Pico vs Arduino Nano Every: Which Do You Need?
Finding the right microcontroller for your project is critical for not just budgetary reasons but also performance. Different boards come with their own unique specs and support a different variety of hardware. When it comes to choosing the Raspberry Pi Pico or an Arduino Nano, there are a few things you should know before adding any chips to your cart. For the sake of this article, we’ll be comparing the Pico to the Nano Every edition as it’s the most comparable in price and size.
There are many things to consider when selecting a microcontroller and most of the needs will vary from project to project. Here are a few common factors to consider:
- What sensors and/or modules do you need to control?
- What physical size should the microcontroller be?
- How much storage is necessary for the project code?
- How much processing speed is required?
What is a microcontroller?
Microcontrollers are small circuit boards used to control components like servos. They typically have a processor capable of running extremely light applications rather than full operating systems. These are useful for things like operating multiple Servos at once where an SBC would be overkill.
If you're looking to learn more about the general differences between the larger Rasberry Pi models and Arduino, then check out our general Raspberry Pi versus Arduino comparison.