Pro Micros

Various Pro Micros

Several different "Pro Micros".

Another post with a few more here.

I use Pro Micros in many of my projects. Most have been the cheap blue clones, but lately some other variations have been showing up on eBay and Aliexpress. They are mostly all compatible with the original opensource design from Sparkfun. Some have electrical or physical differences.

 From left to right:

• Genuine Sparkfun Pro Micro
• Cheap 5V 16MHz clone
• Cheap 3.3V 8MHz clone (the crystal has 8.000 on it)
• Cheap Green clone with different power supply circuit
• Cheap Black clone
• Cheap "Pro Micro" with Mini USB (not physically the same, but the same pinout)

The Sparkfun Pro Micro was purchased directly from Sparkfun. The others were from eBay or Aliexpress.

They all have the Arduino compatible Caterina bootloader.

The Green Pro Micro has a different power circuit that makes it incompatible with some split keyboards.

The Black one uses the larger AtMega32U4 package.

There is now another black Pro Micro that is not the same size as a regular Pro Micro.

The one with the Mini USB connector has the same pinout, but is taller, wider, and thicker (the USB connector is the thickest part.) I use it on the Tomato.

The genuine Sparkfun Pro Micro PCB is 0.8mm thick. You can find cheap Pro Micro's that are 1.2mm thick (second one). Most are 1.6mm thick.

Two different styles of micro USB connectors. Some are flat (black and green) and some have a flange. What you get with clones is totally random.

Not Pro Micros.

These can often be used in place of a Pro Micro, but changes to code and wiring would be required. The AtMega328p based boards would require V-USB to create a software USB HID interface with additional hardware components.

• Arduino Micro clone (similar to a Pro Micro, but larger and more pins)
• Arduino Nano clone (AtMega328p, USB is for serial only)
• Pololu A-Star Micro (similar to a Pro Micro, but smaller and different pinout)
• DFRobot Beetle (similar to a Pro Micro, thinner, but very few pins)
• Arduino Pro Mini clone (AtMega328p, requires external programmer)
• PJRC Teensy 2.0 (similar to a Pro Micro, better in every way. More pins, smaller more reliable bootloader. Reset button.)

Some other controllers are compared here.