Episode 8 - Mini Me Computers

Greg and Anto talk about the tiny world of Arduinos, Raspberry Pis, sensors, and mishaps with low-voltage electricity as they relive their hack day building an Arduino theremin. Learn about breadboards, prototyping your own project, and tools you need to get started.

Common microcontrollers on the market:

  • Arduino
  • Esp8266
  • Raspberry Pi

Diff between the RPi and Ardiuno:

  • cost: RPi $50-$100, Arduino ~$40
  • hardware: RPi - mini linux computer, Arduino - 32bit microcontroller
  • size: about the size of a credit card - both have smaller versions.

  • Sensors and other electronics:

    • Types
    • Motors
    • LEDs
    • Displays
  • Additional tools that are helpful: wire strippers, wire cutters, solder & soldering iron, helping hands, breadboarding,
  • Electronics topics to read up on:
    • Transistors
    • Nand gates
    • Resistors
    • Clocks/frequency sources