Hi,
I am thinking of building a project with arduino. I want to get a message via the internet on my Android phone when a switch which is connected to the arduino is pressed.
I'm currently thinking of buying the mega or due. But since i'm new to the Arduino platform(and beginnen in microcontrollers). I really don't know which one is better.
What i do understand is that the due is newer and has a more powerful SoC.
Does the due also have disadvantages when comparing to the mega?
if you have $100 budget go for multiple UNO's as you can combine them and let them communicate with each other. The chip can be bought separately and is easy to replace. With two UNO's you can do a lot of projects ...
I am thinking of building a project with arduino.
Thats a good start, but unless you tell what kind of project how should we advise you.
Besides the clock speed there is a difference in voltage AFAIK. MEGA = 5Volt, DUe 3.3Volt
Warning: Unlike other Arduino boards, the Arduino Due board runs at 3.3V. The maximum voltage that the I/O pins can tolerate is 3.3V. Providing higher voltages, like 5V to an I/O pin could damage the board.
The Due is new, still in beta software version, and more complex. Unless you
have a pressing reason(*) to use it I'd say don't (for now...)
A Uno with plug in 328 is a really good place to start because it is the most
supported, because you can replace the chip, because nearly every shield will
work with it.
If you know you need the pins the Mega is then a logical choice - there are various
clones that are better options, the Seeedstudio's Mega variants have switchable
5V / 3.3V voltage, and provide a few more pins I believe. These days having
3.3V support is starting to be important, although a lot of older shields don't
support 3.3V, a lot of sensors and devices these days are 3.3V.
(*) such as needing the raw power, its 84MHz and 32-bit.