Adafruit produces electronic components, tools and accessories in the field of open source hardware. The aim of the New York-based company is to develop products that are characterised by their simplicity and make it easier for ordinary people to access technology and science. Adafruit is very popular in the education and development sector as it provides a wide range of suitable extensions.
It now also offers its own development boards, which are similar in design to the Arduino boards, but are lighter and thinner. This is why they are called Feather development boards.
Background knowledge about Adafruit
Adafruit Industries was founded in 2005 by engineer Limor "Ladyada" Fried. With her company, the MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) graduate wanted to create the best possible place on the Internet to learn electronics and create the best products - for creative people of all ages and technical knowledge levels. The founder was the first female engineer to grace the cover of the technology magazine Wired and was honoured with the "Entrepreneur of the Year" award by the business magazine Entrepreneur Magazine. In 2014, the company was ranked 11th among US manufacturing companies and 1st among the 5000 "fastest growing private companies" in New York City.
The company name is based on the founder's online nickname: Ladyada. This in turn goes back to the computer science pioneer Ada Lovelace.
Individually controllable RGB LEDs: NeoPixel
One of Adafruit's most prominent products is the NeoPixel range. These are individually addressable RGB LEDs based on WS2812 LEDs and an integrated WS2811 driver chip. The number of available channels is limited, especially on a developer board, and RGB LEDs occupy three analogue channels (red, green, blue). The integrated chip, on the other hand, occupies a single output on the board. Adafruit offers a wide range of NeoPixel products, such as LED strips, rings, matrices and sticks. In addition to RGB technology, the company also offers RGBW variants (red, green, blue, white).
Adafruit provides a large library to support NeoPixel programming for Arduino boards.
Feather developer boards - light and compact
The New York-based company is also known for its so-called Feather developer boards, which are named after their exceptionally light and compact design. They are similar to Arduino boards and can be easily operated with a battery. The first Feather board was released at the end of 2015 and all series have the same design, pin assignment, similar microcontrollers and lithium-polymer batteries. The respective release always takes place on Wednesdays on Adafruit's own electronics programme "Ask an Engineer". Each board has its own special feature, such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or SD card communication.
Adafruit products in the online shop
In our online shop you will find a large selection of Adafruit products - starting with versatile extensions for Arduino, such as LCD displays and various cables. You can also discover a wide range of NeoPixel products, including LED matrices, rings, jewels and sticks. We also stock various models of Feather developer boards, the popular FLORA wearables and much more. Order your desired item now.
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