I’m very excited about my Arduino mod to have a ZIF (zero insert force) socket from SparkFun instead of the regular IC socket. Since I have a big project coming up where I will not only need to upload sketches to lots of ATMega chips but the bootloader as well, this will be way easier! Sure, I could build a separate board to do the work, but this is easier… and pink!
The socket fits OK in the Arduino’s IC socket; the spacing seems a bit off resulting in the socket not being in all the way (and it seems like it might want to pop out). But a few test opening and closing the socket and everything seems stable. And, for $3 I can handle a little wonky-ness…