Freeduino Suppliers?

Does anyone know a manufacturer of Freeduino's? Where do the guys that sell the Freeduino's get theirs from? Is there a manufacturer that makes them?

You can contact me at yerobot@googlemail.com

There are many freeduino boards, most of them comes in a DIY KIT format (Freeduino USB - yellow board with round corners... Freeduino MAX - green. works with RS232 interface... Freeduino serial V2.0 - green too and works also with RS232 interface... Freeduino USB kit sold by Seeeduino (they are migrating to the round corner PCB)).

They are manufactured and sold by many companies.

I am looking for a director manufacturer or supplier though. The kits you mention are very expensive.

I think that most of the distributors of the Boards labeled "Freeduino" ARE the manufacturers of the boards as well. This is certainly true of NKC, MDC, and SeeedStudio for example (although those are three different "sorts" of Freeduino. "Freeduino" as name is not controlled at all, so anyone can call anything a freeduino.)

This is part of the motivation for "Freeduino" - by knocking out a level of distribution, you (theoretically, anyway) increase profit margins (or decrease costs) by a significant amount. I would expect that most of the Freeduino distributors might be open to discussions about buying bare board if you're talking about buying lots at one time. (some already sell bare boards.) Or you can take the design files and send them out to a PCB shop and get boards made on your own. (so far, it looks like contract manufacturing to get complete board rather than bare boards or kits, has not been cost effective.)

Anyone interesting in Freeduino kind of products or various shield products, you can contact:

yerobot@googlemail.com

We can supply whole range of freeduino products.

Is it me or do RobotZealot's posts border on spam?

Well it is a legitimate answer. Checked their website and seems like a direct manufacturer/retailer like many of the Arduino suppliers.

lol nkcelectronics is a distributor too, and he stopped short of making a direct sales pitch.

I think we could help Mike Mc more if he stated what his needs were:

  1. are bare boards okay? (get the components elsewhere in bulk for lower cost.)

  2. which type of board do you want?

  3. if 2 is too specific; which features does your board need? (USB, male/female headers, shield compatibility, etc.)

Example: Modern Device Company sells their Bare Bones Board PCBs for as low as $2 a pop (100 qty).
If you wanted bulk preassembled/unassembled kits, he seems like the type of guy who would work something out in your favor. (<$10 a kit)

This is just an example, it would be a good viable option if the boards had built in USB for the price (BBB does not), but we don't know what you need in the first place. I chose his company because they're some of the cheapest boards you can get.

Is it me or do RobotZealot's posts border on spam?

It's you, he gave a specific answer to a specific question. The many vendors that support the Arduino community have an important role in it's success so far.

Lefty

Scott.. I'm after standard Freeduino's with a USB connection. In other words a 100% Diecimila/Duemilanove clone.

Not a fan of soldering SMD parts so want them pre-assembled.

RobotZealot has actually conacted me via PM's and has been very helpful.

I don't care if the guys give me a sales pitch. I'm after assembled Freeduino's for as cheaply as possible so whoever can give me the best deal gets the job! :wink:

Another question I suppose is how many boards you're looking for.

Our buddy nkc's freeduino usb kit is $19.20/unit when you buy 10, for example. I don't own one, but it would probably be my next arduino board purchase. It is a kit, but like most other USB boards, the FDTI chip is presoldered.

I apologize for what I said, I am merely skeptical of posters representing companies that have just signed up the day before and are throwing out their e-mail and sales pitches. (Seen it a couple times before)

Looking at his site, the price of his clone looks pretty good. I know you're already in contact with him, so you could see if you may get a quantity discount.

If you're ordering enough units on a continuous basis (say, you're a school), you might also look into what it takes to become a "distributor" instead of an end-customer, of the official boards.

It's still a case of finding a company to make and assemble the PCB's though.

Ever consider Seeed Studio? We have just refreshed our stock along with NKC electronics, :wink:
http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/freeduino-usb-complete-kitarduino-duemilanove-compatible-p-58.html

I'm sure that board meets his needs, but he wants assembled boards in bulk at cheap prices. (or so I think from what has been said)

While browsing I saw this: http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/seeeduino-v11-rohs-compliant-20-pcs-pack-p-229.html

It's close to what he's looking for, I believe.

After all this talk, these are the things I'd try:

  1. Approach nkcelectronics or seeedstudio and try for bulk kits, pay a friend to build them for cheap lol. (Heck I'd do it because I love soldering so much.)

  2. Same as above, see if they will assemble them for a reasonable price.

  3. If you really need many many boards, buy either:

http://www.nkcelectronics.com/arduino-board-usb.html

OR

http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/freeduino-pcb-through-hole-version-p-3.html

buy the components yourself in large quantities, and find someone to build them.

I don't know why the freeduino (yellow board) doesn't come in a pre-assembled form. Thats why I mentioned the seeeduino. I personally would rather a DIP ATMEGA in case you blow something up. I lost my $50 arduino nano that way, no real way to replace the chip easily.

It would be easier to help if you answered my earlier question regarding how many boards you need. I can only speculate.

Options 1 and 2 have the surface mount components mounted already. Anyone with moderate experience soldering could finish the first in less than an hour and probably a half hour after that.

EDIT: Apparently that NKC arduino PCB has the analog pin labels switched around. I doubt you want that one.

Well Bhasha Technologies is also a manufacturer of Freeduino Serial and USB Boards and kits.
We also manufacture Arduino Severino, low cost version for Hobbyists.
Range starting from USD $ 9, and discounts for bulk orders.

We also make and assemble PCB.

Check out www.bhasha.co.cc for more details.

sneaky bastard nkc added the bare freeduino board to his stock:
http://nkcelectronics.com/freeduino-usb-throughhole-pcb.html

Have a look at www.yerobot.com