CicadaTAK
Utilities
$0.99 · Designed for iPad. Not verified for macOS.
CicadaTAK turns your phone into a team-awareness display for places
with no cell service and no internet — backcountry, disaster areas, large
properties, search grids, event perimeters.
It is the companion app for CicadaTAK mesh nodes: open-source, sub-$300 radio
gateways you build yourself (full instructions at cicadatak.com). Nodes form a
self-healing 900 MHz HaLow mesh with a mile of range, and every phone
connected to a node shares one live picture.
LIVE TEAM MAP
• Every teammate's position updates live on the map, with callsigns, colors,
and breadcrumb trails
• Offline map layers — download street, topo, and aerial imagery to the mesh
and use them with zero internet
• Drop markers, draw geofence zones, measure distance and bearing
• Mesh health overlay shows every radio link, color-coded by live throughput
TEAM CHAT
• Text messaging across the mesh, end-to-end encrypted with your team
passphrase
• Share photos from camera or gallery — delivered over the mesh, never through
a server
• Delivery receipts: one check sent, two checks delivered
• Canned quick replies for one-tap messaging on the move
PUSH-TO-TALK VOICE
• Real-time PTT voice to the whole team — live streaming audio, not recorded
clips
• Works with the screen locked
• Optimized voice codec keeps audio clear even on marginal links
MESH AWARENESS
• Node list with signal strength, battery state, and per-node hardware status
• Animated topology view — your whole mesh drawn as a live map-oriented graph
• One-tap node ping with round-trip time and link quality
LONG-RANGE LoRa BRIDGE
• Nodes with LoRa hardware bridge to Meshtastic devices, extending reach to
inexpensive handheld radios
• Three privacy modes, from open interop to fully dark
WORKS WITH TAK
• Nodes can bridge positions to ATAK/TAK clients on the same network via
Cursor-on-Target
YOUR DATA STAYS YOURS
• No accounts, no sign-up, no cloud, no analytics
• Everything travels phone → your own radio hardware → teammates' phones
• We never see your location, messages, photos, or voice — there is no server
to see them
IMPORTANT
• Full functionality requires CicadaTAK node hardware and software. Without a node, the app
runs in Standalone Mode: your GPS position on the map, offline-map browsing,
and every screen navigable — mesh chat, PTT, and team positions activate when
you connect to a node.
• CicadaTAK nodes operate in the 902–928 MHz license-free ISM band, legal in
the US, Canada, and Mexico. No radio license required.
• Build your nodes at cicadatak.com — open-source hardware and firmware.
Ratings & Reviews
- This app hasn’t received enough ratings or reviews to display an overview.
• LoRa Mode now shows your node's real radio status and clearer in-app
direction.
• Flash a new LoRa board straight from Settings — no computer needed.
• Node firmware update available: Settings → Node Firmware → Check Latest.
• Settings shows the correct app version.
• Stability and polish improvements.
The developer, Merbella Studios Inc, indicated that the app’s privacy practices may include handling of data as described below. For more information, see the developer’s privacy policy .
Data Not Collected
The developer does not collect any data from this app.
Accessibility
The developer has not yet indicated which accessibility features this app supports. Learn More
Information
- Seller
- Merbella Studios Inc.
- Size
- 29 MB
- Category
- Utilities
- Compatibility
Requires iOS 15.1 or later.
- iPhone
Requires iOS 15.1 or later. - iPad
Requires iPadOS 15.1 or later. - iPod touch
Requires iOS 15.1 or later. - Mac
Requires macOS 15.1 or later and a Mac with Apple M1 chip or later. - Apple Vision
Requires visionOS 1.0 or later.
- iPhone
- Languages
- English
- Age Rating
4+
- 4+
- Copyright
- © Tyler Sutter 2026
