The Arduino Uno and Mega2560 Are Here

[caption id="attachment_920" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Arduino Uno and Mega2560 New Packaging"] [/caption] The new Arduino Uno and Mega 2560 are in stock at RobotShop. These two successors, for the Arduino Duemilanove and Mega respectively, were released on September 25th, and feature several technical improvements as well as a trendy new packaging, improved branding and the new Arduino logo. What is new? The Arduino Uno (or Arduino 1.0) replaces the Duemilanove and should put non-Italian speakers tongues at rest since the name is mush easier to pronounce.  The main change is the replacement of the FTDI chip with a custom-made usb-to-serial converter built with an Atmel ATmega8U2. This provides lower communication latency and eliminates the need for drivers. Also, the Uno has its own USB Device ID. Furthermore, more advanced users will be able to reprogram the USB chip to make the board show up as a variety of USB devices such as keyboards, mice, joysticks, etc. As for the Arduino Mega 2560, besides replacing the FTDI chip, the main microcontroller was upgraded as well. As its name indicates, the Mega 2560 uses the larger ATmega2560 and sports twice as much Flash memory as its predecessor. As a final remark, one of the nicest new features is the inclusion of a set of stickers that come with every new Arduino.The stickers read, among other things, "Hacked" and "DIY" and will certainly give your projects some character.