Want to learn about Arduino from the ground up? The Mintduino Game Pack teaches you all about basic electronics, breadboarding and programming piece by piece. When you finish, you'll have a fun, two player game to play with a friend and a firm grasp in the world of microcontrollers. 
The MintDuino Game Pack provides a fun and informative way to learn about the world of Arduino compatible microcontrollers. This exclusive Maker Shed kit combines the Mintronics: MintDuino, Mintronics: Survival Pack, and the MintDuino book to give you all the necessary parts and instructions to create your very own 2-player reaction game. Even if you’ve never dabbled in electronics have no idea how to program, the MintDuino Game Pack will give you a firm foundation with Arduino and the confidence and ability to create your very own projects!
Using book as your guide and the included components you will:
Features
- MintDuino Maker Press book by James Kelly & Marc de Vinck
- Mintronics: Survival Pack
- Mintronics: MintDuino
- FTDI Friend
- Deluxe Jumper wire pack
- 1/2 size Breadboard
- USB cable
- Requires 9V battery
- No soldering required!
We’ve come across many an Arduino-compatible in the Maker Shed. It seems that everyday someone tells us about a smaller, newer, or differently designed version of the original. We’re always a bit leery of selling new clones but when the Menta came around we knew it was different and had to have it (we even added it to our Mintronics line-up!) To find out why, we asked Limor Fried, the founder and engineer at Adafruit, to talk about the Menta and how it differs from other Arduino-compatabiles. Here’s what she said:
Introducing the Menta, a portable minty Arduino-compatible project that fits into a common mint tin. I’ve always like electronics in mint tins and wanted an Arduino-compatible that not only fit inside the tin but also had a built-in prototyping area like the ProtoShield I designed. We took our super popular Boarduino series, wrapped it with a prototyping area, and mounted it to a rounded PCB that slots directly into an Altoids-sized metal tin. We included everything you expect to jump-start your project; a DC power adapter with polarity protection, beefy 1 Amp 5V regulator and 250mA 3.3V regulator for 3.3V devices, green power LED, red blinky LED, standard ISP-6 reprogramming header, FTDI interface plug to connect an FTDI Friend or cable, and female headers so you can use standard Arduino-compatible shields. We also added four mounting holes so you want to attach it permanently to a box or plate, and added a massive prototyping area so you can have your finished project fit completely into a protective box.
Here are her favorite things about the Menta:
- Fits perfectly into a common mint tin – an easy-to-find and durable enclosure.
- It’s shield-compatible! You can plug in any shield with standard Arduino pinouts.
- It has a built in prototyping area for a fully enclosed project.
- The high quality, USA-made PCB is the best PCB we could get and will survive beginners, soldering and de-soldering.
- We gave it 4 massive mounting holes with no parts in the way, making it the perfect Arduino solid attachment.
The Mintronics: Menta is available exclusively in the Maker Shed until May 2nd. After that it will also be available on Adafruit.com. Thanks Limor (and Phil!)
More:
The MintDuino Game Pack provides a fun and informative way to learn about the world of Arduino compatible microcontrollers. This exclusive Maker Shed kit combines the Mintronics: MintDuino, Mintronics: Survival Pack, and the MintDuino book to give you all the necessary parts and instructions to create your very own 2-player reaction game. Even if you’ve never dabbled in electronics have no idea how to program, the MintDuino Game Pack will give you a firm foundation with Arduino and the confidence and ability to create your very own projects!
Using book as your guide and the included components you will:
Features
- MintDuino Maker Press book by James Kelly & Marc de Vinck
- Mintronics: Survival Pack
- Mintronics: MintDuino
- FTDI Friend
- Deluxe Jumper wire pack
- 1/2 size Breadboard
- USB cable
- Requires 9V battery
- No soldering required!
The Maker Shed, in conjunction with Adafruit Industries, is proud to present you with the latest in the Mintronics line of products, the Menta. The Menta is an Arduino compatible microcontroller that is specifically designed to use the included mint tin as an enclosure. It features a handy, on-board prototyping space which conveniently fits one of our mini-breadboards (not included) making it the perfect pocket Arduino! The Menta can also be used with all Arduino shields, so it can expand along with your projects. Pick up your Menta in the Maker Shed today to find out why it’s the freshest thing in Arduino!
Features
- ATmega 328 processor
- Handy prototyping space
- Onboard voltage regulation
- Arduino shield compatible
- Specifically designed to use the included tin as an enclosure
- Easy assembly (requires soldering)
- Requires FTDI Breakout Board
