Original Vs. Clone

*Introduction*

Some people will swear elegance to either side but really which one really is better?

In the red corner we have the Arduino royalty, the clones are nothing more than cheap rip offs of a glorious product that deserves no place alongside the mighty originals!

And in the blue corner we have the rebel clone supporters, their view of the originals is an expensive way of doing things that have be done cheaper and thus enabling the masses to get in to electronics.

So what are the differences and should I be worried about what side I am backing?

*FIGHT*

Show down time, let’s start with a side by side photo of the differences. (Clone on the top genuine on the bottom)

Dual in Line version;

Things to note; the silk screening, component choice and quality.

 

Source

Surface mounted version;

Things to note; the size difference of the chip also the chips orientation (main chip and the USB to Serial)

 As you can see there are a few major differences between the two, the most prominent few of them are the quality difference, component selection and location.

The general reason why the clones are cheaper is down to the parts used, poor quality parts = low cost, high quality parts = more cost. Now I have been using clones for a while now and there are better ones available but on the whole it’s not going to be the same quality no matter how close it looks like the other.

*Pros and Cons - Genuine*

Starting with the pros;

• High quality manufacturing
• CE / FCC certification
• Supporting the Arduino team (have to pay the bill some way)
• Continued support for the Arduino project
• You will look completely awesome with your snazzy board
• Depending on the supplier, quick delivery / go in to a shop and pick one up

And now the cons;

• The price

*Pros and Cons - Clone*

The pros:

• Cheap 
• If you bust it toss it out and get another

Moving on to the cons;

• Not supporting the "cause"
• Poor quality and construction
• Normally have to wait for shipping from China if you order from that old auction site!
• I had one or two that had missing parts / wrong part that I had to correct.

*Official Arduino clarification*

Summarising what is on the Arduino office blog (Link here) there is no issue with anybody making their own boards as the designs and schematics are freely available online. That's the beauty of open source

What is objected to is making your own board and slapping on the Arduino trademarked logo and selling it as if it was a genuine, needless to say this done with anybody’s product is illegal (different countries have different stances on this) and down right "bottom hole" move!

*Why do I use clones*

Why do I use clones, simply it comes down to the amount of funds I have readily available... not much. I am more than happy to wait 2-4 weeks for the shipping from China to arrive at my door for the price that I pay for them, if I had a bit more money than I would 100% use genuine boards without a question.

*Recommendation*

In the end of the day it is up to you, if you are in the same boat as me then grab yourself a clone and aim to upgrade to the genuine when you can, after all it does support the project develop further.

When I have a little more disposable income (that will be the day!) I will be treating myself to a full range of the fleet covering all the official boards from the Uno to the Mega and stopping on the way past the Lilypad!

Posts to come in the future!

P.S. If you do spot a clone that is impersonating a genuine Arduino please do report it out of a matter of courtesy these devices take the good name of Arduino slap it on their product and openly quote "this is real", it’s like getting a Ford Fiesta and painting it red popping on a Ferrari badge and calling it one, don't be taken for a ride!

Revisiting (27/09/2017) 

Now take this with a pinch of salt as things have changed since when I made this, like all things in this world, the new naming in some parts of the world "Arduino to Genuino" might require you to supplement the wording and also for clones the FTDI"gate" scandal might mean that your USB to Serial chip could be different or just totally not work at all!