Cheapo “Micro” (v5) is here

I received the boards for my latest cheapo design revision the other week. The design is very simalar to the previous version, but I am now using the uBlox MAX-7 because of its lower power consumption. I have also shrunk the boards down a little.
The funny arrangement at the top for the GPS antenna is an experiment to see how well chip antennas perform horizontally. So far I have only tested the board in its standard configuration and it all checks out okay! Test flight to follow soon.

Untitled
Untitled-1

On a side note I also put together a very crude ICSP jig using pogo pins and a clothes peg to avoid having to solder a header onto each board. The alignment isn’t great but does the job.

20140308_224135

4 thoughts on “Cheapo “Micro” (v5) is here

  1. Hi Chris. A great project. We are just waiting to launch our first HAB, with a home developed GPS tracker and telemetry. Bolton School In Space BSIS @BoltonSchTech
    As an aside, can I ask you where you get your PCBs manufactured?
    Chris.

  2. What is the cost of your “Cheapo”, for a small number of units (1-5)? What component distributors do you use. I guess you cannot do with just one.

    regards,
    //Per E

    • Hi,

      The cheapo boards cost about £30 each. I get all of the components from either ebay or aliexpress, often in multiples of 5 or 10.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *