New distribution agreement brings open source hardware to global market

Mouser has announced a global distribution agreement with SparkFun Electronics, as part of both companies’ commitment to support the growth of the maker movement around the world. The agreement provides increased access to both Mouser’s and SparkFun's extensive product ecosystems, enabling customers to easily shop for the right maker technology to support their projects. Mouser’s catalog now incorporates over 500 SparkFun products, including their signature Arduino Pro, RedBoard, and LilyPad tools, empowering customers at the industrial and enterprise level to utilize maker technology in their advanced projects. The company’s Arduino Pro 328 and Arduino Pro Mini 328 are affordable, low-profile boards that allow engineers to easily prototype a design for an AVR microcontroller and the Arduino IDE. Both boards are available in standard 5V/16MHz versions as well as 3.3V/8MHz versions that work with lower-voltage sensor shields without requiring a logic level converter. The boards include pinout pads instead of headers, which allow engineers to place connectors or wires in any orientation. SparkFun RedBoard products provide the standard Arduino form factor for prototyping, combining the simplicity of the Uno’s Optiboot bootloader (used in the Pro series), the stability of the FTDI FT231X, and the shield compatibility of the latest Arduino Uno R3. Pro-makers using the RedBoard will find a wealth of online knowledge and resources for working with this board during the prototype phase, and with female headers, it also reduces the need for soldering. Customers interested in wearables and e-textiles projects will also be able to purchase the LilyPad line of products. The LilyPad line, developed by Leah Buechley and SparkFun, features large connecting pads that allow designers to sew the boards into clothing for wearable designs. As with the Arduino Pro Mini, the LilyPad ATmega Arduino can integrate into early product designs.