Invest in yourself: learn by doing.
Read on to learn how the NerdKits philosophy is implemented in our kits,and why other electronics kits will leave you intellectually unsatisfied.

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Updated Monday, January 7th, 2013:

• Ultimate Electronics: Practical Circuit Design and Analysis is an online interactive electronics textbook.
• Due to increased demand, the LED Array Kit and Full-sized Multimeter (two of our most popular items) are currently out of stock.
• Latest Video Tutorial: DIY Sous Vide Cooker with Feedback Control
• NerdKits announces the launch of CircuitLab: in-browser schematic editor and circuit simulator!
• Customer Projects: Robotic Arm (see video!)
• Look at our LED Array Kit for a stunning, programmable LED display that you can build!
• "So what attracted me to NerdKits ... and what will keep me going back to them? Most importantly, the excellent support."

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What's a NerdKit?

A NerdKit is a combination of electronic parts and wisdom, which together will teachyou about digital electronics, embedded systems, and how to bridge computers withthe "real world".The electronics world has changed dramaticallyin the past few decades.We want to make sure that it's still easy toget involved with modern technology, and to experience a challenging and rewardinghobby!

A NerdKits microcontroller kit is appropriate for software hackers looking to branch out intoelectronics, and has educational material to allow evenmiddle-schoolers and high-schoolers (ages 12+) looking for a fun challengeto learn by doing, especially with the help of a techie parent!A microcontroller is a small computer on a single chip, including processing,memory, and inputs and outputs -- see the Wikipedia page formore information.

What's the point?

We just graduated from MIT, and when we asked ourselves what we wished we had had before comingthere, the answer was simple: more hands-on experience in electricalengineering and computer science (EECS).Looking around, we realized thatwe could provide these experiences to others in the form of NerdKits:

1. Kits for a digital generation.Decades ago, amateur radio wasthe home of hobbyists.Old school "100-in-one" kits are still around, but this is the digital age, and educational electronics kitshaven't been updated.
2. Flexible to experiment.For someonejust getting started, not yet possessing the confidence in their designskills, it's important that parts be cheap enough that breaking them isn't going to be a heartbreak.Others sell starter kits for $150 or more --too much for someone on a student budget to take the leap into a new field.Our microcontroller boards have easily replaceable parts, instead of being stuck with one bad burnt-out component ruining an entire circuit board.Additionally, NerdKits include powerful parts like an LCD display, which you won't find in other starter kits.
3. Guidance to get started, with intuition and wisdom.While MITmay be known for bestowing its students with rigid mathematical analysisskills, it's also true that a significant focus in our engineering classes was onlearning the intuition crucial to being a successful designer.Through ourincluded documentation, we'll walk you through the steps of getting started.
4. The real thing!Our kits don't give you a fixed, watered-down systemlike others do.We give you a lean but powerful chip,supported by a powerful open-source C compiler to help you learn microcontroller programming.And we help you design your circuit yourself, instead of constricting you to a fixedlayout.When your skills have advanced and you're ready for more, there's a large community of amateur and professional developers on the internet.

The educational opportunities here are amazing, and we've taken this hobby, pursued it in college, and turned it into a career.But we can only imagine if we hada kit like this one when we were in high school!Most motivated middle-schoolstudents should be capable of makinginteresting projects with the NerdKit.

Lots of people these days have some understanding of computers and simple computer programming, but we'd like to push you further.Withmicrocontrollers, you can touch the real world with inputs and outputs --sensors and actuators -- some of which are included in the NerdKit, and manyothers which you can add yourself.And we hope you'll discover the same passion we have grown for this exciting hobby.

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Why should I get a NerdKit?

You could go out and put this kit together yourself, and we expect thatafter you have your first NerdKit, you could build a second one afterlearning so much from the first.There are a few reasons why a NerdKitmakes sense as a way to start:

1. Step-by-step instructions are included.The documentation we include walksyou through the steps required to build a simple project.And, in contrastto other kits which just give you a set of steps to follow, we try to giveyou the intuition behind why those steps exist.
2. No soldering!Out of all the steps of the assembly process, newcomers to the field are most likely to cause damage to the sensitiveintegrated circuits when using a700°F tool to solder joints, and soldering can also be a sourceof burns if one's not careful with the tool.We use solderless breadboards so you canchange your design more rapidly without waiting for your soldering iron toheat up.
3. A completed design (with room to grow).With our kit, you knowyou won't be missing any vital parts that will delay your development, sincewe've already figured out what's needed to build a working system.

I'm scared to jump in.

If we can leave you with one message, it's simple: don't be afraid. The purpose of NerdKits is to reduce the risks involved with getting started in the electronics field.By doing so, we make digital electronics availableto a much wider population, and additionally increase the chance that you'llbe successful in this endeavor.

I'm excited.How do I get started?

If you're ready to learn electronics, click the button below to read more about our current microcontroller kit offerings!

Copyright © 2013 by NerdKits, L.L.C.