# Chameleon Lite (RFID Research Group)

> A low-cost RFID emulator holding eight high-frequency and eight low-frequency tags, with six months of battery life.

- **Category:** RFID & NFC
- **Availability:** Listed by maker
- **Price:** €59, checked 2026-09-17
- **Good for:** Carry a handful of test credentials for authorised access testing.
- **You'll need:** Cards you are authorised to clone or emulate.
- **Trade-off:** Emulation only; it cannot read and crack like a Proxmark.
- **Page:** https://gadgets.sh/devices/chameleon-lite/

## Where to buy

| Shop | Status | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Lab401 | Orderable | https://lab401.com/products/chameleon-lite?utm_source=gadgets.sh&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=chameleon-lite&utm_content=api |
| MTools Tec | Orderable | https://shop.mtoolstec.com/product/chameleon-lite?utm_source=gadgets.sh&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=chameleon-lite&utm_content=api |

## Blueprint

**Open hardware.** RfidResearchGroup publishes a schematic PDF and Gerber fab files for the Chameleon Lite in the same GitHub repo as the firmware; no separate BOM file is included.

### Design files

- schematic: [Lite board schematic (PDF, rev 1.0)](https://github.com/RfidResearchGroup/ChameleonUltra/blob/main/hardware/lite/Chameleon_nrf52_lite_V1.0.pdf) (PDF)
- gerbers: [Lite board Gerbers (rev 1.0)](https://github.com/RfidResearchGroup/ChameleonUltra/blob/main/hardware/lite/Chameleon_nrf52_lite_V1.0.zip) (ZIP)

### Source repositories

- [RfidResearchGroup/ChameleonUltra](https://github.com/RfidResearchGroup/ChameleonUltra) — hardware, GPL-3.0, ★3041

### Key parts

| Part | Role | Datasheet |
|---|---|---|
| Nordic nRF52840 | MCU + BLE radio | https://www.nordicsemi.com/products/nrf52840 |

_Notes:_ Verified via gh api tree listing on RfidResearchGroup/ChameleonUltra (hardware/lite/*) and by downloading and unzipping the .zip (contains Gerber/NC-drill files, no BOM). Per RRG's own ChameleonUltraDocs hardware.md, the Lite omits the MFRC522 HF-reader chip that the Ultra/Devkit have, so it can only simulate, not read/write, HF tags.

## Specifications

### Core hardware

| | |
|---|---|
| Processor and memory | Not published by the maker |
| Display | None |
| Radios | 13.56 MHz MIFARE and ISO 14443A emulation · 125 kHz EM4xx emulation · Bluetooth for updates and control |
| Power | 90 mAh LiPo lasting about six months |

### Details from the product page

| | |
|---|---|
| Tag slots | 8 high-frequency and 8 low-frequency slots |
| Emulation | Near-native precision for MIFARE chipsets |
| Controls | Two physical buttons |
| Connectivity | USB 2.0 Type-C and Bluetooth |
| Size and weight | 61 × 36 × 8.8 mm · 8 g |
| Software | Works with the ChameleonUltra UI and CLI tools; fully open source |

### Buying

| | |
|---|---|
| Price | €59 on lab401.com |
| Availability | In stock on the day of review |

## Firmware & community

- [ChameleonUltra Firmware](https://github.com/RfidResearchGroup/ChameleonUltra) — Universal RFID/NFC emulator firmware with card sniffing, emulation, and key dictionary cracking.

## Documentation

- [Distributor product page](https://lab401.com/products/chameleon-lite)

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Source: gadgets.sh · https://gadgets.sh/devices/chameleon-lite/ · JSON: https://gadgets.sh/api/v1/devices/chameleon-lite.json