Arduino has officially released the Uno R4 microcontroller, following its announcement in late March.
The Uno R4 retains the same form factor, pinout, and 5V operating voltage as its predecessor, the Uno Rev3, upping convenience for existing users by making swap-outs simple. Internally, it boasts a 32-bit Cortex-M4 processor, which Arduino says helps the board run three times faster than its predecessor, and a 16-time increase in memory. There’s also a 12-bit analog DAC, CAN Bus, OP AMP, and SWD port, plus a USB-C connector and an HID device that allows users to “create interfaces with minimal effort and in no time”.
The board arrives in two versions: the “Minima”, which Arduino says is aimed at “first-time makers”, and a Wi-Fi-enabled variant that also boasts Bluetooth, Cloud compatibility, and several extra features.
Most noticable among the device’s extras is a 12×8 red LED matrix that uses Charlieplexing to provide precise visual feedback for tasks such as animation projects or the plotting of sensor data. This, along with a Qwiic connector, which aims to better facilitates prototyping, should open the doors to increasingly creative projects, without the need for additional hardware.
A final feature of note for the Uno R4’s Wi-Fi version is built-in crash detection, which catches potential errors, then offers a “detailed explanation” on the serial monitor, as well as “hints about the code line causing the crash”.
Both Arduino Uno R4 variants are available now, the Wi-Fi version for $27.50 and Minima for an even $20.
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License: The text of "Arduino’s Uno R4 Is Available Now in Wi-Fi & ‘Minima’ Versions" by All3DP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.