From IRC we bring you some pics of Robots’ mad soldering skills. This QFN chip is dead-bugged onto the back of another chip. Below there’s another QFN chip broken out with wire. Please send in your pics of extreme soldering … Read more
Today we cleared the backlog of free PCBs, more than 50 boards were mailed. We’re sorry for the delay, and we hope to be back on a 10 to 14 day mailing schedule. When we moved to a new office … Read more
3D models in Google SketchUp look great, but with a few extra plugins the results can look photo-realistic. In this tutorial we’ll cover our experience with the Maxwell for Google Sketchup rendering plugin. The Maxwell Fire engine is easy to … Read more
Ever use the extra area of a PCB to squeeze in multiple copies of a board? We do, but it’s always a pain to separate them. Doug shows how to how to cut apart multiple PCBs using a utility knife. … Read more
A box of PCBs just arrived from Seeed Studio’s Fusion PCB service. This batch includes: PIC TQFP-100 breakout board V2 Bus Pirate Demo Board v5 (final) Programmable dummy load (concept test) Soldering Iron Driver v1.5 PIC TQFP-100 BB v2, Bus … Read more
A box of PCBs just arrived from Seeed Studio’s Fusion PCB service. This batch includes: PC fan controller module PIC18F2550, PIC24 and PIC32 SOIC28 breakout EzPSoC3 XC95144XL breakout board PC fan controller module, PIC18F2550, PIC24 and PIC32 SOIC28 breakout, EzPSoC3 and XC95144XL breakout … Read more
Megabug received two mysterious PCBs using ITead’s OpenPCB feature. After posting the pics in the forum, diligent members solved the enigma. The black board is a breakout for a passive infrared sensor, while the red board is a open source stepper … Read more
In examining the design files for the Maker Shed pulse sensor we noted that they weren’t produced using Eagle. Instead, the files were generated using Design Spark’s free Schematic Layout Software. This is a free (activation required at no charge) … Read more
We’re writing a new tutorial on PCB manufacturing, and we’d like to include a table of approximate turn-around times for popular 2-layer PCB services. If you’ve ordered PCBs in the past we could use your help. Who made the PCB? … Read more
A box of PCBs just arrived from Seeed Studio’s Fusion PCB service. The XT-IDE adapter V2 board is now available in our Free PCB drawer. The board was designed to allow XT type vintage computers to use newer … Read more
SadE is exploring the possibility of building a reflow oven from an IR cooker. He was able to implement a simple switching temperature control and get some initial temperature response results. A graph of his first run is below. I … Read more
A box of PCBs just arrived from Seeed Studio’s Fusion PCB service. The latest addition to our PCB drawer is the prototype PCB for the Part Ninja V1. We got inspired by the AVR transistor tester and decided to make … Read more
Tayken used ITead’s openPCB service, and got 2 extra boards along with the 8 he ordered. He was successful in identifying one as the Arduino Nano v3.0 (left). Unfortunately the other was only labeled as a LED driver board (center) … Read more
Retromaster has honed his PCB making skills to get professional quality boards at home. He’s successfully made double sided PCBs with 8 mil trace width, with 6 mil clearance. In his guide he describes how to etch the PCB with … Read more
Schazamp received a few mystery PCBs from Itead’s open PCB service. He contacted the designer of the PCB and got more info about this board, as well as the schematic. It’s a controller for driving two 3 watt RGB leds … Read more
Schazamp received a few mystery PCBs from Itead’s open PCB service. He contacted the designer who was kind enough to leave contact information on his PCB. The board is a current consumption monitor: It’s basically a current monitor based off … Read more
43oh, a forum dedicated to the MSP430 microcontroller, hosts a design contest. Last month we gave free PCB coupons to the winners. The winners also let us host their boards in the free PCB drawer. This board is an iambic … Read more
43oh, a forum dedicated to the MSP430 microcontroller, hosts a design contest. Last month we gave free PCB coupons to the winners. The winners also let us host their boards in the free PCB drawer. This PCB is an MSP430-based … Read more
Drone writes: The Raspberry Pi production PCB’s have arrived. Look at the comparison to an actual credit-card; and those tiny yet crowded BGA footprints. It is amazing how the BGA parts are actually solderable – and with high yield! Read … Read more
ITEAD has some upgrades on their PCB prototyping services: All PCBs are now 100% e-tested free of charge There is a new standard dimension, 5cmX10cm The thickness of the Color PCB boards can now be selected from 0.8mm to 1.6mm … Read more
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