Is there any reason why I would want to buy a real arduino rather than a cheaper clone?
Can I make apps for iTouch with the free sdk and then use them on my iTouch (only mine) without paying 100 bucks for the developing membership?
I'd appreciate any answers.
Well for #1, I presently like the new Seeeduino Arduino clone boards the best. Not just because of price, but also the additional features and the use of smaller power and USB connectors. I recently obtained one of their Mega clones and very pleased with it.
http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/arduino-related-c-27.html?zenid=9f6118c193cee9f8b7337d4df91a2eca
Lefty
What "additional features"?
I'm just curious.
You should just register and think of something to put on the app store for $100. You will probably make your money back easily. Have you seent he stuff that sells for a buck?
That's the problem. I don't think I'm experienced enough to make things equal even to the baddest dollar apps. I would just make stuff for my own enjoyment, at least at first. But I know you can get the sdk for free. I'd like to know from someone who has used it if you can make an app for yourself with only the free sdk.
It really isn't that hard. I played with the IDE on a mac at my father's office, and the tutorials I found got me far enough in about 5 hours to already have a decent app layed out and a good way done as well. What I am saying is, there is a lot of support and it is easy to learn... the only thing that is stopping me is the lack of a mac, and the amount of money needed to buy one. If you have a mac and some free time, you should certainly invest the 99 bucks.
What "additional features"?
I'm just curious.
Well you could certainly read about them in the listing given.
Manual switch option for auto-reset on/off
Manual switch option for USB/EXTERNAL power
Manual switch for 5/3.3 volts
Additional connector pads for aligning connectors on .1" grid pattern
Those are probably the major features, a few others are of course the use of miniature connectors.
I don't plan on being a fanboy for Seeeduino. There are several other Arduino clone manufactures that design and build good stuff at good prices, and they all have the advantage of having the great original Arduino designs to work off of. It's just open source working well on the hardware front as well as on the software front.
Lefty
the only thing that is stopping me is the lack of a mac
That is quite a sticking point, and not just any mac but an Intel mac. I'm typing this right now on my powerbook G4. I'd love to do some iTouch coding but there is just no mac on the market that I'd remotely consider buying. For a notebook I care about portability and for coding vertical space is what counts, so the widescreen notebooks are too big for the vertical space, I'd rather keep my 4:3 notebook. The mini is underpowered and for the price I'd buy a macbook. The iMacs look best, but on my desktop I always have multiple computers with a KVM switch, I don't have the desk space to devote to a screen with only one computer connected. And the powermacs are just way out of my price range.
Also, if I were to spend $2k on apple hardware just so I can write iTouch programs, the $100 developer fee is just salt in the wound.
I am getting into iphone dev. It isn't that hard. Lookup the Standford iTunes U classes. It's a great starting point.
I am trying to find out how to access the serial port on an iphone the legit way. I think you can now with 3.0.
What do you consider a "real Arduino"?
I have serial-based "standard" boards from NKC and Fundamental Logic, and RBBBs from Modern Device (for non-shield projects), because all my PCs are old enough to have RS-232 ports, and I often build projects that connect to other equipment with serial interfaces.
I bought bare boards, rather than kits, and bought the parts that weren't already in my parts boxes (mostly the resonators) to build them myself. I got pre-programmed ATMega chips from Modern Device, because Paul sells them for not much more than getting blank ones from Mouser.
I'm very happy with all of them, and saved a bunch of money with my approach, but YMMV if you have USB-only PCs.
Ran
By real arduino I meant the original arduino, not a clone.
Also, the iPhone dev thing is only one payment of 99 bucks, right? It's not some kind of subscription where you have to pay yearly or something?
yes itsjust one payment of 99 buks.
Oracle, you said the mini is underpowered... I was thinking of getting the mini todo iphone dev work... would it not work?
Is there any reason why I would want to buy a real arduino rather than a cheaper clone?
To support the original developers - I don't know what kind of licensing deal they have with the companies that sell clones (e.g. seeed studio), but I can imagine they would get more dollars for an official arduino board.
I don't know what kind of licensing deal they have with the companies that sell clones (e.g. seeed studio), but I can imagine they would get more dollars for an official arduino board.
As far as I know they don't ask for any licensing fee, they have open sourced all the hardware design and drawings. They only have a trademark/copywrite to the official name "Arduino", hence all the cleaver/funny clone names ending in ...uino.
That is what first impressed me the most when I stumbled across the Arduino platform. While I was aware of the software open source projects, I hadn't come across a active hardware developer/manufacture that encouraged clones to be developed.
So bottom line, sure, buy the official Arduino boards, they deserve our support for spear heading this great platform. However there seems to be room for diversity of hardware designs and a growing user base to support many manufactures.
Lefty
Interesting.
I know that some manufacturers, which include sparkfun, pay a licencing fee. They may be slightly different though, as they do use the "Arduino" name.
I'm sure I read somewhere that ladyada pays a licensing fee or royalty to the Arduino guys for her Boaduino products - but I might be remembering wrong, and not sufficiently motivated to go searching.
Well if the developers get nothing from clones I double my support for buying "official" boards.
The Iphone dev fee is a yearly fee. There are three levels. INdividual, company, and enterprise. Individual and company is $99/year. Enterprise is $299.
I was thinking of getting the mini todo iphone dev work... would it not work?
I'm not Oracle, but IMHO the mini would be fine for you. I have one as my "main" home PC right now (web browsing, arduino, sketchup, things like that), and until recently, had one as my desk machine at work, too - they're perfectly fine unless you need a ton of processing power. And if writing code for an iPhone is the toughest thing you're gonna do, "a ton of processing power" certainly doesn't have to be on your shopping list.
One of you says it is A one time fee, another says yearly. Which is it?
Apple's website doesn't say anything about a yearly fee... and I only see 2 programs - personal and enterprise.
Apple's website doesn't say annihilation about a annual fee... and I alone see 2 programs - claimed and enterprise.