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Arduino Forum Some thoughts on the last inventor kit from SparkFun
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Related

Some thoughts on the last inventor kit from SparkFun

balearicdynamics
balearicdynamics over 10 years ago

https://www.sparkfun.com/products/13271?utm_source=SparkFun+Customer+Newsletter&utm_campaign=5582a812a4-June19_newslette…

 

What shown in the link above is essentially what is shown in the image below:

image

I have done a small test about its content:

The main piece is the sort of Spark-uino image, Arduino compatible etc. with optiboot instead of the standard Arduino bootloader. It costs 19$ from Sparkfun.

Then the kit includes:

DC motor, 2$ - 3$

20 coloured LEDs, 6$ for all, average price on Farnell site

3 pushbuttons + 2 (different size) and other discrete components for about 4$ (average price on Farnell site)

I want to ignore the cables, anyway we can add another 3$ for this stuff

Servo motor, around 6$

Sound sensor and accelerometer, 10$ (just to exagerate)

A small-sized breadboard with support, around 5$

 

The total of this stuff is less than 60$, most of them IMHO is useless.

 

The kit is sold at 149$, three times more (!!!) but what leave me astonished is that after years (because are years) the new, the last updated release, the non-plus-ultra again proposes always the same soup: a list of always the same circuits, from blinking a LED up to detect acceleration, detect sound and so on. With a very poor satisfaction of the customer, I think, as he should do nothing more than copy-and-plug the circuits designed on the documentation. That is all downloadable.

 

What a well educated, really supported user can do with 150$ ? I think more and more and more. With more satisfaction and surely acquiring more knowledge.

 

Just to share a point of view.

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Top Replies

  • mcb1
    mcb1 over 10 years ago +2
    balearicdynamics Enrico you are quite right about the cost markup ... just because it's packaged. Whether they supply you with Labview is perhaps the only difference. DAB The kit makes a great gift for…
  • ipv1
    ipv1 over 10 years ago +1
    I get most of my stuff from www.seeedstudios.com which is pretty decent in terms of the price. They offer free shipping for orders above 50USD and this order may also include PCBs! I recently got a solar…
  • mcb1
    mcb1 over 10 years ago in reply to balearicdynamics +1
    It seems that Labview is either another marketing exercise or the uptake was poor. That's a hefty discount ... Diligent are selling the Labview Home Bundle for $49 https://www.digilentinc.com/Products…
  • DAB
    DAB over 10 years ago

    I think you need to look past just the value of the components as a comparison.

     

    You have the cost of establishing the BOM, the instructions and creating the projects for someone new to microcomputers and electronics to get a controlled taste.

     

    What if you did not have access to all of the parts, let along a clue about how to put stuff together.

     

    The kit makes a great gift for young kids just getting interested into the technology.

     

    Cost verses value can be very subjective, so I would have to disagree about this one.

     

    DAB

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  • balearicdynamics
    balearicdynamics over 10 years ago in reply to DAB

    Dab, sure I have considered this.

     

    The calculated cost is based on a single piece bought as a generic customer. This stuff does not cost much more than 20$ to the producer. So, just because this is for people, and hopefully kids, approaching for the first time this fascinating world, why do not do a real effort in terms of supporting the new generations, and put few more added value to these kits that are sold at least five times to their cost?

     

    What I mean is that these seems just business options, but - in this case - please don't speak me of any cultural operation, it's bare business !

     

    Enrico

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  • ipv1
    ipv1 over 10 years ago

    I get most of my stuff from www.seeedstudios.com which is pretty decent in terms of the price. They offer free shipping for orders above 50USD and this order may also include PCBs!

    I recently got a solar duino kit for around 20USD with battery, duino, usb cable, solar panel and enclosure. This one was ordered during a sale and its a bargain for sure.

     

    Sparkfun and adafruit are too expensive for my pocket even though they have some great stuff.

    Two years ago, I started a student activity in our university where the students bought the DMM, pliers, soldering iron, resistor packs, caps etc etc - the full kit ... in bulk! They buy quantities of 200 or more from a single vendor at wholesale price and then distribute the kits to 1st year students at no profit. This allows for a five time cost cutting compared to the local stores and gives the parent pockets a bit of relief.

     

    Its just a matter of smart buying image

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  • balearicdynamics
    balearicdynamics over 10 years ago in reply to ipv1

    Inderpreet, its a good vision but this take in account at least the minimal needed knowledge for smart buying. Just as the shops like sparkfun lives on the very newbies, I complain that at least to add a minimum of added value it will be the worth, as they present themselves as a teaching supporting company,... I started this discussion in the hope that it will be useful for some new entry image

     

    Enrico

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  • ipv1
    ipv1 over 10 years ago in reply to balearicdynamics

    agreed.

    FYI I think Sparkfun offers discounts to teachers and accads but again its not 66% image

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  • balearicdynamics
    balearicdynamics over 10 years ago in reply to ipv1

    Selling some kits on Tindie, I personally experienced the costs and mechanism for very small productions. I can earn few money every unit I sell (but this is no the primary gal of the Tindie shop experiment) keeping prices a bit lower than the big companies that I suppose has dramatically lower production costs at least for the produced units, internal resources and so on.

     

    https://www.tindie.com/products/alicemirror/alphanumeric-display-arduino-kit/?pt=full_prod_search just to make an example.

     

    Enrico

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  • mcb1
    mcb1 over 10 years ago

    balearicdynamics

    Enrico you are quite right about the cost markup ... just because it's packaged.

    Whether they supply you with Labview is perhaps the only difference.

     

     

    DAB

    The kit makes a great gift for young kids just getting interested into the technology.

    Sorry but while I support this sort of gift, the price for this is just not worth it.

    There are many other kits or raw components out there that just make this an expensive marketing exercise IMO.

     

     

    This kit business to get new people into electronics comes up with my involvement in schools.

    My thought is that if the price is less than a video game then it should be no brainer for the parents.image

     

     

    We had a similar discussion regarding kits and good value back here. ...

    http://www.element14.com/community/message/148785/l/re-arduino-curriculum-for-home-school#148785

     

    Maybe its something that element14 could step up to the plate with.

    With their buying power and contacts they should be able to source and make a profit on a similar kit for USD$50.

     

    element14jamie

    nlarson

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  • balearicdynamics
    balearicdynamics over 10 years ago in reply to mcb1

    mcb1 The packaging is one (cost markup I mean) but the worst is the way they sell.

    About labview, I took a look to the links they cite. Maybe this is a good idea, maybe. But labview gives the impression of something not yet finished or not complete by the side of the popularity and valuable contents. As a product - one of more but at this point it is better the PI dedicated linux startup mode with something easier and similar - this is the SparkFun labview maker hub (all are maker in the world ... image ) https://www.labviewmakerhub.com/ : the site is perfectly rendered by the homepage image ... Take a look to the projects https://www.labviewmakerhub.com/doku.php?id=projects:start and tell me if this is something attracting someone. Maybe I am totally wrong in my vision.

     

    Sorry but while I support this sort of gift, the price for this is just not worth it.

    There are many other kits or raw components out there that just make this an expensive marketing exercise IMO.

    Almost totally excluding a kid that buy all of this by himself, I expect that he is advised by school, parents and so on. So - in a vision of an educative context I see that the initiative is totally failing.

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  • balearicdynamics
    balearicdynamics over 10 years ago in reply to mcb1

    Last: three of the presented project in the "LabView Maker Hub" are done by a guy that - declared by himself in the videos - is an engineer at NI... Frankly I think we can expect a bit more if it is not again pure marketing.

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  • mcb1
    mcb1 over 10 years ago in reply to balearicdynamics

    It seems that Labview is either another marketing exercise or the uptake was poor.

    image

    That's a hefty discount ...

     

    Diligent are selling the Labview Home Bundle for $49

    https://www.digilentinc.com/Products/Detail.cfm?NavPath=2,1301,1450&Prod=LABVIEW-HE

    image

     

    Unfortunately their kit includes just the microcontroller, and no parts (that kit is also rather expensive)

     

    It is interesting that there are many discussions here about using Arduino software and how it teaches 'ignorance' (or other expressions), but these packages go one step further and are graphical.

     

    There is an alternative [roduct produced by a very clever man here in Chch.

    http://onerobot.org/products/12blocks/

    Best of all it covers so many other controllers ...

    image

     

     

     

    Mark

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