New Arduino clones on the market: Orangepip - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: voltsandjolts
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 10:52:19 am
content: Seem to be two boards available:http://www.orangepipboards.com/http://www.farnell.com/datasheets/2056035.pdfhttp://www.farnell.com/datasheets/2056033.pdfI was curious about who was behind this but its not clear. Trademark has just been applied for but doesn't disclose the applicant as yet, just the UK agent.https://euipo.europa.eu/eSearch/#details/trademarks/017609835Most google search results seem to be from CPC /Rapid/ AKA Farnell - so maybe they are behind it?Edit: Rapid are not owned by Farnell, my mistake.

author: andersm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 02:16:14 pm
content: The domain is registered by Rapid, so probably.

author: linux-works
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 04:04:42 pm
content: so, they used an orange solder mask.nothing else changed?WHY would anyone care?boggle!arduino clones are $5. the market has enough clones. no one buys italy boards anymore and I'm not seeing the purpose of changing colors. maybe they just plain ran out of ideas? seems so lame, though.

author: voltsandjolts
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 04:31:26 pm
content: Quote from: linux-works on January 09, 2018, 04:04:42 pmYes, that's why I was curious who actually bothered to do this.Maybe Farnell want to push there own version to schools/colleges/unis and have the volume in that market to make it worthwhile.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 04:33:02 pm
content: Since when are Rapid owned by Farnell?

author: voltsandjolts
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 05:12:51 pm
content: Ooops, my bad.So this is probably Conrad-Rapid making the boards and also being sold through CPC/Farnell.Cheers.

author: phil from seattle
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 06:49:29 pm
content: Quote from: voltsandjolts on January 09, 2018, 04:31:26 pmCrazy when you can buy boatloads of mega clones off ebay/aliX and such for very little money. Government funds might have some sort of restrictions? Are these made in the UK? Didn't see anything like that.

author: ajb
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 07:41:09 pm
content: Quote from: phil from seattle on January 09, 2018, 06:49:29 pmIf I were teaching an introductory class involving Arduinos, I would definitely consider it worthwhile to get the hardware from a reputable supplier. Sure, most clones are going to be just fine, but even if they're cheap enough to just throw away and grab another one I'd rather not risk a potentially large timesink in dealing with dodgy hardware *on top of* dealing with students' dodgy code and wiring! For similar reasons I think the socketed DIP version still makes some sense as well. That doesn't necessarily mean I'm going to get the full-price first-party hardware (although it may be possible to get a good deal for educational projects), but I'd definitely avoid the $2 ebay stuff as long as budget allowed.

author: phil from seattle
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 08:58:47 pm
content: The thing is, I've bought plenty of Chinese clone Arduinos and not a single one has been dead on arrival. I bet the failure rate of "official" arduinos is not significantly better than Chinese clones.

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 09, 2018, 09:00:39 pm
content: Quote from: phil from seattle on January 09, 2018, 08:58:47 pmFor the price they charge, they ought to be 100% reliable and manufactured by nude Italian virgins.Unfortunately, the reality is they're manufactured by minimum wage employees(okay, okay, probably a bit above minimum) who care about them no more than the Chinese ones, and probably have a lower living standard for it.

author: HwAoRrDk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 10, 2018, 09:42:46 am
content: There's a very strange combination of contrary things about these boards.According to the CPC website listing, the Kona328 is made in China, and they appear to have the hallmarks of a Chinese-designed and produced board - serif font on the silkscreen, generic unbranded parts, AMS1117 regulator. But on the other hand, it uses at ATmega8U2 for the USB interface (not something like a CH340G, like so many Chinese clones) and a resonator for the main AVR's oscillator (not a crystal, again like Chinese clones).The datasheet appears to have been written by an American, or for a US audience, as it uses US-English spelling (e.g. "center") and terminology (e.g. "wall-wart") and describes the board's dimensions in inches only.The fact it uses an ATmega8U2 is also slightly strange. Why not a 16U2 like the current Arduino Uno R3? I'm not sure of the reason why Arduino boards moved to the 16U2, but you'd expect a clone to be the same. Unless they're using an older firmware revision that still fits on an 8U2. Also, I wonder whose USB VID/PID they use, as Arduino boards have their own, rather than use the LUFA ones.And the final thing is, they're not even particularly cheap. CPC have the Kona328 priced at £13.19 inc. VAT. About £10 less than an Arduino board, but still at least 2-4 times the price of a clone.I don't see anything about these boards that makes them any better than a $5 Chinese clone.

author: donotdespisethesnake
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 10, 2018, 03:53:00 pm
content: Quote from: HwAoRrDk on January 10, 2018, 09:42:46 amWhat's strange about someone creating their own clone product and trying to charge a premium for it? Pretty standard business practice.Anyway, the Orangepip boards have been around for a couple of years.

author: JacquesBBB
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 11, 2018, 08:57:20 am
content: Quote from: phil from seattle on January 09, 2018, 08:58:47 pmI have used many 2$ mini or nano clones with no problems, but I had several clones of due that failed.

author: TomS_
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: January 11, 2018, 12:03:41 pm
content: QuoteMarketing really had to scrape the bottom of the barrel to come up with that one...

author: HwAoRrDk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: January 11, 2018, 12:47:57 pm
content: Quote from: donotdespisethesnake on January 10, 2018, 03:53:00 pmI was only really trying to point out the strange juxtaposition (that's really the word I should have used) of them essentially being just another Chinese-made clone, but with some odd choices in components that doesn't jibe with that.