>-----Original Message-----
>From: piclist-bounces@mit.edu [mailto:piclist-bounces@mit.edu]=20
>Sent: 19 May 2005 18:47
>To: Microcontroller discussion list - Public.
>Subject: RE: [OT]: Samples Rant
>
>
>Dom,
>
>On Thu, 19 May 2005 17:54:12 +0100, Dominic Stratten wrote:
>
>>...<
>>  Maplins are
>> a bit better than Radioshack for components but sadly seem=20
>to be going=20
>>the  way Tandy did in the uk and are concentrating more on toys than=20
>>components  :-(
>
>Indeed, and the thing that really gets my goat is that they=20
>seem to be ramping up their "discontinued product"=20
>policy.  I've recently found things that they didn't sell the=20
>last time I looked, but are discontinued=20
>already!  It's a right pain.  Things that have gone that I=20
>would have liked to buy are the MSF 3-hand clock=20
>mechanism (you can get a whole clock, or digital modules), EL=20
>backlight inverters, E24 resistor packs, and=20
>octal relay-bases for DIN rail mounting (they still sell the=20
>relays, just not the bases!).  On the other hand=20
>they do have dsPIC30Fs in the current catalogue.  And=20
>PIC16F84A, of course!  The latter in -20 version is =A35,=20
>compared with the dsPIC30F2010 at =A37...
>
>I visited a newly-opened shop of theirs in Livingston (near=20
>Edinburgh) at the weekend, and they had "Opening=20
>Store" special offers - I had to buy the =A310 temperature=20
>controlled soldering iron, even though I didn't need=20
>it, just because it was such good value!  :-)

They sucked me into buying one of them as well ;)  Probably never be able=
 to get a new tip for it, but for a tenner I couldn't resist.

They are getting increasingly rubbish though.  When I started getting int=
erested in electronics ~22 years ago, the Maplins catalogues were amazing=
ly usefull, every IC they sold had a pinout and sometimes even an example=
 circuit, and they concentrated on components and usefull bits and pieces=
 rather than cheap and nasty car audio and PC components.  Ho hum, that's=
 progress for you.

Mike

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