Whether you are new to Arduino and DIY electronics, or you are an experienced and avid Arduino enthusiast, we believe you will enjoy learning about an alternative option; the Elegoo UNO. In this article, we evaluate the quality, reliability, functionality and value of each board. We hope you enjoy the article and learn something as well.
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Let’s learn a little about each company first:
Arduino
Arduino is and open-source hardware and software company that created and popularized the Diy electronics boards such as the Arduino UNO. The Arduino hardware and software have been instrumental in inspiring countless builders and hackers to learn programming and electronics (myself included). The Arduino hardware, software and firmware are trusted and used in many DIY projects as well as consumer products such as 3D printers.
Elegoo
Since Arduino has made their products open-source, other companies have decided to benefit from their sucesses. Elegoo produces several products nearly identical to Arduino such as the Elegoo UNO. They also specialize in selling electronics kits and component bundles.
What’s included with each board?
Arduino
The Arduino UNO comes neatly packaged in a little blue box that looks nice and exudes a feeling of quality. The Arduino UNO comes with the Arduino board and a little book that has some information such as registering, warranties, FCC compliance etc. The book also includes some Arduino sticker. One thing that Arduino has included that Elegoo does not have, is a clear plastic mounting plate attached to the bottom of the board. I like this feature because it really simplifies the mounting of the board in projects, and it helps to reduce the chances of me shorting the board out while I am prototyping a new project because the solder joints on the bottom of the board are covered.
Elegoo
The Elegoo UNO comes neatly packaged in a slightly larger box that is nicely illustrated. The Elegoo UNO comes with the Elegoo board and a USB cable that I measure at 20″ tip to tip. The USB cable is a nice added feature, bit the short length can be awkward at best.
Now let’s evaluate the quality and reliability:
Arduino
I have been using Arduino UNO’s for about 10 years. In all those years, I can’t remember having a single quality defect or problem with an Arduino product. The boards have always been of high quality with nice solder joints and straight headers and components. I also can’t remember having an Arduino board fail unexpectedly unless it was a result of me making a mistake. If you are purchasing an Arduino product, you can expect to receive quality.
Elegoo
I have been using a few Elegoo UNO’s for a few months and have been happy so far. The boards have a nice appearance and have solid solder joints. The headers are composed of two pieces on each side while the Arduino UNO has one piece on each side. This wouldn’t be a big deal except the headers aren’t perfectly in line so if you were going to use a shield, you would have to straighten the headers first. When I powered up my first Elgoo UNO I did find that I needed to update the Arduino IDE. After following the Elegoo instructions everything has worked perfectly. I have not had reliability problems so far, but I know others on the internet have reported problems.
See this link for more about updating the Arduino IDE: Update Arduino IDE for Elegoo
Strengths and Weaknesses
Arduino
Strengths:
- Arduino has been instrumental in the development of the DIY microcontroller prototype boards.
- The silk screen printing on the Arduino is slightly larger and easier to read.
- Arduino had been around for many years and they have a good reputation.
- They have several online libraries and resources such as aruino.cc, and a huge online community and following.
- High quality products that are great for beginners.
Weakness:
- If you are building a lot of projects, Arduino UNO’s start to get expensive. It is my understanding that some of the proceeds from an Arduino purchase are used for future development of the Arduino libraries and technologies. While I appreciate all that Arduino has created and is continuing to create, I often have several projects on my work bench at a time and cannot afford to be spending hundreds of dollars on hardware.
Elegoo
Strengths:
- Elegoo has several products that are Arduino compatible and nearly identical to their respective counterparts.
- They offer several starter kits and component kits that are great for beginners.
- They also have some decent tuturials that are included in their beginner’s kits.
- At about half the price of an Arduino UNO they are a great value. The starter kits pack an even greater buying advantage and can save you a lot of money compared to the alternatives.
Weakness:
- The female headers aren’t always perfectly straight.
- Some reports online of reliability problems.
Final Thoughts
Arduino
If you are new to DIY electronics and microcontrollers I recommend that you go with Arduino. They have a great reputation, are easy to use and have a ton of resources online to help guide you.
If you have a project that requires reliability and consistency I would also advise the tried and true Arduino UNO. Likewise, if you intend to integrate other expensive hardware in the project I would also advise using the Arduino UNO.
Elegoo
If you are like me and have several projects going at a time, then Elegoo might be a good option. An Elegoo UNO might be a good option for building an ATtiny programmer or something similar. I built an ATtiny programmer with an Arduino and it sits on my bench most of the time. I wish I had saved 50% and used an Elegoo instead.
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Elegoo Starter kits
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