Looking for some great gifts that won’t break the bank? Here is some great electronics that all cost less than $20.
Drawdio Kit ($17.50) – Drawdio is an electronic pencil that lets you make music while you draw! It’s great project for beginners: An easy soldering kit with instant gratification. Essentially, it’s a very simple musical synthesizer that uses the conductive properties of pencil graphite to create different sounds. The result is a fun toy that lets you draw musical instruments on any piece of paper.
Programming Arduino by Simon Monk ($15.00) – Using clear, easy-to-follow examples, Programming Arduino: Getting Started with Sketches reveals the software side of Arduino and explains how to write well-crafted sketches using the modified C language of Arduino. No prior programming experience is required! The downloadable sample programs featured in the book can be used as-is or modified to suit your purposes.
Magnetic Project Mat ($12.95) – Repairs can be tough. You don’t need missing screws making it worse. iFixit designed this mat to make repairs easier. You won’t lose screws and won’t forget which screws go where. This project mat is magnetized to hold tight onto small screws, has a dry erase surface lets you keep notes and stops mistakes, it reduces reassembly time by up to 40% while preventing errors, and the magnetic surface is safe for hard drives, and other modern electronics.
EL Wire Starter Pack ($19.95) – A little bundle to get you started! This project pack contains:
- 2.5 meters (over 8 ft) of high-brightness, long-life EL wire in Aqua, the brightest and best looking EL color we carry. 2.5 meters is the maximum amount for the pocket driver – it’s cut and soldered and ready to go!
- Pocket EL inverter runs on 2 AA Alkaline or rechargeable batteries (not included)
- 2 inches of heat shink, both 1/8″ and 1/4″ for protecting the EL wire after soldering in case you want to change it later
- 2 inches of copper tape, used when soldering EL wire
- 2 inches of foam tape, we use this to pad the inside of the inverter to quiet it down
We used this to make our awesome TRON bag!
SMT Blinky POV Kit ($15) – Learn how to solder SMT components with this great kit from Wayne & Layne. Wave messages and animations through the air with this persistance-of-vision toy. Reprogram custom messages or animations by holding it up to your screen! It has 8 LEDs, a beautiful Larson Scanner mode, and is a standalone, surface-mount kit.
The Deluxe LED Menorah Kit ($13.95) – This great little LED Menorah kit from Evil Mad Science Labs is an updated take on the traditional hanukkiyah, the nine-armed Hanukkah candelabrum. Two candles are lit on the first night of Hanukkah (one “real” candle plus the lighter candle, or shamash), three on the second night, right up to nine on the eighth night.
Blinky Laser Cut Holiday Tree Ornaments ($9.95) – These are basic easy-to-build electronics kits from Spikenzie Labs. Built around laser cut and etched acrylic the snowman or holiday tree really catch the light! Sized at about 3″ wide, by 5″ tall, the snowman or holiday tree is edge-lit by 10mm flashing green and red LEDs. Comes as a kit that is very easy to solder, CR2032 battery included. The PCB is a simple RC circuit. Two LEDs one 10mm green and one red LEDs flash in an alternating pattern. Helps understand some electronics fundamentals, and a lot of fun to solder. Click here for the holiday tree version.
SHIPPING DEADLINES
Here are your 2012 shipping deadlines for ordering from Adafruit. Please review our shipping section if you have specific questions on how and where we ship worldwide for this holiday season.
UPS ground (USA orders): Place orders by Friday 11am ET – December 14, 2012 – Arrive by 12/24/2012 or sooner.
UPS 3-day (USA orders): Place orders by Wednesday 11am ET – December 19, 2012 – Arrive on 12/24/2012.
UPS 2-day (USA orders): Place orders by Thursday 11am ET – December 20, 2012 – Arrive on 12/24/2012.
UPS overnight (USA orders): Place orders by Friday 11am ET – December 21, 2012 – Arrive on 12/24/2012.
UPS International: Place orders by Monday 11am ET – December 17, 2012. Can take up extra time due to worldwide delays and customs. Should arrive by 12/24/2012 or sooner.
Please note: We do not offer Saturday service for UPS.
Tuesday, Dec. 25, 2012, Christmas, no UPS pickup or delivery service.
Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013, New Year’s Day, no UPS pickup or delivery service.
United States Postal Service, First Class and Priority (USA orders): Place orders by Friday – December 14, 2012 – Arrive by 12/24/2012 or sooner.
USPS First class mail international (International orders): Place orders by Friday – November 23, 2012. Can take up to 30 days ore more with worldwide delays and customs. Should arrive by 12/24/2012 or sooner, but not a trackable service cannot be guaranteed to arrive by 12/24/12.
USPS Express mail international(International orders): Place orders by Friday – December 14, 2012. Can take up to 15 days or more with worldwide delays and customs. Should arrive by 12/24/2012 or sooner.
Gift Certificates are always available at any time.
When in doubt contact us!
