Arduino was there earlier than the Raspberry Pi and it democratized entry to electronics and {hardware} hacking lengthy earlier than all people’s favourite SBC. The Arduino Uno, essentially the most well-known board within the vary is now over a decade outdated. In that point it has powered numerous initiatives, however now we have by no means formally been in a position to make our personal. Till now.
Arduino’s $58 Make Your Uno package is far more than an Arduino Uno in a field of elements. Moderately, now we have to assemble our personal Uno from the included components. Which means that we have to use one of many greatest soldering irons to solder the elements into place. However this package doesn’t simply give us the components to make an Arduino microcontroller; we additionally assemble our personal protect (the same idea to Raspberry Pi’s HAT add-ons) and an Audio Synth which we are able to use to make music / beeps / boops.
An excellent studying device and an all-around good time to construct, the Arduino Make Your Uno package is a incredible present for youths, established makers or for your self. Nonetheless, if all you need is a working microcontroller board, there are less expensive choices. An everyday Arduino Uno (with out audio synth and protect) prices $28, a fully-functional clone goes for $18 and a extra highly effective different just like the Raspberry Pi Pico W could be had for simply $6.
Arduino Make Your Uno Package Specs
| Arduino Make Your UNO | Arduino Uno PCB |
| USB C Serial adapter | |
| Via gap elements | |
| ATmega 328p Microcontroller | |
| 16 MHz Clock | |
| 32KB Flash | |
| 2KB SRAM | |
| 14 x Digital IO pins | |
| 6 x PWM pins (shared with digital) | |
| 6 x Analog pins | |
| Arduino Audio Synth | Audio Synth PCB |
| Via gap elements |
Assembling the Package
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Straight off the bat, this can be a pretty package to construct. The PCB is of a top quality, one thing now we have skilled with Arduino boards prior to now. As this package is geared toward these new to soldering, the primary job is to solder a debug circuit. That is basically an LED with an inline 1 Kilo Ohm resistor. Two wires from the circuit are used to test that every of the Uno’s GPIO pins are working appropriately. This can be a good contact. It allows us to get constructing with out worrying about making errors. With that constructed, we transfer on to the star of the present, the Arduino Uno.
Constructing the Uno is comparatively simple. The included elements are all by means of gap, making for simpler soldering. The one part to characteristic floor mount elements is a USB-C to Serial board. This board is pre-assembled and drops straight into the primary Uno PCB. Only a few legs to solder and the USB-C and Uno are joined.
On-line directions information us by means of the soldering course of. Usually soldering decrease elements earlier than shifting on to taller. These directions will not be simply mere diagrams and textual content. Moderately, they’re interactive 3D fashions which present the elements being positioned into the boards. This can be a good contact for these new to soldering. We are able to visualize how the components are inserted, spin the board round for a greater angle and zoom in to identify precisely the place we have to be. Coming as somebody who has adopted numerous circuit diagrams, this can be a refreshing and most welcome change.
It ought to take a newbie about an hour to solder the package. Extra skilled makers will undoubtedly shave minutes from that point. However irrespective of your expertise, you’ll have enjoyable soldering this package. Our one criticism of the white PCB is that it reveals all of the flux from our solder. That’s nothing a fast clear with isopropyl alcohol can’t repair.
As soon as the Arduino is constructed, it’s a factor of magnificence. The elements on the board could differ to the floor mount soldered variations on a typical Arduino Uno, however the pin structure and type issue is unmistakable. We moved ahead and soldered up the Audio Synth protect. This protect is a group of six potentiometers that are related to the six analog enter pins of the Arduino. The audio is routed to an LM386N energy amplifier after which performed through a speaker on the PCB. The Audio Synth protect suits atop the Arduino Uno and we then reuse the packaging to create a easy instrument. However how can we program it? For that we’d like an IDE.
Programming the Make Your Uno Package Audio Synth
As that is an Arduino, we have to use the Arduino IDE and we examined it with the most recent Arduino IDE 2.0 launch and an older 1.8 sequence IDE. It labored flawlessly with each, a testomony to the longevity of the Uno vary which has labored with many iterations of the IDE. We related the Arduino Uno to our Home windows PC and the gadget was detected as an Arduno Make Your Uno Package, a pleasant contact that units it other than typical Unos.
The Audio Synth has a fundamental sketch (Arduino parlance for a mission’s code) that may play beeps and boops, however there’s a complicated sketch which turns the package right into a synth instrument, of kinds. Sounding like a prop from a Nineteen Eighties sci-fi film, the Audio Synth protect is nice enjoyable.
Can we use different shields with the Make Your Uno? Why sure we are able to. We examined an official, however aged Ethernet protect and ran a fast internet server instance sketch. It simply labored, with no drama or points. An Uno, soldered simply hours earlier than, was now serving content material to units on our community.
Who’s the Make Your Uno Package Aimed toward, and Why?
Squarely, the package is geared toward newcomers to the Arduno and maker neighborhood. The simplicity of the package, the great directions and the teachings discovered by constructing from uncooked elements makes this a syllabus moderately than a lesson.
We study a lot by doing, and after all of the work we’re left with a tool which we are able to use to construct much more wondrous issues. That stated, within the age of IoT, it might’ve been good to have a mannequin with Wi-Fi baked into the board.
Backside Line
In case you are new to the Arduino or soldering then this can be a enjoyable package to make. You might simply purchase a $6 Raspberry Pi Pico W microcontroller, which makes use of a extra highly effective RP2040 CPU and has built-in Wi-Fi, however you’ll be lacking out on the educational that this package supplies.
On the finish of all of your arduous work you could have an Arduino Uno, able to go additional and grow to be far more than only a assortment of elements. It appears that evidently Arduino has as soon as once more helped us to rediscover our love of creating.