Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by jewbacca 3383 days ago
> jellybean part

...

> In the electronics industry, a "jelly bean" component is one which is widely available, used generically in many applications, and has no very unusual characteristics—as though it might be grabbed out of a jar in handfuls when needed, like jelly beans. For example, the μA741 might be considered a jelly bean op amp.

[Wikipedia]

1 comments

The μA741 is still manufactured and it historically was a jellybean part, but I'm not sure it counts as one today. The performance is low and it's not something anybody is likely to use in new designs. I think the LM358 is a better example of a jellybean part. It's cheap and widely available and still commonly used, mostly because unlike the μA741 it works with a single-ended 5V supply (the μA741 needs both +5V and -5V).