Best Arduino Board for low power consumption

I'm looking for an arduino board that has an inbuilt USB programmer (so I don't need FTDI), is 5v, and is very low power consumption so it can be battery powered. At this point it doesn't matter what modules will be connected - I'm just working out the MCU first.

What does best mean ?

ESP32

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@LarryD
I'm looking for a pro mini that has USB basically. It doesn't need WiFi.

I bought 1 (one) FTDI .

I have used it on 100s of Arduino Pro Minis (projects that don’t use Serial).


You can program Pro Minis with ISP also.


What are you trying to do here ?

@LarryD

For debugging purposes I'm gonna need Serial. It is a transmitter for a weather station.

I can test everything on a Uno first I guess, but I'm gonna need something smaller and lower power than an Uno for the final product.

I'm not 100% sure what sensors I'll be using, but the device will transmit one burst of data every minute, so the sensors/modules can be shut off while there is no transmission happening. That will save even more power.

What is the advantage of using a Pro Mini over using a Nano in low power mode?

Since the Pro Mini does not have serial hardware, you save on the power consumption it would have taken.


You can use the FTDI and Pro Mini combination for serial debugging option; when you are finished with proving the sketch, you simply remove the FTDI.

The Nano and Pro Mini boards are essentially then same.


If you are making a weather station it would make sense to use a ESP32 with WIFI.

EDIT

I like the ESP32 development boards, about $10.00 each.

Maybe for the inside receiver... I don't see the point of WiFi on a transmitter that is out of range of the WiFi signal...

Ok, perfect, I didn't realise that FTDI allowed serial.

Except that the nano has an in-built programmer chip?

I might get by with a Nano - aren't they only 15mA?

EDIT: I actually don't have WiFi in my house - only ethernet.

I'm quite liking the idea of using the pro mini - no USB cables in the transmitter box!

Except that the nano has an in-built programmer chip?
No, it has on board serial hardware, think of this as onboard an FTDI.

I might get by with a Nano - aren't they only 15mA?
About 20mA but can be reduced if you sleep/wake_up the controller.

EDIT: I actually don't have WiFi in my house - only ethernet.
Hmmm, then you get a WIFI unit and plug it into the router.

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This is my current list of hardware for the transmitter. Will the pro mini handle all of this?

I would, but my parents won't let me as they think WiFi is dangerous.

It might be.

I think cell phones held against your head are worse. :face_with_spiral_eyes:

Totally agree :rofl::rofl:

What about the hardware I linked to? Will the pro mini handle all of that?

The wind vain uses Modbus Protocol (485 serial).

Not familiar with this, others here should be.


The anemometer and temperature/humidity should be easily handed.

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Do you know of any wind vane that would definitely work?

I have not had the pleasure.

Maybe search this web site to see if others have done this.

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I'm thinking this could/might work?

Don’t know :roll_eyes: .


Hey, make your own, use 8 reed switches or 8 Hall effect sensors.

That is an idea....
How do I make it fully waterproof?

Cover the breadboard wiring in UV resin.