ATMEGA168V-10PU - 16KB Flash 10MHz AVR MCU | Microchip
MPN: ATMEGA168V-10PU β Active| Qty | Unit Price | Extended |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | $3.2 | $3.20 |
| 10 | $2.88 | $28.80 |
| 100 | $2.55 | $255.00 |
| 500 | $2.3 | $1,150.00 |
| 1,000 | $2.01 | $2,010.00 |
ATMEGA168V-10PU Overview
An 8-bit MCU (microcontroller unit) is a single-chip computer integrating a processor core, program memory, data memory, and peripherals such as timers, ADCs, and communication interfaces. Within the power-management hierarchy of embedded systems, the ATmega family sits in the general-purpose microcontroller category alongside the PIC, MSP430, and STM8 families, and is the direct predecessor family of the ATmega328P used on the Arduino Uno.
Key features include the AVR advanced RISC architecture with 133 powerful instructions, most executing in a single clock cycle; 32 general-purpose 8-bit working registers; 23 programmable I/O lines; three flexible timer/counters with compare modes; an 8-channel 10-bit ADC; and programmable serial USART, SPI, and two-wire (I2C) interfaces. The debugWIRE interface enables on-chip debugging over a single pin.
The V-variant is characterized for a 1.8 V to 5.5 V operating range at up to 10 MHz, making it well suited for battery-powered and low-voltage designs, and the P suffix denotes the industrial-through-hole PDIP package with industrial temperature range support. In-system self-programmable Flash with read-while-write capability allows firmware updates in the field without removing the chip.
Typical applications include battery-powered sensor nodes, hobby and maker electronics, industrial control panels, and low-power instrumentation where 5 V legacy compatibility and through-hole soldering are required.
Design consideration: at 5 V the part can run at its full 10 MHz rating, but at the low end of the supply range the maximum safe clock frequency drops substantially, so verify the voltage-frequency curve in the manufacturer datasheet before selecting a crystal.
This page synthesizes distributor pricing, pin-compatible ATmega168-family drop-in alternatives, and practical design notes not consolidated in the manufacturer datasheet.
Drop-in alternatives for ATMEGA168V-10PU β same package, pin-to-pin compatible. Different-package parts requiring PCB rework are excluded.
Variants in this series
Same-series models that are drop-in compatible with ATMEGA168V-10PU (same form factor and footprint) β differing in Core Processor, Package, ADC Channels, Communication Interfaces, Instructions.
Quick Comparison Tool β Select alternative parts for side-by-side comparison:
ATMEGA168A-PU
β Drop-Inπ Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATMEGA168PV-10PU
β Drop-In β οΈ εζ°εΎ ιͺθ―π Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATMEGA168V-10PI
β Drop-In β οΈ εζ°εΎ ιͺθ―β In Stock
$1.26 / Unit
View Datasheet βATMEGA168-20PU
β Drop-Inβ In Stock
$3.78 / Unit
View Datasheet βATMEGA168PA-PU
β Drop-Inπ Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATMEGA328P-PU
β Drop-Inπ Reference alternative (not in catalog)
ATMEGA168V-10PU Maximum Ratings & Electrical Characteristics
| Core Processor | AVR |
| Core Size | 8-Bit |
| Speed | 10 MHz |
| Flash Memory | 16 KB (8K x 16) |
| EEPROM | 512 B |
| SRAM | 1 KB |
| Supply Voltage Range | 1.8 V to 5.5 V |
| Number of I/O | 23 |
| ADC Resolution | 10-bit |
| ADC Channels | 8 (TQFP/QFN); 6 available on PDIP |
| Timers/Counters | 3 (two 8-bit, one 16-bit) |
| Communication Interfaces | USART, SPI, 2-Wire (I2C) |
| Debug Interface | debugWIRE |
| Instructions | 133, most single-cycle |
| Working Registers | 32 x 8-bit general purpose |
| Package | 28-PDIP (0.300 in, 7.62 mm) |
| Mounting Type | Through Hole |
| Temperature Grade | Industrial |
| RoHS Status | Green / Compliant |
ATMEGA168V-10PU Pin Configuration
| Pin 1 | PC6 (RESET) β Reset input / Port C bit 6 |
| Pin 2 | PD0 (RXD) β Port D bit 0 / USART receive |
| Pin 3 | PD1 (TXD) β Port D bit 1 / USART transmit |
| Pin 4 | PD2 (INT0) β Port D bit 2 / External interrupt 0 |
| Pin 5 | PD3 (INT1/OC2B) β Port D bit 3 / External interrupt 1 / Timer2 output compare B |
| Pin 6 | PD4 (T0/XCK) β Port D bit 4 / Timer0 counter input / USART external clock |
| Pin 7 | VCC β Digital supply voltage (1.8 V to 5.5 V) |
| Pin 8 | GND β Ground |
| Pin 9 | PB6 (XTAL1/TOSC1) β Port B bit 6 / Crystal oscillator input / RTC oscillator input |
| Pin 10 | PB7 (XTAL2/TOSC2) β Port B bit 7 / Crystal oscillator output / RTC oscillator output |
| Pin 11 | PD5 (T1/OC0B) β Port D bit 5 / Timer1 counter input / Timer0 output compare B |
| Pin 12 | PD6 (AIN0/OC0A) β Port D bit 6 / Analog comparator positive input / Timer0 output compare A |
| Pin 13 | PD7 (AIN1) β Port D bit 7 / Analog comparator negative input |
| Pin 14 | PB0 (ICP1/CLKO) β Port B bit 0 / Timer1 input capture / System clock output |
| Pin 15 | PB1 (OC1A) β Port B bit 1 / Timer1 output compare A |
| Pin 16 | PB2 (SS/OC1B) β Port B bit 2 / SPI slave select / Timer1 output compare B |
| Pin 17 | PB3 (MOSI/OC2A) β Port B bit 3 / SPI master output / Timer2 output compare A |
| Pin 18 | PB4 (MISO) β Port B bit 4 / SPI master input |
| Pin 19 | PB5 (SCK) β Port B bit 5 / SPI serial clock |
| Pin 20 | AVCC β ADC supply voltage |
| Pin 21 | AREF β ADC analog reference input |
| Pin 22 | GND β Ground |
| Pin 23 | PC0 (ADC0) β Port C bit 0 / ADC channel 0 |
| Pin 24 | PC1 (ADC1) β Port C bit 1 / ADC channel 1 |
| Pin 25 | PC2 (ADC2) β Port C bit 2 / ADC channel 2 |
| Pin 26 | PC3 (ADC3) β Port C bit 3 / ADC channel 3 |
| Pin 27 | PC4 (ADC4/SDA) β Port C bit 4 / ADC channel 4 / Two-wire data |
| Pin 28 | PC5 (ADC5/SCL) β Port C bit 5 / ADC channel 5 / Two-wire clock |
Typical Applications
ATMEGA168V-10PU is suitable for 6 applications: Battery-Powered Sensor Nodes, Hobby and Maker Electronics, Industrial Control Panels, Low-Power Instrumentation, Serial Communication Bridges, Legacy Board Repair and Maintenance.
Battery-Powered Sensor Nodes
The ATMEGA168V-10PU fits battery-powered sensor nodes because its 1.8 V to 5.5 V operating range allows direct operation from two alkaline or NiMH cells without a boost converter, and the AVR core supports multiple sleep modes (power-down current in the microamp class per the Microchip datasheet). In a typical node the MCU wakes on watchdog or pin-change interrupt, samples a sensor through the 10-bit ADC, and transmits over SPI or USART before returning to power-down. Because the full 10 MHz is available only near the top of the voltage range, scale the clock down or use the internal 8 MHz RC oscillator at low battery voltages to stay within the voltage-frequency specification.
Recommended
Hobby and Maker Electronics
The ATMEGA168V-10PU is a mainstay of the hobby and maker market because the through-hole 28-PDIP package is easy to solder, socket, and swap on prototyping boards, and the AVR architecture is supported by the open-source Arduino toolchain and avr-gcc. With 16 KB Flash, projects such as clocks, small robots, LED controllers, and keyboard interfaces fit comfortably. The internal 8 MHz RC oscillator lets the chip run with no external crystal, freeing pins 9 and 10 for I/O. For sketches that outgrow 16 KB, the pin-compatible ATmega328P-PU (32 KB Flash, the Arduino Uno MCU) drops into the same socket with no PCB change, which is why many hobby boards socket the MCU by default.
Recommended
Industrial Control Panels
In industrial control panels, the ATMEGA168V-10PU provides a cost-effective 8-bit controller for relay sequencing, limit-switch monitoring, and simple HMI functions. The industrial temperature grade (denoted by the I in the order code), 23 programmable I/O lines, and 5 V-tolerant through-hole construction suit the noisy, 5 V-legacy environment of panel electronics. The three timer/counters generate PWM for actuator drive, while the watchdog timer provides autonomous fault recovery. The brown-out detector and in-system programmable Flash allow field firmware updates over SPI without desoldering. For 24 V industrial signals, pair the MCU with optocouplers and relay drivers on the I/O ports to meet isolation requirements.
Recommended
Low-Power Instrumentation
Portable instrumentation benefits from the ATMEGA168V-10PU's 8-channel 10-bit ADC combined with the internal 1.1 V bandgap reference, enabling ratiometric measurements of bridges, thermistors, and potentiometers directly on-chip. The ADC noise-reduction sleep mode silences the core during conversions, improving effective resolution for slow-moving signals. The 512 B EEPROM stores calibration constants that survive battery replacement, and the two-wire interface connects external precision ADCs or EEPROMs when 10-bit resolution is insufficient. Operating down to 1.8 V lets designers avoid level-shifting between the MCU and low-voltage analog front ends, simplifying the power tree in single-cell and two-cell instruments.
Recommended
Serial Communication Bridges
With a hardware USART, SPI, and two-wire (I2C) interface, the ATMEGA168V-10PU serves effectively as a protocol bridge or converter in embedded systems: for example, translating between a USB-serial adapter and an I2C sensor bus, or buffering SPI streams between subsystems. The AVR's single-cycle execution of most of its 133 instructions gives deterministic timing for bit-banged protocols, while hardware USART supports standard baud rates from its 10 MHz clock. The 1 KB SRAM accommodates modest ring buffers, and pin-change interrupts on all 23 I/O lines enable precise edge timing. debugWIRE permits full in-circuit debugging through the reset pin during protocol development.
Recommended
Legacy Board Repair and Maintenance
The ATMEGA168V-10PU is frequently specified for repairing and maintaining legacy equipment originally designed around Atmel AVR PDIP microcontrollers, where the through-hole package allows direct socket replacement without reflow equipment. Because Microchip maintains continuity across the ATmega168 family (V, A, PA, and PB generations share the pinout and largely compatible register maps), a stocked V-grade part can service a broad installed base. When the exact V-variant is scarce, the ATMEGA168A-PU is the officially designated newer device and drops into the same socket; verify fuse settings (clock source, BOD level) after replacement since factory defaults can differ between generations.
Recommended
Recommended Products Summary
Engineering reference data for ATMEGA168V-10PU β comparison, design guidance, and compliance information.
Selection Guide
Comparison with Alternatives
| Parameter | This Product | ATMEGA168A-PU | ATMEGA168PV-10PU | ATMEGA168-20PU | ATMEGA168PA-PU | ATMEGA328P-PU |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Package | 28-PDIP | 28-PDIP - same | 28-PDIP - same | 28-PDIP - same | 28-PDIP - same | 28-PDIP - same |
| Brand | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology | Microchip Technology |
| Max Clock Speed | 10 MHz | 20 MHz | 10 MHz | 20 MHz | 20 MHz | 20 MHz |
| Flash Memory | 16 KB | 16 KB | 16 KB | 16 KB | 16 KB | 32 KB |
| SRAM | 1 KB | 1 KB | 1 KB | 1 KB | 1 KB | 2 KB |
| Supply Voltage Range | 1.8 V to 5.5 V | 1.8 V to 5.5 V | 1.8 V to 5.5 V | 4.5 V to 5.5 V | 1.8 V to 5.5 V | 1.8 V to 5.5 V |
| Low-Power Features | Standard sleep modes | Improved power vs V-grade | picoPower (power reduction registers) | Standard sleep modes | picoPower | picoPower |
| Lifecycle Note | Active; newer device ATMEGA168A designated | Newer device recommended by Microchip | picoPower same-generation variant | Standard-grade sibling | picoPower successor generation | Active, high-volume (Arduino Uno) |
Key Differentiators
- Lowest-voltage operation in the PDIP-28 ATmega168 family (vs ATMEGA168-20PU)
- Socket-upgrade memory path (vs ATMEGA328P-PU)
- Lower cost than the picoPower successor (vs ATMEGA168PA-PU)
Design Notes
Respect the voltage-frequency relationship: the V-grade part is rated to 10 MHz only across the upper portion of its 1.8 V to 5.5 V range; at low battery voltages the maximum safe clock drops. If running from two cells, either use the internal 8 MHz RC oscillator with system clock prescaling or add a boost regulator. Decouple VCC and AVCC with 100 nF ceramic capacitors placed close to pins 7 and 20, and connect AVCC to VCC through a low-pass LC filter in ADC-heavy designs to reduce supply-borne noise on conversions.
When substituting ATMEGA168A-PU or ATMEGA168PA-PU for the V-part in an existing socket, verify fuse bytes after programming: clock source (external crystal vs internal RC), brown-out detector level, and boot-loader vector settings can differ from factory defaults between generations. Also confirm that your ISP programmer reads the correct device signature; programmers with stale device lists may reject the newer A/PA signatures. Never drive PC6/RESET high above VCC, and enable the internal pull-up if the reset line is driven by an open-collector supervisor.
For through-hole prototyping, always socket the PDIP-28 device; this permits drop-in migration to ATMEGA328P-PU (32 KB Flash) without desoldering. Keep the crystal within 2 cm of pins 9-10 with 12-22 pF load capacitors to ground, and route the ADC reference (AREF, pin 21) as a quiet node with a 100 nF capacitor; do not drive AREF when the internal reference is selected. Tie unused port pins as outputs-low or inputs-with-pullups per the Microchip application note on unused I/O to prevent floating-node current in battery designs.
Compliance Information
FindIC listing describes the part as GREEN packaging, which generally indicates RoHS compliance; REACH and conflict-minerals status not stated in provided data.
