshot of HNT rewards mined, oracle prices, total hotspots, data credit usage, transactions, and more 2. RSSI Strength A map to check out hotspots and signal strengths 3. Helium Toolkit Calculate earnings, chain variables, check current HNT price 4. Hotspot Data Summary Data on hotspots, owners, countries, rewards, and APIs 5. HNT Rewards Management Patrium helps owners of multiple hotspots manage and split earnings



Troubleshooting

Bluetooth is turned on, but the hotspot cannot be found

Turn off your cell phone’s Bluetooth and unplug the power adapter. Wait for a minute and start over.



The Bluetooth button was held down as instructed, but the LED light does not change to blue.

Using the pin to press through the BT button can sometimes be tricky. Make sure the pin is positioned on the button for five seconds. If it does not work, unplug the power adapter, wait for a minute, and start over.



I'm not sure if my miner is connected to the internet via ethernet or WiFi?

To ensure your miners are connected via ethernet: (1) Unplug the miner; (2) Insert the ethernet cable into the correct port on the miner; and (3) Plug the power cable back into the miner. It should now connect via ethernet instead of WiFi.



Explorer shows the miner is offline but my device LED is green

If the miner is connected to wifi/ethernet, just leave it. The information from the app/explorer may be delayed.



Can I sync my miner first and then change its location?

Yes, you can sync your hotspot before asserting its location.



What do the LED light colors indicate?

Red: Hotspot is booting. Yellow: Hotspot is powered on but bluetooth is disabled, and it’s not connected to the internet. Blue: In bluetooth mode. Hotspot can be detected by the Helium app. Green: Hotspot is successfully added onto the People's Network, and it's connected to the internet.



How long does the bluetooth mode last?

When the LED light is blue it is in bluetooth mode, and will stay detectable for 5 minutes. After that it will change to yellow if onboarding is incomplete or the internet is not connected, or it will change to green if the hotspot is successfully added and connected to the internet.



How do I turn on bluetooth again to rescan the hotspot?

If you want to scan your hotspot again, use the provided pin to press the "BT Button" on the back of the hotspot. Hold for 5 seconds until the LED light turns blue. If it doesn't work, unplug the power adapter, wait for a minute, and start over.



What color should the LED light be when the miner is working properly?

It should be green. If the light turns yellow, double check your internet connectivity.



How long does it take for my hotspot to start mining once it's been connected to the internet?

Before your added hotspot starts mining, it has to sync with the blockchain 100%. You can check its status under my hotspots on the Helium App. It is normal to take up to 48 hours or even longer, as more miners are added to the network, syncing may take longer.



What if my hotspot is still not fully synced after 48 hours?

The best course of action is to switch to Ethernet from Wi-Fi to improve internet connection. As long as the miner is connected to the internet, it will be fully synced. Avoid rebooting the miner unnecessarily.



How do I complete my OTA update?

These updates are done automatically each day. There is no need for you to do anything including unplugging or rebooting your device. No human intervention is needed to receive the updates. Your miner will be updated automatically as long as it’s connected to the Internet.



My miner is connected to the Internet, but sometimes I still see the LED light change from green to yellow. Do I need to reboot?

No. If you are certain that internet connectivity is stable, you do not have to do anything. The light will go back to green on its own.



How long does it take to see activity once syncing is at 100%?

Usually it takes up to 8 hours for a fully synced hotspot to participate in POC and for records to show up in activity.



My miner says it is relayed. How can I fix it?

When a Hotspot that is relayed issues a challenge, the receipt (or acknowledgement of the challenge) by the challengee and witnessing Hotspots may not arrive in time to be accepted. Why? Because the receipt has to traverse various other Hotspot connections in order to arrive at the relayed challenger. Any witnesses that heard the beacon will have issues submitting their receipts to the challenger in a timely manner. The Challenger does not earn HNT, Challengee (Beaconer) does not earn HNT, witnesses do not earn HNT Fortunately, there is an easy fix for this. Please visit https://www.nowitness.org/ for step by step instructions.



Why is discovery mode not working for my miner?

If your miner is relayed, the discovery mode will not work.



It’s been more than 48 hours and my miner has not finished syncing. Is this normal?

Yes. The sync time does not affect the mine rate. Make sure your wifi or ethernet cable is working. No need to reboot unless it’s been stuck on the exact same block number for more than 24 hours.



My miner shows it’s syncing but it has been stuck on the exact same block number for more than 24 hours. Should I reboot?

Pay attention to the ‘syncing block’ number shown on the explorer. If the number has not changed in 24 hours you shoud check your internet connectivity and/or reboot the miner by unplugging the power and plugging it back in.



There have been lots of reward fluctuations. Is this normal?

Yes. Slower block times, as well as more miners added onto the network and increased PoC intervals (from 4 to 8 hours) will require much longer periods of time to evaluate mining results. You can no longer use 24 hour sample sizes, as it’s no longer useful data.



My miner has not had any activities (eg. beacons, POC challenges) for a day. Is this normal?

Yes. As of June 2021, Helium reduced the PoC challenge interval to 480 blocks from 240 blocks. At the target block time of 60s, this should mean that a Hotspot will be targeted every 8 hours (on average). However, due to slow block times, this interval could be as much as 12 hours or more. It won't be uncommon to go a day or more without a single beacon, as PoC challenges can fail for a number of reasons. The rewards should be the same per beacon, but could take much longer to arrive. This will also mean you witness less often, as the Hotspots around you are also beaconing less frequently. (source: helium general announcement on 6/2/2021. Read more here)



Why am I getting fewer and fewer rewards?

As of 6/2/2021, approximately 1000 Hotspots are joining the network each day. This reduces the per-Hotspot rewards, as the entire HNT pool is now split between more participants. It's important to remember that this decrease is not linear. For example, adding 10% more Hotspots does not necessarily equal 10% less rewards, as it depends on how those Hotspots perform. If they have many witnesses, it could be significantly more than 10%. If they are poorly placed with no witnesses, they could have almost no impact at all. (source: helium general announcement on 6/2/2021. Read more here)



I have network connection issues. How do I troubleshoot?

Please visit the official helium resource on this here. It addresses issues regarding firewalls, Router NAT types, and relays.



I tried adding 2 hotspots to the Helium App. The first was successful, but when I tried adding the second, the app gave me an error. What do I do?

1. Make sure you have the latest version of the app 2. Turn off bluetooth on your cell phone 3. Turn it back on and try adding the hotspot again



"No Onboarding Key Found"

If your app is showing "no onboarding key found" we will need you to send us your mac1 address located on the back of your miner. Once received, we can escalate this to our technical support team to assist you in resolving this issue.



Why Do I Have 0 Witnesses?

If you want to find out why your miner has 0 witness or 0 beacon, please view this unofficial community resource, which gives case by case analysis of this issue, as well as step by step fixes.



Why is My Firmware Outdated?

If your helium hotspot firmware shows an older version on the miner, it does not necessarily mean your hotspot is running on an old firmware and did not receive the updates. Try these steps: 1. Power cycle your hotspot 2. Force exit the helium app 3. Re-enter the app (make sure it's the latest version) and run diagnostics Many users 'stuck' on an older firmware version were able to refresh this display this way.



My Miner Was Fully Synced and Now its Back to Syncing

There are several possibilities as to why this may have happened. Some of them need fixing, some do not. Try searching these key words (i.e., "back to syncing" - "explorer shows synced, but the app shows syncing") on this unoffical community resource. It explains 3 possible reasons for why this may be occuring and also offers solutions for this problem.



What is Discovery Mode?

Discovery mode is not a true reflection of how your miner will beacon/witness because it's only a simulation. 1. It ignores the issue with Relayed Hotspots. Any Hotspots that witness a beacon but is relayed, is unlikely to appear as a valid witness but may appear as a responder in Discovery Mode. 2. It sends 10x more packets than a normal Beacon for Proof-of-Coverage, therefore it is normal to see more Hotspots respond to Discovery Mode than Beacons. 3. It ignores all the rules and logic of Proof-of-Coverage, so if you have lots of Hotspots nearby (within 300 meters), you may see them as valid responders in Discovery Mode, but they may be invalid witnesses for Proof-of-Coverage purposes. Source: https://docs.helium.com/wallets/app-wallet/discovery-mode/



Miner Needs Attention

If your helium app shows hotspot needs attention, it is not necessarily accurate at the moment. Here's what you can do to get the most up to date info on miner status: (1) download the Helium Hotspot Utility app; and (2) run a diagnosis on that app instead For further explanations, visit this unofficial resource and search "needs attention." If you're experiencing offline issues, you can also search "offline".



Onboarding Error? Can't register hotspot?

If you're having issues with onbarding or registering your hotspot, please follow these steps: 1. Make sure your helium app is the latest version 2. Unplug all other miners that are already onboarded 3. Unplug the miner you are trying to onboard, wait for a minute and plug only this one back 4. Re-start the Helium app 5. Turn off your cellphone bluetooth, and turn it back on 6. Try again If this does not help, search "onboarding error" at this unofficial resource. Scenarios covered: - you already own this hotspot - unable to find hotspot in the onboarding server - hotspot is waiting to start - {invalid, gateway_already_active}



FAQ