Is Seeedstudio discontinuing production of Gadgeteer modules? I use several of their modules. Their website has Gadgeteer modules on clearance and I didn’t see the Gadgeteer module page listed on their homepage like it used to be listed.
I think that’s a safe assumption. They’ve basically been non-existent in the Gadgeteer world since they released their first batch. I don’t think they even have a Gadgeteer section in their catalog any longer.
I think they realized that a large volume is necessary to pay for the software and support required. I stopped buying their modules a long time ago.
I think it’s likely they underestimated the software side of things. They’re good at hardware, they haven’t shown an aptitude to keep software on par with that, and we all know that for Gadgeteer, the aim is to make things simple for the end user, and that means having a good driver, not just a good hardware module.
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That’s too bad. I love their OLED.
I know the mfg of the actual display…maybe Skewworks should pick up production
I’ve resisted getting their modules due to my issues with the GPS.
Have they gotten any better since? Are they worth getting?
Was thinking of the compass, accel and gyros. Skew seems to have vouched for the oled.
I have their compass too, I like it.
They have stopped supporting Gadgeteer modules right after they made them pretty much. They have “introduced” their own modular system Grove. That one has a lot of modules.
Also had their temp and humidity.
Seriously considering picking up part of their Gadgeteer line.
The Grove system has been around for a few years. I still have some Grove starter kits from 2 or 3 years ago. They do keep adding new modules to the line though. My experience was that the modules were cheap - and sometimes unreliable. But, that was early stuff like I said.
It I sad when companies on individuals do not see Gadgeteer’s bright future. We at GHI greatly believe in it and we will continue to support it. Two new MAJOR products will be released in about a month and they are related to Gadgeteer.
We are in contact with seeed to see how this can be resolved. Maybe we can convince them to change their mind.
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Their grove ecosystem seems to be very complete and mature, though. Too bad that they don’t sell the “grove/gadgeteer” bridge there :
http://www.seeedstudio.com/depot/grove-expansion-net-gadgeteer-compatible-p-1084.html
(had this been available at some point anyway ?)
I agree that it is sad. They had some interesting modules for Gadgeteer. But this probably opens channels for a more enthusiastic company to replace those aging modules with something newer and more exciting.
I am still quite new on Gadgeteer, but already feel quite passionate about it. Probably because of all the late nights I spent with all my gadgets. Years ago I used to be quite passionate about PIC microcontrollers and making electronics gadgets. But then everything became surface mounted components and I could no longer easily prototype stuff. But having recently discovered Gadgeteer and it rekindled that old spark again. And now I can have fun without worrying that I can’t see the parts!
It is a shame. I remember bringing up gadgeteer at a bi-monthly gathering of tinkerers that is fairly well attended. Absolutely no one knew what it was…and ofcourse as soon as you mention ‘Microsoft’, they break out the crazy eyes and contorted facial expression - dunno why people still have such a stigma against microsoft, they should take that disdain to Apple!
don’t worry though - i’ll convert them…damn it, i will!
I do think there are some things that gadgeteer could do better - for instance, for most sensors, you really never use all those pins on each socket…so it’s a waste and you have to employ extenders to get the most out of them. I think it would have been better if there were a combination of standard sockets along with Grove type connectors. In thinking about it, the Cerbuino is probably the best approach at solving that issue with the additional benefit of catering to folks that want to be able to use the same sensors on both gadgeteer and arduino without much fiddling…
I hope GHI continues to improve on the Cerbuino…would be nice to have a version w/ a faster processor.
I think the easiest way to get an arduino user to look at a .net gadgeteer product is to give him something he/she is familiar with…one that he knows how to build with already vis-a-vis the ‘arduino way’…doing so leverages the arduino it self to market gadgeteer. once some one looks at a .net gadgeteer, i feel that they will be impressed by the improved processing power (though i guess the Arduino Due is bridging that gap) and ease of developement via the rich .netmf api. The key again though is to get that first look…Oh, and you have to make it easy to get started…having to spend more than 5 minutes to figure out how to upgrade or deploy is going to cause someone to turn away quickly.
maybe this belongs in the suggestion thread.