Header banner
Revain logoHome Page
Melvin Goerge photo
1 Level
1353 Review
69 Karma

Review on πŸ“¦ Transparent Gloss Acrylic Case Enclosure for SunFounder Mega 2560: Compatibility with Arduino Mega 2560 Rev3 R3 & Genuino Mega 2560 Rev3 by Melvin Goerge

Revainrating 4 out of 5

A fun product that could have had much better tutorials.

As this appears to be an entry level product designed to teach and introduce newcomers to the world of electronics and hacking, it is both a good product and somewhat inadequate. That if you're the kind of person who wants to buy an Arduino or a clone, you're the kind of person who doesn't mind trial and error and figuring things out. That's good, because you have to work with one of them a little (that's the whole point). For example when I plugged in my board and tried to upload my first sketch I couldn't but after just 2 minutes of googling I found my problem and was good to go. So here's my review: 1. Product works as advertised. This is a solid Arduino Mega 2560 clone that does what the Arduino Mega 2560 is supposed to do and it's awesome. It's really cool what he can do and I'm sitting there thinking about what cool things can be done. 2. The set has a good supply of interesting inputs and outputs. Switches and LEDs and the like. However, these are basic toys that are only there to show you how these things work. In just a few days I've run out of options and am ready to move onto cooler things that will cost me more money.3. The textbook is missing. It's not really that bad, but there should be a lot more "why". For example, Lesson 13 is about the NE555 timer. It shows you how to wire the circuit, gives you the code, and shows you what the desired result should be. I obediently copied everything and got the desired result. However, I still have no idea what exactly happened. The circuit has a resistor and 2 capacitors - the tutorial doesn't explain why or what they do. The tutorial never explains what the 555 timer chip does. It's really a really bad tutorial and you won't learn anything about the 555 chip, electrical engineering or the Arduino platform from it. The simpler instructions were easy to understand. In fact, I quickly took what was in them and then hacked them up to create my own versions. go about your business. Maybe they did the tutorials so badly that you leave the tutorial and get into hacking because that's what it's all about anyway. The product came with a nice blue storage box, the box could have been a bit bigger but I can't really complain. There was also a small board in the box to install the Mega on, but I don't think I'll be doing that. Interestingly, it came with a color-coded resistance band sticker. I've already lost the tutorial because I found the instructions on the webpage more helpful: [.] Oh and don't try to take the prop off the engine when it's on, it won't come off without breaking it, I am mine broke on the first day. Luckily I don't care, but the baby might be sad. Overall I am very happy with this product and would probably buy it again.

Pros
  • Weight
Cons
  • Crumpled