This week on EYE ON NPI we're featuring some open source hardware from one of our favorite hardware manufacturers! It's the Arduino Nano R4 System on Module (https://www.digikey.com/en/product-highlight/a/arduino/nano-r4) a miniaturized version of the Arduino UNO R4 and Minima (https://blog.adafruit.com/2023/07/27/eye-on-npi-arduino-uno-r4-minima-and-uno-r4-wifi-boards-digikey-arduino-digikey-adafruit/) versions we covered on EYE ON NPI about two years ago! taking a cue from popular 'castellated single side' PCB proto boards on the market, the Nano comes in two options, one with headers (https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/arduino/ABX00143/26766495) for easy installation into existing Arduino Nano expansion kits or breadboards, and one with reflowable castellations (https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/arduino/ABX00142/26766490)

The Arduino Nano (https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/arduino/A000005/2638989) is second only to the UNO as the definitive Arduino board that 'everyone got started with'. Many folks would start with the chunky UNO and then migrate to the Nano to get something that plugs into a breadboard for compact assembly. With a USB connector on one end, button and LEDs and programming header on the top, this board powered tens of thousands of builds. So it's not surprising that Arduino iterated on this design with a wide variety of chips like the RP2040 (https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/arduino/ABX00052/14123941) and ESP32 (https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/arduino/ABX00092/21219771)

The latest generation is the Renesas RA4M1 series - which updates the original ATmega328 8-bit microcontroller to a beefy Cortex M4 with FPU. You get 48MHz clock, 256KB of Flash, 32KB of SRAM, ADC, DAC, CAN, captouch and other extras. The FPU in particular makes it a nice upgrade to the cortex M0/M0+. The best part is that with the 5V logic support of the R7FA4M1AB3CFM (https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/renesas-electronics-corporation/R7FA4M1AB3CFM-AA0/10447195), it makes for a great drop-in replacement when a 3V logic chip like the RP2040/ESP32 won't work as well. Plus you get lots of nice linear ADCs, the RP2040 only has 4 and the ESP32's are non-linear and sometimes don't work when WiFi is active. We also love that they added a Qwiic (https://www.sparkfun.com/qwiic) connector on the end! We use this for all our Stemma QT sensors, and between the many companies that have joined in the ecosystem there are easily a thousand different ons/displays/accessories that can plug in directly for instant expansion.

If you want to get the latest Nano from the manufacturer of genuine Arduino boards, DigiKey is a authentic distributor and has tons of the Arduino Nano R4 (https://www.digikey.com/short/3brjrnjp) in stock right now for (https://www.digikey.com/en/products/detail/arduino/ASX00061/26744081) immediate shipment! Pick from the castellated flat or soldered-header variety, and don't forget to also grab some Arduino Nano accessories to get your design prototyped fast. Order today and your Nano will fly out of the DigiKey warehouse and arrive at your doorstep by tomorrow morning.