CircuitBrains Deluxe

A tiny, CircuitPython-compatible ARM Cortex-M4 module

May 04, 2020

Project update 5 of 13

Why the Microchip ATSAMD51J19?

by Kevin N

Some people have been asking why the Microchip ATSAMD51 was used for CircuitBrains Deluxe when there are newer chips out on the market. It’s a valid question that I want to address. A lot of weight in a product selection decision comes down to maturity, features, performance, cost, support, and availability. It’s not an easy decision to make when you are faced with hundreds of different microcontrollers available on the market. I feel that the ATSAMD51 is a pretty stable product, both in terms of lifecycle and installation base. It’s also chock full of features and I/O! The below bullet points summarize why the ATSAMD51 was a good choice for this project.

Mature Product & Widely Supported by Maker Community

Lots of Microcontroller Horsepower

Native USB Device Support

Tons of I/O

Six Serial Communication Interfaces (SERCOM)

Small Package Size


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