An electronic kit is a package of electrical components used to build an electronic device . Generally, kits are composed of electronic components, a circuit diagram (schematic), assembly instructions, and often a printed circuit board (PCB) or another type of prototyping board.
5-414: The Heathkit H11 Computer is an early kit -format personal computer introduced in 1978. It is essentially a Digital Equipment PDP-11 in a small-form-factor case, designed by Heathkit . The H11 is one of the first 16-bit personal computers , at a list price of US$ 1,295, (equivalent to $ 6,050 in 2023) but it also requires at least a computer terminal and some form of storage to make it useful. It
10-464: A single device or system. Other types used for education demonstrate a range of circuits. These will include a solderless construction board of some type, such as: The first type of kit for constructing a single device normally uses a PCB on which components are soldered. They normally come with extended documentation describing which component goes where into the PCB. For advanced hobby projects, sometimes
15-709: The cost of buying goods, but there is usually no cost saving in buying a kit today. Some electronic kits were assembled to make complete complex devices such as color television sets, oscilloscopes , high-end audio amplifiers , amateur radio equipment, electric organs, and even computers such as the Heathkit H-8 , and the LNW-80 . Many of the early microprocessor computers were sold as either electronic kits or assembled and tested. Heathkit sold millions of electronic kits during its 45-year history. Home assembly of common consumer electronics items no longer provides
20-402: The kit may only consist of a printed circuit board and assembly instructions, and the purchaser may have to source all the parts independently; or, the vendor may provide hard-to-get or pre-programmed parts while expecting the purchaser to obtain the rest of the components. People primarily purchase electronic kits to have fun and learn how things work. They were once popular as a means to reduce
25-460: Was too expensive for most Heathkit customers, and was discontinued in 1982. The H11 featured: Initial memory limitations restrict the selection of system software, but the system RAM can be expanded to 32 kWords * 16 bit. Many PDP-11 operating systems and programs run without trouble. The system will also work with most DEC PDP-11 equipment, including many Q-bus compatible peripherals. Electronic kit There are two types of kits. Some build
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