Hi,
>
>New to the group... But did google around the archives first, so please
>excuse if this has been done to death - I did try(!)
The guys over at comp.arch.embedded may also have some thoughts. I added that group as a cross-post, with follow-ups directed to the original group at s.e.d.
I play with AVRs (Tiny/Mega) as a hobby (linux sysadmin, perl/C
>programmer by trade).
>
>I fancy having a play with some radio datalinks (with a view to home
>automation) - but there seem to be a million modules and a fair number of
>frequencies and standards. I'm just after some pointers based off some
>simple requirements:
>
>Important:
>
>a) Range - 20m through masonry (11" brick wall and 4" wall sort of thing,
>no rebar), 40m free air (could accept 10/20m)
>
>b) Usable data rate - 10's to 100-ish kbit/sec
>
>c) Cheap - 20 pounds sterling give or take, say 40 US dollars for a small
>easy to mount module (wire pads/header pins - no funky surface mount
>modules, my soldering isn't that advanced)
Have a look over at
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and
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for an idea of what's available. For one-off, the simplicity of throwing on an XBee module is hard to beat (and it meets your price point) but there are several other choices.
Cost increases with data rate and complexity, so you'll have to make the decision as to where your comfort zone is.