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Makey Makey and Micro:Bit: What’s the difference?

Makey Makey

The Makey Makey is a printed circuit board offering the possibility of imitating certain actions of a keyboard. It consists of a series of ports whose shape reveals their usefulness, and is accompanied only by connector wires like a USB cable. That’s all it needs to work its magic! All that’s left to do is connect it to the conductive object of your choice (conductive objects such as fruit, bowls of water, plants, metal objects) to enjoy the experience. Simple to use, just plug it into your computer to unlock its potential. The company behind the product invites you to play a game of Mario with Play-Doh or play the piano with bananas.

Micro:bit

The Micro:bit, on the other hand, is a microprocessor with no predefined purpose. You can create your own controller, or turn it into a beacon if you wish. It’s up to you to decide how you want to use it. Like the Makey Makey, it has a light-emitting diode display and two buttons in addition to the rest. However, you’ll need to learn the basics of programming to unlock its infinite potential.

The differences

The effect of discovery and amazement is more instantaneous with the Makey Makey. Its intuitive handling and minimalism make it an excellent learning tool. The Micro:Bit takes a little longer to dazzle us.

Microprocessor
Makey Makey
Micro:Bit
Coding required
"No code"
Coding required
Connection for required use (ground must be connected to user)
User must be "grounded
Not required
Price of the microcontroller
+-50$
+-25$
Replay value/reusability
Low
High
Sensors
Build-it-yourself
included, coding required
Computer connectivity required for operation
Web application via USB required
Not required, the code downloaded onto the micro:Bit acts as an application.
Languages used for the platform
English
Multilingual

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