The document provides an overview of the top 10 most popular microcontrollers and development boards for students and makers, detailing their important features including operating voltage, number of I/O pins, memory, and CPU specifications. Products featured include the PIC16F877A, Arduino Uno, ATmega32, Arduino Pro Mini, Raspberry Pi 3, and others, each highlighting unique specifications like flash memory and clock speeds. Links to learn more about each microcontroller are also included.

1. Top 10 Most Popular
Microcontrollers and Boards
for Students and Makers

2. PIC16F877A Microcontroller
Important Features:
CPU: 8-bit PIC
Operating Voltage (V): 2 to 5.5 V
Number of I/O pins: 33
ADC Module: 8ch, 10-bit
DAC Module: Nil
Communication Peripherals: UART(1), SPI(1),
I2C(1), MSSP(SPI/I2C)
External Oscillator: Up to 20Mhz
Internal Oscillator: Nil
Program Memory Type: Flash
Program Memory (KB): 14KB
CPU Speed (MIPS): 5 MIPS
RAM Bytes: 368
Data EEPROM: 256 bytes
Learn more about PIC16F877A Microcontroller:
https://components101.com/pic16f877a-pin-diagram-
description-features-datasheet

3. Arduino Uno
Important Features:
Microcontroller: ATmega328P – 8 bit AVR
family microcontroller
Operating Voltage: 5V
Recommended Input Voltage: 7-12V
Input Voltage Limits: 6-20V
Analog Input Pins: 6 (A0 – A5)
Digital I/O Pins: 14 (Out of which 6 provide
PWM output)
DC Current on I/O Pins: 40 mA
DC Current on 3.3V Pin: 50 mA
Flash Memory: 32 KB (0.5 KB is used for
Bootloader)
SRAM: 2 KB
EEPROM: 1 KB
Frequency (Clock Speed): 16 MHz
Learn more about Arduino Uno:

4. ATMega32 - 8-Bit AVR Microcontroller
Important Features:
CPU: 8-bit AVR
Number of Pins: 40
Operating Voltage (V): +4.5 to +5.5 V (+5.5V being absolute
maximum)
Number of I/O pins: 32
Communication Interface: JTAG Interface(24,25,26,27 PINS)
ADC Module: 8 channels , 10-bit resolution ADC
Timer Module: Two 8-bit counters, One 16-bit counter
Analog Comparators: 1
DAC Module: Nil
PWM channels: 4
External Oscillator: 0-8MHz for ATMEGA32L

5. Arduino Pro Mini
Important Features:
Microcontroller: Atmega328p – 8 BIT AVR
controller
Operating Voltage: 5V and 3.3V
Raw Voltage input: 5V to 12V
Maximum current through each I/O pin: 40mA
Maximum total current drawn from chip: 200mA
Flash Memory: 32KBytes
EEPROM: 1KByte
Internal RAM: 2Kbytes
Clock Frequency: 3.3V --- 8Mhz, 5V --- 16Mhz
Learn more about Arduino Pro Mini:

6. AT89S52 8-bit Microcontroller
Important Features:
CPU: 8-bit PIC
Number of Pins: 40
Operating Voltage (V): 4 to 5.5 V
Number of Programmable I/O pins: 32
ADC Module: Nil
Timer Module: 16-bit(1)
Comparators: Nil
DAC Module: Nil
Communication Peripherals: UART(1)
External Oscillator: Up to 23Mhz
Internal Oscillator: Nil
Program Memory Type: Flash
Program Memory (KB): 8KB

7. Raspberry Pi 3
Important Features:
Microprocessor: Broadcom BCM2837 64bit Quad Core Processor
Processor Operating Voltage: 3.3V
Raw Voltage input
5V, 2A power source
Maximum current through each I/O pin: 16mA
Maximum total current drawn from all I/O pins: 54mA
Flash Memory (Operating System): 16Gbytes SSD memory card
Internal RAM: 1Gbytes DDR2
Clock Frequency: 1.2GHz
To learn more about Raspberry Pi 3:
https://components101.com/microcontrollers/raspberry-pi-3-pinout-
features-datasheet

8. Atmega16 Microcontroller
CPU: 8-bit AVR
Number of Pins: 40
Operating Voltage: For ATMEGA16:+4.5 to +5.5 V (+5.5V being absolute
maximum)
For ATMEGA16L:+2.7 to 5.5V(+5.5V being absolute maximum)
Number of Input/output pins: 32
Communication Interface: JTAG Interface(24,25,26,27 PINS)[Can be used for
programming this controller]
SPI Serial Interface(5,6,7,8 PINS) [Can be used for programming this controller]
Programmable Serial USART(14,15 PINS) [Can be used for programming this
controller]
Two-wire Serial Interface(22,23 PINS)[Can be used to connect peripheral devices
like sensors and servos]
ADC Module: 8 channels , 10-bit resolution ADC
Timer Module: Two 8-bit counters, One 16-bit counter [Total three]
Analog Comparators: 1
DAC Module: Nil

9. AT89C51 Microcontroller
Important Features:
CPU: 8-bit 8051
Number of Pins: 40
Operating Voltage (V): 2 to 5.5 V
Number of I/O pins: 32
ADC Module: Nil
Timer/Counter Module: 16-bit(2)
Learn more about AT89C51 Microcontroller:
https://components101.com/microcontrollers/at89c51-8-bit-
atmel-microcontroller

10. BeagleBone Black
Important Features:
Processor: Sitara AM3358BZCZ100, 1 GHz, 2000 MIPS
Graphics Engine: SGX530 3D, 20M Polygons/S
SDRAM Memory: 512MB DDR3L 800 MHz
Onboard Flash: 4GB, 8-bit Embedded MMC
PMIC: TPS65217C PMIC regulator and one additional LDO
Serial Port: UART0 access via 6-pin 3.3V TTL Header. Header is
populated
Ethernet: 10/100, RJ45
SD/MMC Connector: microSD, 3.3V
Learn more about BeagleBone Black:
https://components101.com/microcontrollers/beaglebone-black-
pinout-datasheet

11. ESP32 - DevKitC
Important Features:
Microprocessor: Tensilica Xtensa LX6
Maximum Operating Frequency: 240MHz
Operating Voltage: 3.3V
Analog Input Pins: 12-bit, 18 Channel
DAC Pins: 8-bit, 2 Channel
Digital I/O Pins: 39 (of which 34 is normal GPIO pin)
DC Current on I/O Pins: 40 mA
DC Current on 3.3V Pin: 50 mA
Learn more about ESP32 DevkitC:
https://components101.com/microcontrollers/esp32-devkitc