FT232 vs ATMEGA16U2

Hello folks, I've been looking to buy a Arduino 2560 + RAMPS 1.4 and i found in the MakerBase store in the Aliexpress a supposed better Arduino 2560 version. Link to the product here.

They claim that this is a better version because:

"1) Better compatibility, using chip FT232 alternative ATMEGA16U2.

2) Better stability, optimize heat dissipation, high-performance
chips ON 1117 LDO power.

3) Better safety, add recoverable fuse for short-circuit protection. "

So my question is: why the FT232 is better than ATMEGA16U2? It has a better baud rate?

Already thankful for all help.

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Building a custom coreXY based on BigXY Large Format CoreXY Printer, Vulcanus V2, Vulcanus MAX... ++Brazil++

... I'm reading this

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"\"1) Better compatibility, using chip FT232 alternative ATMEGA16U2."

so, that they use the ATMEGA16U2 instead of the FT232 and state it as "better alternative" ...

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Viktor
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except the image has a huge chip for the usb/serial a ATMEGA16U2 (as used on real megas) is tiny. Guess they could use a larger chip package... but why would you...

I suspect that it is backwards, they are using a FT232 instead of a ATMEGA16U2 (and I bet its a clone, that windows will not work with)

But regardless nether is better...

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/02/2017 05:54AM by Dust.

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Dust
except the image has a huge chip for the usb/serial a ATMEGA16U2 (as used on real megas) is tiny. Guess they could use a larger chip package... but why would you...

I suspect that it is backwards, they are using a FT232 instead of a ATMEGA16U2 (and I bet its a clone, that windows will not work with)

But regardless nether is better...

I understood that they are using a FT232 instead of a ATMEGA16U2 too. Is FT232 better than ATMEGA16U2?

The FT232 can do "more" regarding serial communication then the ATMEGA16U2. So in this regard it is probably "better" whatever that means.

But then again the serial connection is just some millimeters long and fixed PCB traces. If the ATMEGA16U2 fails serial wise then it fails in the same way the atmega2560 does. That would mean that the "better" chip has a higher risk of failing.

Did anybody ever had problems with this serial connection? All the problems I heard of are with serial connections with really long lines and bad cables in a noisy environment. Or due to the extremely long interrupt service routines used in some firmwares.

In conclusion I would say that this claim is marketing with no real benefit in everyday life. But that is just my experience,...

Quote
JustAnotherOne
The FT232 can do "more" regarding serial communication then the ATMEGA16U2. So in this regard it is probably "better" whatever that means.

But then again the serial connection is just some millimeters long and fixed PCB traces. If the ATMEGA16U2 fails serial wise then it fails in the same way the atmega2560 does. That would mean that the "better" chip has a higher risk of failing.

Did anybody ever had problems with this serial connection? All the problems I heard of are with serial connections with really long lines and bad cables in a noisy environment. Or due to the extremely long interrupt service routines used in some firmwares.

In conclusion I would say that this claim is marketing with no real benefit in everyday life. But that is just my experience,...

Thank you very much!

Best of all is having the USB interface built into the main processor, instead of converting the USB interface to serial without flow control as all the atmega2560 boards do.

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Large delta printer [miscsolutions.wordpress.com], E3D tool changer, Robotdigg SCARA printer, Crane Quad and Ormerod

Disclosure: I design Duet electronics and work on RepRapFirmware, [duet3d.com].

@dc42 you are so right! USB in the processor is so much better than this usb-uart stuff.

I hope that all new boards will have USB in the CPU. It would make most of the communication problems go away,...

They claims that atmega16u2 is better, are because 99% of ft232 chips on chinese boards are fakes.
And fake ft232 cause problems with drivers.
They add 1117 ldo regulator because they must to. Ft232 on one of outputs give 3,3v needed to power sd card.
But this is very good decision because ft232 3,3v output has very low amperage (only 50mA, compared to 800mA from 1117) and can cause reset of entire board because of overload.