We’re happy to announce the release of the Arduino Mega, a larger, more powerful Arduino board. It’s based on the on the ATmega1280 (datasheet), which has 128 KB of Flash (program) memory, 8 KB of RAM, and 4 KB of EEPROM. The board has 54 digital pins (of which 14 provide PWM output), 16 analog inputs, 4 hardware serial ports, I2C, and all other goodness you expect from an Arduino board. The Mega is compatible with most shields designed for the Duemilanove, and includes the same automatic power selection, auto-reset on upload, and pre-burned bootloader.

To use the board, you’ll need to download Arduino 0015, now available from the download page (Linux version coming soon). Just select Arduino Mega from the Tools > Board menu and you’re good to go. The reference pages for individual functions will be updated over the next few days to reflect the capabilities of the Mega.

The Mega will be appearing soon at distributors throughout the world. Check the buy page for the one closest to you.

Photo by SpikenzieLabs