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Which Dev Board to Buy?

Nathon

Feb 1, 2012
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I am looking to purchase a dev board, but am overwhelmed by the different microcontrollers, features, etc and what makes them better or worse than another. So I'll put the question to the more experienced people out there.

  • Budget is around $180 total.
  • Have already narrowed down to probably either Arduino or PICAxe, but I'm open to other ideas.
  • Board needs to be as feature rich as possible (e.g. network, wireless, usb, motor/servo controllers, sensors, etc.).
  • It needs to have a very powerful programming environment (even if it's a little difficult to learn initially).
  • Want to be able to use it for custom projects (like on hackaday.com), robotics, etc. without having to purchase expensive addons (< $50 for addons) so hopefully the initial purchase covers the most expensive items.

Basically I want the inital purchase to buy the most expensive, basic components like motor/servo controller, wireless, sd, LCD, gps, etc so that the remaining items I might need for various projects are hopefully inexpensive (i.e. less than $40-50). I am a beginner with circuitry, but I don't want a beginner board. I want a board that is very powerful and customizable, but is able to be easily upgraded (like arduino does with stackable shields). I want any addons to fit nicely together (again like arduino) without having to build breakout boards to wire between each one.

However, I'm completely open to other ideas of what I should get or information on what makes the different types of boards (chips) different & better or worse. I just want to make sure I can do the most amount of custom projects possible with just my initial purchase and then things that aren't quite possible with that, I can purchase shields later on.

Thanks!
 

Windadct

May 25, 2011
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One vote for Arduino

One Vote for Arduino

Just personal preference - but this is more of a platform with a lot of other boards available, all open source. I have had awesome service from sparkfun.
 
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Nathon

Feb 1, 2012
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Go Arduino!

Thanks Windadct! Yea, I'm definately leaning toward that solution, but I just keep feeling like there's something really sweet just around the corner if I keep looking. The other problem is they wanted $78 shipping from the Arduino store and SparkFun didn't have the ADK (Android Development Kit) version of the Mega2560.

I really want the capability of connecting it to my android phone. It opens up a whole new world of possible projects. Also, SparkFun seems to be eternally out of stock on the Mega and other Arduino stuff.

The PICAxe had me thinking just because everyone raves about how easy it is to work with, far less code to deal with and is used a lot in robotics (which I'm not all that interested in).
 

(*steve*)

¡sǝpodᴉʇuɐ ǝɥʇ ɹɐǝɥd
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Jan 21, 2010
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I got an Arduino nano from here. The prices are in $US and include shipping.

It's an Arduino copy, but unfortunately they didn't change the Arduino name (which would have made it 100% kosher).

I have had no problems with mine.
 

Nathon

Feb 1, 2012
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Awesome Site!

Thanks for the link to the awesome site Steve! However, they don't seem to carry the new Mega2560 boards. However, their prices seem great! I will definately keep them in mind!
 

jackorocko

Apr 4, 2010
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I bought my arduino on ebay for dirt cheap from china. I wasn't in a hurry and didn't really know if I would even use it. Well I found a use for it and it works perfectly. So now you have another option.
 

jackorocko

Apr 4, 2010
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http://search.digikey.com/us/en/products/A000067/1050-1018-ND/2639006

Genuine Mega 2560 50 bucks, shipping is usually really low, and Digikey usually delivers within a week and a half to 2 weeks

Arduino is definitely the way to go, I have 2 Mega 2560's and fool around with them all the time

That is cheap for a 2650, but I never bought anything from digikey that took two weeks to get. I live in PA and receive my stuff on the order of 2 days. I have placed 3 - 4 orders and never waited more then 3 days. Their shipping is tops
 

GreenGiant

Feb 9, 2012
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That is cheap for a 2650, but I never bought anything from digikey that took two weeks to get. I live in PA and receive my stuff on the order of 2 days. I have placed 3 - 4 orders and never waited more then 3 days. Their shipping is tops

I just noticed that Nathon is from Oregon, and most of the stuff from Digikey ships from New Jersey or Ohio and the cheapest shipping is ground so it can take a little longer

For me in MA it usually takes 4-5 days tops
 

Nathon

Feb 1, 2012
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Thanks to everyone!

Thanks to everyone! I sincerely appreciate your responses. I sure wish the guy who got one from China for "dirt cheap" would have provided a URL. Oh, well. I think I'm going to repost asking what someone would buy if they had slightly more money... say $300?... $400? I want the most feature rich, capable board, regardless of difficulty in learning or brand. I would even consider other chipsets like FPGA, etc.
 

jackorocko

Apr 4, 2010
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it was on ebay, you can search for sellers from certain countries. It should help you find a cheap supplier in china to buy one from.

ebay has some awesome search capabilities, try them out and you will find exactly what you want for the right price. I have no idea if the seller I bought mine from is still around or not. That is why I did not post a url.
 

GreenGiant

Feb 9, 2012
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Thanks to everyone! I sincerely appreciate your responses. I sure wish the guy who got one from China for "dirt cheap" would have provided a URL. Oh, well. I think I'm going to repost asking what someone would buy if they had slightly more money... say $300?... $400? I want the most feature rich, capable board, regardless of difficulty in learning or brand. I would even consider other chipsets like FPGA, etc.

Honestly I would still go with the Arduino, but with the extra cash get some of the shields that are out there, like the network, bluetooth, or protoshield (there are many others but those are just some of the more common ones)

or you can get a larger project with the Arduino, like my friend has a robot that he can control via computer but as soon as he gets the bluetooth shield he will be able to control it from his iPhone
 
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