AVR Programmer

As you can probably tell from my last couple of posts I have been getting into projects involving microcontrollers. While the GPS receiver I built used a PIC, many projects use an AVR instead. Made by Atmel, they are a direct competitor to the PIC. For a good comparison of the two check out this article. One of the more unique differences is that AVRs allow for in-circuit-programming. This means that you can plug the programmer into a header-pin assembly in the AVRs circuit and reprogram the AVR without having to pull the chip out of the circuit like with a PIC.

After seeing several interesting projects using AVRs in the MAKE Blog, I decided it would be a good idea to make an AVR programmer. Just like with my PIC programmer I did not want to be tied to a serial port and I didn't want to have to spend too much. I did some investigating and found the USB Tiny ISP. It is offered as a kit (or you can build if from scratch) for $22. The kit goes together very easily; the directions on the website are well written and detailed. Mine is pictured above and so far it functions perfectly. AVR projects are now in my near future.