On Dec 19, 2010, at 9:40 AM, V G wrote: > On Sun, Dec 19, 2010 at 11:50 AM, John Chung wrote: >=20 >> Mike has hit the main points. It is easy to prototype and cheap as >> there are many variants in the market. At some level Arduino/Atmel >> does have very good C compiler support. It boils down to your needs. >>=20 >> One off prototyping, Arduino excels. But to some customware like >> Nikon IR controller, PIC wins hands down. PIC is easier to count the >> cycles. >>=20 >> I use ATMEL and PIC exchangeably. Still it does not end there. There are >> times when different MCUs are used due to existing system integration. P= IC >> is my choice for new products. Easy to get and the support is decent. >>=20 >=20 > True. But I'd rather not spend $30 for an Arduino when I can get my choic= e > of PIC for around $5 for a high end, or $2 for a low end, or Launchpad fo= r > $4.30. Without the Arduino support components and development platform, i= t's > just an ATMega328, which is just as easy/hard to get started as a PIC. > Besides, the PICKIT2 is incredibly awesome. All I need is the PICKIT2, a > PIC, some wires and I'm ready to go. > --=20 You are comparing apples to oranges. Yes, the ATmega chips are typically mo= re expensive than a comparable PIC, but they're often in the $3 - $5 range.= ...a buck or three more, not 10 times more. You can easily develop with a "full" Arduino board, and then use it to simp= ly program more chips that you are going to use in other projects. Installi= ng a ZIF DIP socket on the Arduino board makes it trivial. Your Arduino boa= rd is filling the same role (with the same order of expense) as a PICKIT2. = Just as with PIC chips, an ATmgea can be used in a project with very little= external hardware. If you have the tools and knowledge to be productive with other systems, th= at's great. Don't turn your nose up at folks using Arduinos just because th= ey don't have to know assembler to use them. -Pete --=20 http://www.piclist.com PIC/SX FAQ & list archive View/change your membership options at http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/piclist .