I have a Duemilanove, but I need a small Duemilanove-clone board for a space-limited application. A cheap one too. I'm willing to spend $20 or so. I have NO serial capabilities so I need either 1)a board that has onboard USB or 2) a board that uses a DIP Atmega so I can program the chip on my Duemilanove. Two options I have seen are the Boarduino (kinda spensive, have to put it together), and the Stickduino (don't know about power requirements).
Because of limited space a 9v alkaline battery would be ideal. I know I can run a Duemilanove or Boarduino with 9v, but I'm not sure about the Stickduino.
Do you know of any other small, usb-capable and/or DIP-chip-using boards I could consider?
The adafruit "DC Boarduino" includes a voltage regulator and would operate fine from a 9V battery (not considering possible battery life issues.)
The "USB Boarduino" and stickduino both get 5V power directly from the USB port and would need an extra voltage regulator to work from a 9V battery. (note however, that building a 5V regulator for a 9V battery is a reasonably cheap and easy project.)
Battery life is a concern, though. I'm not sure how linear voltage regulators work, but I think they always burn a good bit of power.
I guess I could get a DC boarduino and use my Duemilanove to program the chip, since the boarduino uses a DIP. I can forsee frustration at having to remove the chip every time, though. Eventually I could get a serial converter, and the boarduino is within the budget.
For my latest project, I used this for power...
How long does that last? How much current does an arduino board draw from USB?
After reading TFM, I found these specs on the Duemilanove
The board can operate on an external supply of 6 to 20 volts. If supplied with less than 7V, however, the 5V pin may supply less than five volts and the board may be unstable. If using more than 12V, the voltage regulator may overheat and damage the board. The recommended range is 7 to 12 volts.
This makes me wonder if there is a voltage step-up circuit on the Duemilanove for using the USB port power. It also means I could hook a 9v battery straight up if I can fit it.
and this for processing...
The teensy looks very interesting, but not a complete arduino-clone. I'd rather stick with straight clones at this point.
Teensy + SparkFun thing + 2100mAh NiCd cell + 2 LEDs + buzzer runs continuously for about 1.5 days.
How much current does an arduino board draw from USB?
I can't say. The Teensy in my project uses about 18ma when the USB pad is turned off. About 22ma with the USB on. When put to sleep the project uses about 680ua.
The teensy looks very interesting, but not a complete arduino-clone.
Are you opposed to it on philosophical grounds or is there a feature the Teensy lacks?
It might not be a big deal, but I'm dumb, and I do not understand computers. I do not want to worry about my programs working or not working with a slightly different board. Maybe in the future.
I only asked so I'd know if you'd prefer I wandered off or stuck around to answer any questions about my experience with the Teensy. It's no skin off my nose either way.