When winter settles in around these parts, daylight doesn't seem to last too long. So like moths we tend to get excited about the new bright and shiny toys we bring in. Today we have Super Bright LEDs - they're the nifty little units we put in the HexPummer Lantern to create that extra pulse […]
Arduino Uno and Neeeew York City!
Dave Hrynkiw
September 29, 2010
We're back from the Open Source Hardware Summit and the Maker Faire! Did lots; learned lots; got lots of touristy things done too.
One of the main highlights was meeting and listening to talks by three of the principle members of the Arduino team. They took pity on English-speakers, and named the new revision the Arduino "UNO" which we now have in stock, along with the upgraded Arduino Mega 2560. Here (in short) are the principle differences between the Duemilanove and the new Uno:
- It uses the same microcontroller as before, but is on a new re-branded board ("Uno") with slicker packaging & graphics. Oh, and a logo too!
- The pin lables are a bit tighter, and better show how they are used (hardware PWM is marked with a "~")
- Stickers! And neat paperwork explaining warrantee, how it was made and tested, and how each purchase helps protect a 1/2 square meter of Madagascar forest. Cool.
- CE / FCC certification. This is an important one, which assures electronics performance & noise control. Not an inexpensive proposition - kudos on getting this certification!
- Smaller bootloader - gives you more space for code for sketches!
- Better 3.3V regulator on board (old 3.3V came from FTDI chip, which was a bit wimpy)
- MOST IMPORTANT CHANGE: Replacement of the FTDI USB/TTL interface chip with an ATmega8U2 microcontroller. It's apparently cheaper, faster and definitely a whole lot more flexible. There's even a separate ICSP header on the UNO to let you reprogram this second microcontroller to make your Arduino UNO appear to be something vastly different USB device to your operating system.
The Open Source Hardware Summit was a busy day (went by very quick) and in general was quite well attended. Practically all the rock-stars of the genre were there, and all the talks were well worth the price of admission. We were happy to put our sponsorship behind an event of this quality, as it brought out very interesting discussions. I won't delve too deep into it here - view the archived video of the event, and see for yourself!
MORE POSTS
Friday New Product: Grove Stuff
New today is the Grove series from SeeedStudio. What makes Grove different is that is very modular, making quick-prototyping quite rapid. Usually this is an expensive feature. The rule of thumb is "Price, Speed, Quality - pick any two", but Seeed has made the 3 curves match just right.
Victoria Day Holiday
Monday May 24 is Victoria Day in Canada. We'll be using the old Queen's Birthday as an excuse to twiddle our toes in the grass and watch robots roam free. We'll be back to work Tuesday morning, bright and early!
Hello...? Is this thing on....?
This is was just a Test. This is a test of the Dave broadcasting system. If this was a real Dave, you'd be notified what to do in the eventuality that you met a real Dave. This has been a test of the Dave broadcasting system. *Beeeeeep* Ok, it seems like we've got […]
Solarbotics has been operating for more than 25 years, bringing electronics know-how and supplies to both the electronics professional and hobbyist. We'll be happy to help you too!
Solarbotics, Ltd. is not responsible for misprints or errors on product prices or information. For more information, please see our Terms and Conditions.
Warning: This product contains chemicals known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm.
Please visit www.P65Warnings.ca.gov for more information. This item was manufactured prior to August 31, 2018.