I'm looking to buy an Arduino clone for a low cost standalone project. But the one I'm preferring (in terms of balanced cost and build quality) has an ATMega328 microcontroller instead of the ATMega328P that's present in my original Arduino development boards. Now, from the past I have an experience of a major 'pita' while trying to load the UNO bootloader to an ATMega328 (changing device signatures in the Arduino IDE files.)
Now will this ready Arduino with ATMega328 Microcontroller pose the same problem of incompatible device fingerprints during programming with the IDE?
I'm finding some Chinese clones with ATMega328P, but I prefer anything else.
I don't follow what you are saying. You seem to prefer the ATmega328 instead of the standard and most common ATmega328P, yet you refer to your past experience with the ATmega328 as being a pita. Why would you prefer anything other than the standard ATmega328P?
Oh, I see. I think it is highly likely that you won't be able to find any boards at all for sale with ATmega328 installed, and that all of them have ATmega328P even if the listings says ATmega328. It is common for people to be inexact when talking about Arduino boards and when they talk or write they say ATmega328 or 328 when they mean ATmega328P. If the seller would be willing to pull a board from stock and send you a close up photo of it, it is likely you will see it has ATmega328P. If you find this is not the case I will eat my words.
If you want to use an Arduino board for a standalone project, you can't go wrong with the cheap Arduino Pro Mini modules at Ebay for less than 1.50$ each. I've used a few of them, and they are all genuine ATmega328p 's. They also got an onboard voltage regulator and a reset switch I've build an audio amplifier where this cheap module are constantly monitoring the sensors and the power supply. It's been running for a year now (day and night) without any issues. You'll need an FTDI adapter (or similar) to program these, as they don't have an onboard USB to serial converter (if you want that, go for an Arduino Nano)
You're not assuming that an eBay-sold has an ATmega328 rather than a 328p just because the description SAYS something like "Arduino clone with ATmega328", are you?
from the past I have an experience of a major 'pita' while trying to load the UNO bootloader to an ATMega328
It shouldn't be as bad as it used to be, now that there is a newer avrdude that already understands "ATmega328"
Use a tool like "Optiloader" or Nick Gammon's rewrite, and it's even easier.
westfw:
You're not assuming that an eBay-sold has an ATmega328 rather than a 328p just because the description SAYS something like "Arduino clone with ATmega328", are you?
Yes, this thread missed my attention. lest I chime in first with the reply that needs to immediately follow any such query and must be answered before any further time is frivolously wasted.
Well that is interesting, the product description says ATmega328P while the picture of the product shows ATmega328. That is enough to make we want to avoid the vendor, or at least ask them why the discrepancy. I've seen same types of discrepancies from eBay and Amazon sellers, and other open marketplaces. When buying at discount prices, you have more risk, and that's just the way it goes. You "pay" for the product one way or another, either with a combination of a lot of cash and very little problems, or very little cash and potentially a lot of problems and hours of your labor.
