Anyone have hands on information about this board?
Never mind, this is what I get for glimpsing at posts. The board in question is a kickstarter. Not out yet.
I see a design problem: soldered stepper motor driver. If one breaks, the whole board is useless.
@Maxim_Melcher I wouldn’t say a design problem but a design choice. If the drivers are sufficiently robust and used within specification then direct mounting is not an issue.
The use of connectored driver modules in a vibration-prone environment is more of an issue (particularly as most driver modules aren’t secured beyond their mating force in the connector).
Failure in use is always possible but if that failure results from external factors e.g. motor breakdown or misuse by the end-user then that should not be deemed a design problem.
@Neil_Darlow I mean, for the board is also designed for use by amateurs. The amateurs make mistakes (I myself, for example, have at least 4 Pololu driver destroyed), which are understandable and unavoidable. I am looking for a modular system where individual components are cheap and easy to replace. Look, please, the PC’s to: consisting of several blocks that allow the existence of a flexible and affordable architecture.
PS: Otherwise leave the board a very positive impression.
@Maxim_Melcher I understand your reasoning but you attributed a lack of convenience as a design problem. As an Electronics Designer I take a more pragmatic view.
I am sure you are aware that stepper driver ICs dissipate heat through pads on the underside of the package. The optimal mounting solution for these devices is to solder the pins to the PCB ensuring contact with the underside pads to a thermal plane of the PCB (often a ground plane).
Pololu and similar drivers follow this scheme but the heat is then transferred to the controller PCB through a single ground pin of the connector (you might also transfer heat through microstep pins which happen to be at 0V but that is bad practice). This is why boards employing driver modules often require additional
heatsinks or forced cooling where a direct mounted approach does not need such measures (with good design practice).
As far as your argument for the boards being used by amateurs is concerned, I have mixed views. I am prepared to consider the effects of handling and the need for adequate board edge-protection but I would expect users to apply adequate anti-static handling procedures and verification of wiring correctness before the application of power. I do not consider negative effects from not observing these requirements a design deficiency.
After all, if the board is manufactured and tested to the stringencies of ISO standards should poor handling or usage by the end-user reflect badly on the product?
I can not imagine that DRV8825 can be operated without heat sink at full power. At 2.5 amps would be the power dissipation to the 6 watts.
One note: it destroyed a CAN driver IC due to incorrect handling, an accident, a “cold soldering point” or an internal defect. What do you do IF it happens? In Pololu, RUMBA, RADDS, etc, I can replace a driver for 5€ in a minute.
Directly soldered driver may be cheaper … but not necessarily better.
Nothing personal, bro 
This looks like a complete copy-paste of Replicape. Drivers, shift registers, mosfets, 12V step down, fuse, everything looks similar, but not a single mention of credit. It’s basically a single baord solution with Replicape and BeagleBone Black and at that price point they will not be able to deliver.
@Maxim_Melcher I realize it’s unintuitive, I was in your shoes with the same opinions when I started. However, you’re mistaken in the general sense on the heat sinking of these driver chips. These chips really are designed to heat sink to copper layers in the PCB. There’s a big thermal pad on the bottom side of the chip just for that use. The data sheets for these drivers don’t show heat sinks on the tops. Heat sinks on top don’t do it as well. I can get much higher performance out of a RAMBo than I could out of a RAMPS, fewer headaches, fewer failures. My RAMPS with genuine Pololus doesn’t take the heat nearly as well as my genuine RAMBo.
In regards to this specific board, I don’t know. If the company’s support is any good, they can fix it under warranty or for a reasonable price.
And yes, it does look like a ripoff of the Replicape + BBB. The driver ICs do look closer together than they should be, too. So I don’t know if I’d support this particular board.
I’ve been trying to find out how he’s getting the target price and making it sustainable. If credit is missing, that certainly needs to be fixed. I am really looking forward to having some cost effective solution based on BeagleBone Black.