Components
QRD1114 Optical Detector Hookup Guide
May 5, 2016
Use this IR LED/phototransistor fusion to sense objects in close proximity or even the color of a surface!
SoftPot Hookup Guide
May 5, 2016
Equip your Arduino project with a sliding soft potentiometer to monitor position or adding linear control to your project.
Sensor Kit Resource Hub
May 5, 2016
An overview of each component in the SparkFun Sensor Kit, plus links to tutorials and other resources you'll need to hook them up.
Photocell Hookup Guide
May 5, 2016
Hook a light-sensing photocell up to an Arduino to create an ambient light monitor.
Force Sensitive Resistor Hookup Guide
May 5, 2016
How to hook a force-sensitive resistor up to an Arduino to measure pressure variances.
Reed Switch Hookup Guide
May 5, 2016
Magnetically-actuated reed switches are the perfect component for non-contact proximity sensors. This tutorial provides a quick overview and example hook up.
Piezo Vibration Sensor Hookup Guide
May 5, 2016
How to combine a piezo sensor, high-value resistor, and an Arduino to create a vibration sensor.
Cherry MX Switch Breakout Hookup Guide
April 21, 2016
How to assemble and use the Cherry MX Switch Breakout, allowing you to turn a matrix of mechanical switches into a full-size keyboard!
MicroSD Breakout With Level Shifter Hookup Guide
February 25, 2016
How to use the level translating µSD device.
PicoBuck Hookup Guide v12
February 18, 2016
The PicoBuck board is a high-efficiency three-channel constant-current LED driver.
FemtoBuck Constant Current LED Driver Hookup Guide v13
December 10, 2015
The FemtoBuck board is a high-efficiency, single-channel constant-current LED driver.
Discrete Semiconductor Kit Identification Guide
November 19, 2015
Get to know the contents of the SparkFun Discrete Semiconductor Kit.
SX1509 I/O Expander Breakout Hookup Guide
September 24, 2015
Learn how you can use the SX1509 to control 16 LEDs or up to 64 buttons with just two pins.
Rotary Switch Potentiometer Hookup Guide
April 30, 2015
How to use the Rotary Switch Potentiometer breakout board, with some sample applications.
MCP4725 Digital to Analog Converter Hookup Guide
September 11, 2014
This is a quick hookup to help you get started with the MCP4725 DAC breakout board. This device allows you to send analog signal from a digital source, like the I2C interface on the Arduino microcontroller.
Transistors
July 1, 2014
A crash course in bi-polar junction transistors. Learn how transistors work and in which circuits we use them.
MiniGen Hookup Guide
May 22, 2014
Using the MiniGen, SparkFun's Arduino Pro Mini signal generator shield
Customizing LilyPad LED Colors
May 19, 2014
A short guide to creating a rainbow of new LilyPad LED colors at home!
Uh-Oh Battery Level Indicator Hookup Guide
April 9, 2014
Learn how to assemble and use the TL431 in the Uh-Oh Battery Level Indicator Kit.
USB Type A Female Breakout Hookup Guide
February 13, 2014
An above-and-beyond example using the USB Type A Female Breakout board.
PCA9306 Level Translator Hookup Guide
October 31, 2013
A quick primer to get you going with the PCA9306 Logic Level Converter.
Bi-Directional Logic Level Converter Hookup Guide
October 25, 2013
An overview of the Bi-Directional Logic Level Converter, and some example circuits to show how it works.
Old Tutorials
Looking for the old, archived tutorials? Head on over to the
archived tutorials on the main
SparkFun site.
Please be aware that the tutorials you find there are no longer
actively maintained.