I got the Arduino Mega and other items from sparkfun.com, including the Arduino MegaShield Kit and the electronic components to do the experiments at http://www.oomlout.com/a/products/ardx/. I also got the Getting Started with Arduino book which provides a quick introduction to the Arduino.

I’ve been looking for the least expensive Arduino clone, and that is probably the Ardweeny which claims “only 7 parts plus pins & PCB!” and is intended for breadboard use. Other inexpensive clones are the DC Boarduino and the USB Boarduino. The least expensive place I’ve found for the Arduino Mega is at liquidware.com.

The pictures show the electronic components from sparkfun.com. The last picture shows the assembled shield attached to the Arduino. The video shows the “Hello World” of the Arduino world—a simple blinking light.