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    #1

    A good PIC programmer.

    Hi,

    I wanted to start playing with PICs a little bit. Just a little right now though. But I was wondering, what's the best programmer to get? I've heard the PicKit3 is a cheaper buy but it's a bit slower when it comes to in-circuit debugging. I heard ICD 3 is fast but around 200$. Does anyone have any suggestions? Is it worth spending the extra cash and getting the nicer one?

    E-Bay sells some ICD 3's for about half the price, claiming they're new, but they appear to be a different colour. I'm questioning whether they're counterfeit or not. I believe the company that makes the ICD 3's have some rule where they'll replace it if it breaks, even if it's because of something the user did...I highly doubt they'd cover counterfeit products...
    -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full
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    #2
    Re: A good PIC programmer.

    pickit3 is the way to go.

    this clone even comes with an adapter!
    http://www.ebay.com/itm/261644304088

    Comment

      #3
      Re: A good PIC programmer.

      Can you tell me why the PicKit3 is a better choice over the ICD 3? From what I've read, spec wise, the ICD 3 seems to be a superior system in most ways. The PicKit3 seems to be "open hardware". I do like open hardware, however, I see the PicKit3 is full speed USB while the ICD 3 is high speed. Does this really make a difference? I'm guessing I'm going to be making a lot of mistakes and needing to reflash the microcontroller many times.

      In-circuit debugging is nice as well. Is the ICD 3 truly faster? Just because it has a faster interface, am I ever going to notice it? You know, one of those, if my car can only go 20 MPH, even if the speed limit changes from 30 to 65, I'm still only going to be going 20 MPH kinda things.

      Could you tell me why the PicKit3 is the way to go? Is it just personal preference Stj? Have you used both of them? Thanks!
      -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

      Comment

        #4
        Re: A good PIC programmer.

        i dont know about icd3, but i know the pickit3 is directly supported by mplab-x
        i also know that it uploads a fiie into the programmer for the device you want to work on, so if new devices come out the programming hardware shouldnt need updating.

        i also like stuff that's open and cheap.
        so i have one of these.
        http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/261574745774

        Comment

          #5
          Re: A good PIC programmer.

          If you are into DIY and want something more universal I would recommend the Open Programmer. It does PICs, Atmel, SPI, I2C, and more. It is also completely open source and does have ICD. (I have never used the ICD.) The real drawbacks are that you would have to build it yourself, and it is not directly supported from MPLab.



          http://openprog.altervista.org/OP_eng.html

          http://sourceforge.net/projects/openprogrammer/
          Attached Files

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            #6
            Re: A good PIC programmer.

            Damn, I can't seem to get the pics you uploaded to load. Maybe they're at the end of those links? I'll check them out and see if I can find them.
            -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

            Comment

              #7
              Re: A good PIC programmer.

              Hey Stj,

              How easy is it to use one of those PicKit3's to extract the hex file from a programmed PIC (if it doesn't have security bits active or whatever they call it)? Do you have to leave the chip soldered in and hook to the pins if there's no schematics available? Can you just desolder the chip and plop it in the PicKit3 or do you need to buy some sort of ZIF attachment? I'd like to stay away from clones. If a small increase in speed is all I'm going to get for 150$, I might just buy one of the PicKit3's.
              -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

              Comment

                #8
                Re: A good PIC programmer.

                Originally posted by LDSisHere View Post
                If you are into DIY and want something more universal I would recommend the Open Programmer. It does PICs, Atmel, SPI, I2C, and more. It is also completely open source and does have ICD. (I have never used the ICD.) The real drawbacks are that you would have to build it yourself, and it is not directly supported from MPLab.



                http://openprog.altervista.org/OP_eng.html

                http://sourceforge.net/projects/openprogrammer/
                I am into DIY but right now, I just don't really have the time. I'd imagine because the PicKit3 is open hardware, the MPLab would be open sourceware and there'd be a Linux version available. I really like the Linux compatible stuff. The only PC in the work room (the only working PC at least) is a Linux box. It's my main machine.
                -- Law of Expanding Memory: Applications Will Also Expand Until RAM Is Full

                Comment

                  #9
                  Re: A good PIC programmer.

                  to read an unprotected pic you need about 5 wires.

                  it's often easier to solder some wires to the target than lift the chip.
                  i'v had to do this a few times wih both pic and avr to upgrade firmware on obd2 interfaces.
                  Attached Files
                  Last edited by stj; 08-16-2015, 03:45 PM.

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