Arduino, popular among makers for its inexpensive but capable microcontroller boards and a vast array of sensors and other components, is making introducing people to its world even easier. The company recently announced its Arduino Plug and Make Kit, which includes everything you need to make seven different starter projects.
One of the biggest struggles many folks have getting started in Arduino and other hobbyist electronics is soldering. Many lack this skill and are hesitant to attempt learning it. Companies trying to make the hobby more accessible, like Adafruit, SparkFun, and Seeed Studio, have each developed their own quick connectors to reduce the need for soldering.
Arduino’s new Plug and Make Kit continues in this vein. SparkFun’s Quiic connector allows you to assemble all the components needed for your project without soldering or even using a breadboard and jumper wires. The kit includes seven of Arduino’s Modulino components, sensors, and actuators for various tasks that you can connect to the Arduino Uno R4 WiFi’s Quiic connector.
Arduino has tried bringing modular kits like Plug and Make Kit to market before but didn’t quite succeed. As Mr. Arduino himself, Massimo Banzi, said, “Innovation takes time, and you have to wait for the right moment.” Evidently, the company’s decided that moment is now.
(Image credit: Arduino)
These Modulinos include controls like buttons and knobs, programmable LEDs, a buzzer, and sensors covering temperature and humidity, distance, and a gyroscope.
These components, along with everything else included in the Plug and Make Kit, are all you need to build any of seven different projects:
A weather station to report the current temperature and humidity, as well as forecasted rain.
A digital hourglass complete with LED indicators of the time remaining.
A system to monitor temperature and humidity of your plants.
A game controller.
A synthesizer to get you “one step closer to being a rockstar, DJ or sound engineer!.”
A smart lamp.
A touchless lamp you control with a gesture.
The Plug and Make Kit is available on Arduino’s online store now for $87.36 and includes the following:
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An Arduino Uno R4 WiFi main board.
The seven Modulino nodes outlined above.
A Modulino base to keep your project neat and organized
A USB-C to USB-A cable for programming and powering your Arduino.
Quiic cables for connecting everything.
Spacers, screws, and nuts for securing components to the Modulino base.
Jeff Butts has been covering tech news for more than a decade, and his IT experience predates the internet. Yes, he remembers when 9600 baud was “fast.” He especially enjoys covering DIY and Maker topics, along with anything on the bleeding edge of technology.
