--- title: The Seven Sensors And Breakout Boards To Avoid In A Product description: A curated list of seven commonly used sensors and breakout boards that should be avoided in real product designs, with recommended alternatives for each. The... canonical: https://daily.dev/posts/the-seven-sensors-and-breakout-boards-to-avoid-in-a-product-arolfgaz9 twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:site: @dailydotdev og:type: website og:site_name: daily.dev og:title: The Seven Sensors And Breakout Boards To Avoid In A Product | daily.dev og:description: A curated list of seven commonly used sensors and breakout boards that should be avoided in real product designs, with recommended alternatives for each. The... og:url: https://daily.dev/posts/the-seven-sensors-and-breakout-boards-to-avoid-in-a-product-arolfgaz9 og:image: https://api.daily.dev/og/posts/aRolFgaZ9.png og:image:alt: The Seven Sensors And Breakout Boards To Avoid In A Product og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 630 og:locale: en --- > ## Documentation Index > Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://daily.dev/llms.txt > Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further. # The Seven Sensors And Breakout Boards To Avoid In A Product **[Hackaday](https://daily.dev/sources/hackaday)** · 4 min read · 0 upvotes · 0 comments ## Summary A curated list of seven commonly used sensors and breakout boards that should be avoided in real product designs, with recommended alternatives for each. The DHT11/DHT22 temperature-humidity sensors suffer from proprietary protocols and poor supply chains; the HC-SR04 ultrasonic sensor lacks temperature compensation; the HC-SR501 PIR module is too inconsistent for production; MQ-series gas sensors require long burn-in and calibration; the MPU-6050 IMU faces supply chain and NRND concerns; cadmium sulfide LDRs violate EU RoHS regulations; and ACS712-based mains current sensor breakout boards lack proper electrical safety isolation. For each, specific reputable alternatives are named, emphasizing supply chain reliability, regulatory compliance, and safety standards. ## Full article daily.dev links to this article rather than hosting it. Read it at the original source: ## Questions this post answers ### Why shouldn't I use the ACS712 current sensor breakout board in a mains-powered product? The ACS712 chip itself is not the problem, but the mains-targeting breakout boards commonly sold for it lack proper consideration for mains power safety, such as adequate creepage distance and separation between high and low voltage sections. The same safety oversight is common in cheap relay boards sold alongside it, making them risky for any device integrating mains power. _Anyone wiring mains power into a product should weigh safety tradeoffs like these before picking a design on daily.dev._ ### What is a good replacement for the DHT11 or DHT22 temperature-humidity sensor in a product design? The SHT40, SHT41, Bosch Sensortec BME280 or BMP180, and TI's HDC3020 are recommended replacements. Unlike the DHT11/DHT22's proprietary one-wire protocol and questionable accuracy, these use standard I2C communication and come with a trustworthy datasheet and reliable supply chain, making them better suited for production use. _Developers picking sensors for a real product can compare tradeoffs like these on daily.dev before committing to a part._ ### Why is the MPU-6050 IMU considered a bad choice for a manufacturable product despite working well? The MPU-6050 generally works fine functionally, but the concern is supply chain reliability, similar to the NXP UDA1334A I2S codec that hasn't been manufactured for years yet is still widely available. Parts marked 'Not Recommended for New Designs' (NRND) risk supply surprises during production, so actively manufactured IMUs like the Bosch BMI270 or TDK ICM-42688 are safer choices despite higher cost. _Engineers vetting components for long-term manufacturability can track sourcing risks like these on daily.dev._ ## Similar posts on daily.dev - [4 beginner-friendly ESP32 sensors you need first and foremost](https://daily.dev/posts/4-beginner-friendly-esp32-sensors-you-need-first-and-foremost-yveotwsor) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [How To Kill Humidity Sensors With Humidity](https://daily.dev/posts/how-to-kill-humidity-sensors-with-humidity-oaavkee9z) · Hackaday · 4 upvotes · 0 comments - [Designing and assembling my first PCB](https://daily.dev/posts/designing-and-assembling-my-first-pcb-whkdji57r) · Hacker News · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [My first ESP32 sensor solved a real problem, and now I'm building new projects every week](https://daily.dev/posts/my-first-esp32-sensor-solved-a-real-problem-and-now-i-m-building-new-projects-every-week-xg2qcsehh) · XDA Developers · 0 upvotes · 0 comments - [Arduino Launches Plug-and-Play Modules for Long-Range Sensor Projects](https://daily.dev/posts/arduino-launches-plug-and-play-modules-for-long-range-sensor-projects-wcsxnhsyj) · Hacker News · 1 upvotes · 0 comments --- Tags: [#hardware](https://daily.dev/tags/hardware), [#supply-chain](https://daily.dev/tags/supply-chain), [#sensors](https://daily.dev/tags/sensors) [View this post on daily.dev](https://daily.dev/posts/the-seven-sensors-and-breakout-boards-to-avoid-in-a-product-arolfgaz9) ```json {"@context":"https://schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization","name":"daily.dev","url":"https://daily.dev","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://daily.dev/apple-touch-icon.png","width":180,"height":180},"sameAs":["https://twitter.com/dailydotdev","https://github.com/dailydotdev","https://www.linkedin.com/company/daily-dev-ltd"]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https://daily.dev/#website","url":"https://daily.dev","name":"daily.dev","publisher":{"@id":"https://daily.dev/#organization"},"potentialAction":{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https://daily.dev/search?q={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}}]} {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"TechArticle","headline":"The Seven Sensors And Breakout Boards To Avoid In A Product","url":"https://daily.dev/posts/the-seven-sensors-and-breakout-boards-to-avoid-in-a-product-arolfgaz9","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://daily.dev/posts/the-seven-sensors-and-breakout-boards-to-avoid-in-a-product-arolfgaz9"},"datePublished":"2026-08-02T08:06:43.843Z","dateModified":"2026-09-13T19:18:06.691Z","description":"A curated list of seven commonly used sensors and breakout boards that should be avoided in real product designs, with recommended alternatives for each. 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