Has Atmel significantly raised 8-bit MCU prices recently or is this Digikey?

Chagrin:
octopart.com has historical chip prices.

I didn't know that. It's interesting. It puts the lowest price ever at $2.29 and I have a record of getting it for $1.92 for 25 on 1/21/13 while it puts the price at $2.63 on that date. I wonder if this is for quantity 1 for all suppliers or some averaging over all quantities and all suppliers. The methodology isn't mentioned. It has the prices higher than what I paid for back then and now gives prices lower than what Digikey wants (now $3.10 @ 25, $2.90 @ 25 when I posted this two days ago!)

PEAK AVR! ]:slight_smile:

But yeah, it went down and I bought it in a down area and it went back up.

I buy mine mostly from eBay Australia and I look take float around aliexpress.

On eBay, I use to see packs of the 328p-pu dip's for I think $7-$8 and that was for four or five units. But now you are lucky to see two units.

I wish I had kept better track of the whole pricing thing, and am I wishing that I had gotten a few more about a year ago.

A lot of those price changes can be put down to currency fluctuations.

This has forced me to go count what I have left to make sure Atmel doesn't leave me high and dry.

14 ATMega328P-PUs out of the initial buys of 60 (10 came from Jameco with bootloaders which I don't use).
11 ATMega328-PUs out of the buy of 25.
16 ATMega32P-AU out of the buy of 25.

Lots of ATTinys still - 25 ATTINY88-PU, 48 ATTiny85-20PU, 22 ATTiny85-20SHR. All a lot cheaper when I ordered them.

Various other chips - Mega, XMega, UC3 via sampling.

I should be set for a bit. Waiting for the price to come back down...

I don't know about you guys and girls, but I would like to see some reliable Chinese place on eBay selling microcontrollers in individual and in lots.

I avoid eBay.

Online Shopping atmel - Buy Popular atmel - Banggood Mobile avoid eBay.

USA price (used whichever cheaper, mouser or digikey, Newark was never the best deal.)
2/17/2012 Mouser 100 ATMEGA328P-PU for $290 $2.9/each
10/15/2012 Digikey 112 same chip for $202, $1.8/each
5/12/2013 Mouser 112 same chip for $202, $1.8/each
3/3/2014 Mouser 112 same chip for $304, $2.7/each

Yes, the price has gone up but I can't help it. Have to have many of those suckers for my kits and builds. I have less than 100 left. Will take a vacation so please keep me posted on the price. I really should have dumped $200 towards the end of last year on more chips. Now I wasted about $100 extra. You never run out of ideas where to put them on a new design or build existing ones.

Plus, please buy multiples of 14 (14/tube) so they don't have to cut a tube. :wink:

$1.84 each in 100 lots

None in stock tho, 6000+ arriving 4/21

$2.73 each in 100 lots

$2.32 each in 100 lots

High price looks like a digikey thing

$2.77 for bootloaded & labelled parts, mailed inexpensively from Niagara Falls, Canada
Atmega328 w/ Arduino UNO Optiboot Bootloader ATMEGA328P-PU - dipmicro electronics Uno bootloader
Atmega328 w/ Arduino Duemilanove Bootloader ATMEGA328P-PU - dipmicro electronics Duemilanove bootloader

I know, mouser has run out. I got a hundred before they ran out, at $2.8 each. I will be waiting and placing an order when they are back in stock. Good call, placed it in my scheduler. Forgot that myself and no taxes!

Yeah, the nice labeled ones from dipmicro.com Just not enough to go around. Bootloading takes 9 seconds with Optiloader.

Order them now - they will ship in a week when they arrive.

I think if you bootload from atmel studio, it is even quicker as it only writes the bootload code, and not the whole chip.
Not worth it for 1, takes more than 9 seconds for atmel studio to open. Haven't tried with my new Lenovo W530, see how much faster than old Sony Viao.

Good catch on the prices. Maybe Digikey is trying to take advantage that they are the only ones who have much stock right now. Hopefully it will all normalize. Possibly, Atmel got behind on production.

Because I do not have hundreds of dollars to spend when it comes to buying microcontrollers, I can only buy a few at a time, maybe spend $10-$30 if I am lucky, and that has to include shipping.

CrossRoads:
$2.77 for bootloaded & labelled parts, mailed inexpensively from Niagara Falls, Canada
Atmega328 w/ Arduino UNO Optiboot Bootloader ATMEGA328P-PU - dipmicro electronics Uno bootloader
Atmega328 w/ Arduino Duemilanove Bootloader ATMEGA328P-PU - dipmicro electronics Duemilanove bootloader

The raw atmega328p IC's on that website without the sale is CA$4.26 and with the special, they are CA$3.20, and that dose not include the shipping. And then the units with a bootloader and sticker are CA$5.01 and while on sale CA$2.95.
Really should take note that is a sale and not the normal price, plus you have to add shipping.

polypagan:
I avoid eBay.

Online Shopping atmel - Buy Popular atmel - Banggood Mobile avoid eBay.

You know there is a good chance they have there own eBay store, right?

dipmicro has really cheap shipping - somehow they are able to use USPS and pay even less then we for a flat rate box.

CrossRoads:
dipmicro has really cheap shipping - somehow they are able to use USPS and pay even less then we for a flat rate box.

Someone working there could know someone in the US postal service or because they ship a lot they are given a discount.

I think it's something to do with mailing in from outside the US.
China companies send us stuff via USPS Registered airmail, and I am amazed at the low rates compared to what I have to pay to send international.

Dipmicro in at niagra falls so they ship to US from within US and if it's Canadian order, they just ship in Canada. If you purchase more than $15, use ILOVECANADA for free shipping. Has to be less than 13 oz in total otherwise first class mail won't ship.

Many Chinese ebay stores ship from Hongkong. It's a free port, so shipping must be a lot cheaper. The US international rates are super high. I used to get lots of international orders :frowning:

Current prices:

I might order a few tubes when I run low. Mouser will get some stock in July so there is no reason to panic.