Reviewer:
Richard Riley
from Trilby, FL United States
I bought this for my son last year, and then again for me this year. Being very cheap, I did not buy the parts kit for myself, but discovered the thrill of ordering parts from China and Thailand through e-bay. I have bought 2n2222 for 2 cents each, LEDs for a penny, relays for 65 cents, etc. This is wonderful, but since they are so cheap (shipping included) I buy them in lots of 20 or 100 and now have a table full of project boards, parts, wires and smiles. In order to not spend the $125 for the parts kit, I have spent about $300 through eBay. And now I can do these and scores of other project into the next decade. It is a great book and I recommend both Make: and eBay to everybody.
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The Best Intro Into Electronics Book
April 4, 2011
Reviewer:
Anonymous Person
I have never received any formal electronics training, but this book gave me the staples to understand electronics. I've had many various D.I.Y. electronics books, but none have explained electronics quite so well. It takes you through electronics in a hands on way. From licking a 9v and making LEDs light up with lemons to an occulting circuit with a relay and much more. This book gave me the basic foundation in electronics in a fun way and now I have built a polygraph and a photo-theremin both of which can be found in make magazine. *Easy to understand *Fun projects starting with basic and leading up to the more advanced *Hands on and gets you right to the project *Every project includes a simple shopping list with web sights and stores to purchase the parts
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0 of 0 people found the following review helpful:
Great Book for Beginners!!
January 2, 2011
Reviewer:
Anonymous Person
from New Haven, CT United States
This book is really for beginners. I've often been disappointed by ‘beginners’ books on various topics that quickly forget their target audience and become difficult to follow. This is NOT the case with this book. The author starts with simple to follow experiments and ideas. Even the theory sections are written using easy to understand metaphors.
Unfortunately, there are a few oversights in the book that can be confusing for the beginner. So far, I have only encountered these in Exp.6. There are two instances where the text disagrees with the diagrams. To a more experienced experimenter, these would be trivial mistakes in the book, but for a beginner who is trying to understand the underlying theory and concepts this can be particularly confusing.
Despite those few instances of confusion and frustration, this book is very clearly written and very mindful of its target audience. I doubt you’ll be able to find a better hands-on book for beginners anywhere else!
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Super but be prepared to open your wallet
July 4, 2010
Reviewer:
Michael Fitzhugh
from Oakland, CA United States
I love this book so far. It is well-written, has great illustrations and has gotten me excited to learn about basic electronics. However because I'm new to all this, I wasn't quite prepared for the expenses one needs to incur for tools and materials. First, I spent 135 USD for the Deluxe Make Electronics Toolkit and then another 100 USD on the Make Electronics Components Pack 1. Granted, there are other sources of tools and components that might have been cheaper and any new hobby has some initial set-up costs. Also, the Make kits which I'm noting here are superb values that will save you both time and money. Just be prepared. If you're serious about digging into this book, you'll need to dig into your wallet too.
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Burbank, CA
April 24, 2010
Reviewer:
William Springer
from Tuxedo, NY United States
I agree with everything Colin Miller said. His fiancé is a very lucky woman!
Parts for the experiments/projects 
Great Book for Beginners!! 
