1. The Equipment

If you haven't heard of the Arduino, it's a very popular device for prototyping electronics projects. It has some RAM and a microcontroller, and allows you to easily write code to interact with a variety of electronics and sensors. For this session we're using the following equipment:

• Arduino Uno R3 - $25
• Adafruit CC3000 Wifi Shield - $40
• Adafruit Electret Microphone Amplifier with Auto Gain Control - $8
• USB Cable - $4
• 9V power cord - $7
• Shield stacking headers - $2
• Breadboard wires - $6
• Breadboard - $4

Most of these components (except the wifi shield and possibly the mic) come with a standard starter kit, which we would recommend for beginners.

Next up: What is an Arduino? What is a microcontroller? »