P2 dev boards?

tempytempytemp · 2021-11-08 16:04

Hi,

I'm wondering when some good P2 development boards will be released. A P2-based C3? A P2-based microbit compatible? A P2-based activityboard for the small robot? A P2-based arduino compatible?

I remember when the P1 was released a lot of development boards were available quickly. I've been waiting a long time for the P2 and now that it's been out for about a year I'm still waiting... haha...

I'm not trying to criticize or anything. Maybe it's due to the component shortage? Maybe the P2 is still in "early adopter" mode and isn't meant for general use yet? Just looking for clarity.

Thank you!

Maciek · 2021-11-08 17:12

I'm wondering when some good P2 development boards will be released.

Such boards already exist. It just depends on what do you intend to do with one.

What features do you require a board to have to be considered a good one ?

Publison · 2021-11-08 17:49

There is the cyberbot with microbit and P1 on board. Sadly the C3 was developed by a third party company and may not come to light.
https://www.parallax.com/product/cyberbot-robot-kit-with-microbit/

A lot of development boards exist with Mikroe modules add ons.

whicker · 2021-11-08 17:51

Here's my perception. Forecasting the future, Parallax's P2 strategy was originally to create only one board type, a pluggable board which is finally mature. There is also a development/early adopter board where cost was no object.

But the pluggable board separates the core value from whatever accessory or peripheral is in fashion this season that quickly gets stale and stops selling. If it's a $60 board, then it's a bunch of extra doodads hanging off like accelerometers and humidity sensors.

The biggest problem I see with producing hardware is with commitment. "Yes I'll buy one" has no sustainable future nowadays with the expectations of cheap $15 to $25 nonprofit boards. There's no business in a $20 board when your average customer is only going to buy quantity one, and then demand tons of free support, ending up with profit anywhere from $3 made to $-16 lost.

Further, so they make an inexpensive board, then proportionally there's this value argument about the cost of shipping being more than the product itself. Cue unwinnable constant complaints about shipping cost. Which by the way is also an internal cost to produce the board in the first place. Like quite literally multiples of that shipping cost because it's impossible to single source in a single one time order. Basically the customer is in denial of the actually real world costs of things.

There's a dead spot in the middle. So success is achievable in the low end price for the standalone chip at high volume. Or high end, single quantity Cadillac models with costly addon accessories. Both strategies are building in the cost for the expected (demanded) personalized, attentive support. Both dealing with the high shipping costs that the customer doesn't want to acknowledge the existence of. Both handle the fashion accessory problems.

I wish it were another way. If you have your dream mid-range single board, build it. Maybe you'll sell 5 of them.

Maciek · 2021-11-08 19:34

Life can be made simple if only we do not over complicate it.

My approach is this, and I do not claim it's the best one, but I learned to live with limitations so here are some of my easy choices:

I evaluate what is already available, if it's suitable for my use case - if so, I go with that as it is the most cost effective and preferred option for small scale projects.
If the option #1 is not an option I assess if it's feasible to make my own board, where "make" equals designing the board and sourcing all of the components and assembling the board. The PCB itself gets ordered at a PCB fab. That works for simple boards. I've done that numerous times with various outcomes. If the board is somewhat more advanced like 2+ layers with tiny parts there is only one option left for me and that is #3.
Contract a person (or a company) with the right skills and tooling to do all the hard work for me. It's the most expensive and least often used option but still cost effective as I do not have the necessary tools to properly assemble and verify a complicated board. I used this option twice in the past 10 or so years. It's a kid od option one choses as a last resort. A "no go" for a hobby project for a poor soul like myself.

Most hobby users will find the option #1 to be the best compromise. I do.