Arduino
There are several well-curated starter kits available for Arduino. We’ve linked to a few that we think are a good value. We’ve also listed the must-haves to look out for. If you don’t want to shell out for a complete starter kit, make sure you have the following components:
- Some Arduino board:
- Uno
- Mega
- Leonardo
- You can also jump into versions with more functionality such as built in wifi or 3G connectivity. These can sometimes be more difficult to get up and running if you are a beginner
- Yun
- Particle
- Metro (adafruit)
- USB cable compatible with your Arduino board (check the specs)
- 5v Power Supply with barrel jack
- Assorted LEDs
- Assorted resistors
- N-Channel MOSFETs or assorted transistors
- Potentiometer
- Push Buttons
- Switches
- Accelerometer/Gyroscope (IMU)
- Proximity Sensor (Maxbotix is a good choice)
The following starter kits will get you most of the way there:
- The Amazon Option
- Arduino might be knock-off
- Parts may be of lower quality
- The Adafruit Starter Kit
- Real Arduino
- Lacks sensors
Raspberry Pi
We’ll be working with the Pi a lot this semester and you’ll end up working with this tool often from home, so it’s a good idea to have your own. Again, there are a few start kits out there. We like THIS ONE. If you already have some parts, or want to select your own, you will need at least the following components:
- Raspberry Pi 3
- 5v 2A microUSB power supply
- HDMI cable
- microSD card (at least 8gb)
- keyboard/mouse
- ethernet cable
- we’ll use ethernet in class because CMU doesn’t like new wifi devices