uChip: Arduino Zero compatible in a narrow DIP-16 package! by Itaca Innovation — Kickstarter. A very small narrow-DIP-sized, Arduino Zero compatible USB dev board (OTG enabled), with integrated buck and boost power supplies.

We worked with the team and there is CircuitPython support (thanks for the pull request!) and it’s available to view on circuitpython.org! The usual disclaimer applies, it’s a Kickstarter, so anything could happen (or not!), that said – it’s open-source hardware and the team has actual hardware already, so if they hit the funding goal, seems likely it ship. If you have a Kickstarter with actual hardware and you have CircuitPython running on it (or want to, let us know – we can help!).

uChip is a micro-sized Cortex M0+ development board, that fits a standard 16-pin DIP IC socket: you can easily reuse uChip in multiple designs, without having to disconnect a lot of cables, or without having to develop a fixed size shield: just put an IC socket on your board and you’re set!

uChip shares the same ATSAMD21 MCU series and peripheral set of Arduino Zero: most of the projects for Arduino Zero will run unmodified on uChip!

The small size of uChip allows you to create more compact designs, still getting 13 PWM pin and 8 analog inputs! The integrated buck converter allows you to power your design at 3.3V or 5V (software selected voltage) at up to 1A! If you need an USB-host, you can power uChip externally, using a 3.3 to 5V input voltage: an integrated boost converter will adapt the input voltage to 5V at up to 500 mA.

Beside the other applications already available for Arduino Zero, we created new ones, to show some of the potentialities of uChip!

Specifications:

• CPU: 32-bit Cortex M0+ ATSAMD21-series running at 48 MHz (Arduino Zero Compatible)
• FLASH: 256 kB (248 kB due to integrated bootloader).
• RAM: 32 kB, zero wait states.
• Powered via USB or externally (3.3V to 5V).
• Integrated 500-mA boost and 1-A buck converters and automatic power switching circuitry.
• Each converter can also be individually turned off, e.g. if you want to force power draw exclusively from external pins (self-powered device), or if you want to turn off an external USB device connected with a micro A cable.
• When powered through the USB port, the output voltage on the power pins can be selected via software to be either 3.3V or the USB voltage (typically 5V +/- 10%).
• Pin 15 can be configured (via SMD jumper) as an additional 3.3V auxiliary output @100mA when pin 16 is 5V (either as input or output). By default pin 15 is a regular I/O. If this feature is not used, 5/3.3V (at up to 1A) are still available on pin 16.
• 14 I/O pins (2 of them can be used to connect an external SWD programmer/debugger) and 2 power pins (VCC and GND).
• Status LED (it can be turned on/off via software using a single instruction).
• Multi function push button for reset/program.
• 8 12-bit ADC inputs.
• 10-bit DAC output.
• 14 external interrupt input pins.
• Up to 5 serials between SPI, I2C and UART.
• I2S port for audio decoders such as UDA1334A.
• 13 PWM pins.
• Size: 28.5 mm x 10.16 mm (1.1 “ x 0.40 “), including USB port protrusions (27.23 mm x 10.16 mm excluding USB)
• 4-layer board for improved noise performance.
• Standards narrow-DIP footprint: 0.3” (7.62 mm) row spacing, 0.1” (2.54) pin spacing.
• Pinout standard logic CMOS compatible: power and GND are on pin 16 and 8, so you can also emulate some 16 pin CMOS ICs (4000 and 74HC series)!
• Can be programmed in C/C++, asm, and also CircuitPython!

They’re about at the half way point with 11 days to go with 258 backers – check it out!