Component Suppliers

Here is a list of stores I usually buy from for components:

Online Retailers

Jameco. Good deals on lots of passive parts, specifically resistors and capacitors. No minimum order (that I know of). Good shipping. I also like the organization of components on their site.

http://www.jameco.com/

Digikey. Fast processing and shipping, but if your order totals up to be under $25, they charge a $5 handling fee. They usually have everything you could want, including a good selection of microcontrollers. You can also chat live with a tech support representative and quickly find the part you need.

http://www.digikey.com/

Mouser. Whenever I search for a particular item, the first few items of the first page has it in stock, then I see about 5-6 pages of non-stocked items. This is annoying, and I haven’t figured out how you can search for in stock items only (in digikey you obviously can). However Mouser has no minimum order, and good shipping.

http://www.mouser.com/

All Electronics. Lots of interesting and wierd stuff. Poor search engine, but very good prices and good shipping.

http://www.allelectronics.com/

Spark Fun Electronics. Great place, highly recommended. Great shipping, and an excellent selection of exotic chips and boards. They sell Olimex development boards and tools, which are commonly used in the electronic hobbyist communities.

http://www.sparkfun.com/

Microcontroller Shop. They have good shipping, and it seems they ship next business day (was for me at least). But, I had a pretty insulting experience with their support, and for that reason I will not bother with them anymore.

http://microcontrollershop.com/

Samples
Here is a list of companies I know you can sample from, and my comments on them:

• Texas Instruments – great shipping, good selection.
• Microchip – Also great shipping, decent selection (I don’t like PICs).
• Analog Devices – Insane shipping, they shipped mine 1-day UPS shipping. Good selection for their target component market.
• Maxim-Dallas – Ok shipping, you won’t really get a shipping confirmation, just a general sample confirmation. You should get it in about 4 days.
• Vishay – IrDA modules, they do ship, but if i recall correctly it was relatively slow.
• Atmel – Selection of their microcontrollers, slow shipping if ever shipped. Best to contact a representative directly and ask.
• Phillips- I have sampled, but nothing yet. A confirmation was sent, however.

A good rule of thumb is to be honest about the project and not ask for memory products.