If you want to learn USB or embedded stuff cheap, get started for $7

[Modelworks]

ST micro has released their discovery development boards for $7, that includes the micro and the programmer + free development ide. If you ever wanted to learn and didn't have the cash this is your chance. All you need is a usb cable and the board.

I started to post this in hot deals but I know there have been a lot of questions of late on usb and embedded programming so thought it might be better here.

http://www.st.com/mcu/contentid-130-113-STM8S_DISCOVERY.html

STM8S105C microcontroller
Self powered by USB cable between PC and STM8S-Discovery
Selectable power supply voltage: 5 V or 3.3 V for your application
Embedded STLink for the STM8S
USB interface for programming and debugging
SWIM debug support
Touch sensing interface
Wrapping area for user’s own application
STM8S reference, with 32 Kbytes of Flash, E²Data and 48 pins
Ultra-low-power modes: down to 350 nA with SRAM and context retention
Fast wake up in 4 µs
external crystal/clock capability, enhanced reset features, and support for Direct Memory Access (DMA). There are also additional peripherals including a motor-control timer, increased analog capabilities, real-time clock, and fast ADC and DAC functions. On-chip EEPROM with true Read While Write (RWW) capability saves complex and expensive emulation in Flash.

They have a list of places to buy on their site.
I got mine from here:
http://mouser.com/ProductDetail/STMicroelectronics/STM8S-DISCOVERY/?qs=2reeYn0UkXose5x5fvL8Qg==


Once they sell out there will not be anymore for about 3 months.

 

[wwswimming]

once i made a break-out board for a parallel printer port cable. if i printed certain letters i could make all the LED's flash at once - or use it to control other stuff via TTL. it took hours.

times have changed. $7 ?! that's amazing.

 

[Zargon]

cant get the lin kin the OP to load so heres a new one

http://www.mouser.com/search/refine.aspx?Ntk=P_MarCom&Ntt=132769690

 

[ivan2]

hope i dont sound like a noob, but, what does it do?

 

[SunnyD]

hope i dont sound like a noob, but, what does it do?

Basically, it would be the interface between the computer and whatever peripheral device you want to build. What Modelworks is showing is essentially the thing you'll need if you want to know how to build and/or talk to said peripheral device.

Also, in the overarching scheme of things, it would give you a primer in the fundamentals of embedded or peripheral device development.

 

[novasatori]

Thanks for the link Modelworks

I've never used anything like this before, but have always been intrigued by micro controllers, so I decided to pick one up.

Just to check, it doesn't come with a USB cable, and does it use a standard full size usb plug?

Thanks

 

[Red Squirrel]

Looks pretty cool, I might think of getting one to mess around with.

 

[CycloWizard]

What kind of frequency will these run at? I can't seem to find that anywhere in the documentation.

 

[Colt45]

The micro on it is 16MHz max, and a little less than 1 MIPS per MHz.

Looks like mouser is sold out; guess I'll be sticking with AVRs ;-)