Hello all,

I'm terribly green to 8051 programming and was hoping that I could receive some advice before impulse buying some random board from the back of Circuit Cellar.

My requirements are loosely defined, and subject to change at a frequency proportional to my attention span, but ideally I'd like to purchase a board that ranks high on the instant gratification chart yet stays within the "hobbyist" price range. I'd also prefer a system shipped in kit form, but my soldering skills aren't exactly noteworthy and any surface mounted components are completely out of the question.

Unfortunately, my position on the learning curve has not yet equipped me with the necessary knowledge to know exactly what I'm looking for - to date all my '51 experience is limited to poking around with Keil's uV2 eval and the SDCC, and I have yet to apply my code to a physical device. To be honest, the desire to read "Hello, Dave!" off a LCD panel is beginning to overtake my desire to make a sound financial decision.

I've been looking at the Keil board, but it seems a bit pricey for my needs. The PJRC board, on the other hand, seems enticing, especially considering that seemingly painless LCD add-on. Has anyone had any experience with either of these? Does anyone have any other suggestions/recommendations for a board along the lines of the PJRC one? Can anyone think of a serious issue I'm failing to take into consideration in regards to a dev/eval board?

Thanks in advance,
Dave