Electronics for Beginners: A Practical Introduction to Schematics, Circuits, and Microcontrollers

Just finished this book, and have learnt a lot. Most beginners electronics books will focus on building a set of circuits, chosen to be interesting. This book is not like that. It concentrates on the fundamental circuit components and designs, explaining why they are as they are. In this way you learn a lot more than if you just followed a build, and gain a good foundation of knowledge. The text is very accessible, concise and well written making if a fairly quick read. Be aware that Maths is is used, but it is basic and serves to illustrate the topic. The more complex maths is relegated to an appendix. Highly recommend as a starting book, or as a complementary reference and guide.

The author is clear and concise on explanations and concepts. Pros - Concise explanations of various topics - Steps up from basics to more advanced to an well ordered manner Cons - Content material may be maths heavy for some on advanced topics - I'd personally would have liked more programming content in the book, felt like I need another book to build upon this building up Arduino/Circuitpython knowledge

A very detailed book for everything I want to know about electronics.

Perfect for the complete novice.

Most books on electronics fall into 2 camps: 1. For the hobbyist which show circuits together with an explanation of how they work but excluding design information 2. For the electronics engineer - heavy on math This book takes you from zero electronic experience to being able to design your own simple circuit using only elementary maths quite a feat. For the beginner there is information about the electronic components eg what they do and how they work, resistor colour identification and polarity etc, do's and don'ts of wiring a circuit. The author describes how to use a breadboard to connect your components without needing to solder. However, for me, the book really excels at teaching how to design your own circuits in a user friendly way. He has also written about beginning to use the Arduino circuit board, which interfaces your computer with an electronic cicuit. I found this very interesting. I had some electronic experience to begin with but I have learnt much more by working through the book. Some reviews have criticised the book for not providing answers to the questions at the end of each chapter but I did not find this a problem. If I could not do a question, I just reread the chapter I did find 2 or 3 minor errors and I suspect the authors easy maths approach has it's limitations when he deals with audio amplification, where he advises to use the figures as rough ballpark estimates and to hone them in with experimentation but all in all a brave attempt at making the subect fun and enjoyable. Thank you

Once I started reading this, I was surprised by how straightforward and clear it makes a very difficult subject. Just by reading the first few chapters I learnt more about electronics than I ever did before. I just wish there was a follow up book.

...and no, I don't mean intelligent circuit design. This invalidates their authority on any subject. Avoid.

Bartlett is a true gem of an author. I previewed several of his books before I made my purchase. This is a man who's intellect and depth of knowledge really shines. He really knows his subject and provides details that very few other authors do. It is a pleasure to read his books. I highly recommend any of his books. I will definitely purchase more in the future.

El libro parece bien, pero la editorial se nota que es descuidada. Le faltan las primeras hojas del índice.

In meiner Jugend war ich begeisterter Elektronik-Bastler, habe das Hobby aber im Zuge von Studium und Berufseinstieg irgendwann aufgegeben. Heute, gut vierzig Jahre später, hat mich das Interesse wieder gepackt. Vieles in dem Buch war für mich nicht neu, aber es war gut, das Wissen systematisch aufzufrischen. Der Autor behandelt das Thema in einer anfängerfreundlichen Weise, indem er mehr Wert auf die praktische Anwendung von elektronischen Komponenten legt als auf die physikalischen Grundlagen. Die mathematischen Ausführungen beschränken sich auf simple algebraische Umformungen. Wer tiefer einsteigen will, findet im Anhang weitergehende mathematische Erläuterungen. Alle wichtigen Bauelemente von elektronischen Schaltungen werden nachvollziehbar erklärt. Neben passiven Komponenten (Widerstände, Kondensatoren, Spulen usw.) werden auch Halbleiter und wichtige ICs (z. B. Logik-Schaltungen oder der berühmte 555 Timer) behandelt. Wichtige Regeln (Ohmsches Gesetz, Kirchhoffsche Regeln usw.) werden anhand von Schaltungen erläutert. Drei kurze Kapitel befassen sich mit dem Arduino-Mikrocontroller. Die Beispielschaltungen lassen sich mit relativ geringem Aufwand auf einem Breadboard nachbauen und erleichtern den Einstieg in den praktischen Umgang mit den Bauteilen. Anfänger haben nach der Lektüre einen guten Überblick über die Funktionsweise und das Zusammenwirken der gängigsten elektronischen Komponenten. Jedes Kapitel schließt mit einer knappen Zusammenfassung des Gelernten und einigen Übungsaufgaben. Leider gibt es zu den Übungen keinen Lösungsteil – weder im Buch noch online. Das Englisch ist nicht sonderlich kompliziert und lässt sich gut und flüssig lesen.

I like this book so much. So simple, well built, easy to understand, formulas and maths easy to follow. And I'm not an electrical engineer. I did play with electronic pieces when I was a teenager, but it was more about following schemas and building the DIY gadgets as we would do for resolving "simple" puzzles. I've now a better understanding and it helps me a lot ot put the different pieces together and to do the required calculations.

I would definitely recommend. It was delivered in the time frame given. My dad loves this book. Great knowledge for beginners who's learning about electronics.