Abroad, Arduino is often the first choice for many makers, but it has become less popular in China. What is the reason for this? Today, let’s discuss something different and take a break from technical knowledge!
1. What are the advantages of Arduino?(1) The biggest advantage is: it is easy to get started, has low requirements for learners, a low entry barrier, and is user-friendly. There is no need for learners to have a hardware background or understand manuals; you can temporarily ignore registers, as Arduino has encapsulated all of these for you. You just need to write programs according to their rules.
(2) Rapidly validating ideasFor those with a less solid foundation or for some makers, using Arduino to validate a certain function is the fastest way to reach a conclusion.
(3) Abundant libraries and vast development resourcesFor common sensors and modules, Arduino has ready-made libraries (graphical programming), so learners do not need to write low-level driver code from scratch.
2. What are the disadvantages of Arduino?(1) Limited processing power; for complex programs and high-intensity calculations, Arduino cannot handle them due to limited resources.
(2) For products and projects that are truly launched in China, the presence of Arduino is still too rare, leading many engineers to unconsciously use 51 or STM32, as they are widely used, making communication easier when issues arise. Over time, this has formed a cycle.
(3) In some industrial design and automotive fields, the market share of Arduino compared to STM32 is still pitifully low, which also includes industries like IoT and healthcare.
Conclusion (some personal insights for reference):(1) If your hardware foundation is relatively weak, and you find it difficult to understand schematics, you can try Arduino.(2) If you want to quickly validate functional requirements and shorten the validation cycle, you can try using Arduino.(3) If the project is mainly DIY and has a small production volume (or will not be mass-produced at all), you can try using Arduino.(4) If your project requires high real-time performance, then Arduino is not suitable.(5) If your company predominantly uses other platforms for project development, then Arduino is also not suitable.(6) If the project has a large production volume, this needs careful consideration, as Arduino does not have significant advantages in terms of cost.