Electronics for Kids
Electronics for Kids by Charles Plattby Charles Platt
Shares rank 5 of 12 electronics books by recommenders
Recommended as an introduction to electronics; one reader's father gave it to them at age 10. Critics say the age recommendations and intended audience are wrong.
Recommended as an introduction to electronics; one reader's father gave it to them at age 10. Critics say the age recommendations and intended audience are wrong.
9 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 4
- criticize it
- 5
- approval share
- 44%
Recommended in 1 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 4 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 0.8 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 1 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Introduced by a parent at age ten
“My father introduced this book to me when I was around 10. I will forever be grateful.”
Comment from 22 Mar 2026 in “Electronics for Kids, 2nd Edition” Chapter preview looks appealing
“Seems a cool book, from the chapter preview”
Comment from 22 Mar 2026 in “Electronics for Kids, 2nd Edition” Praised as a great book
“this is a great but not free book”
Comment from 21 Mar 2026 in “Electronics for Kids, 2nd Edition”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Age recommendations seem insulting
“I find the age recommendations insulting.”
Comment from 21 Mar 2026 in “Electronics for Kids, 2nd Edition” Intended audience seems wrong
“so the intended audience is wrong”
Comment from 22 Mar 2026 in “Electronics for Kids, 2nd Edition” Earlier Mimms books called terrible
“The Mimms books are actually terrible.”
Comment from 24 Mar 2026 in “Electronics for Kids, 2nd Edition” Costs money, not free
“this is a great but not free book”
Comment from 21 Mar 2026 in “Electronics for Kids, 2nd Edition”
Other electronics books people recommend
The four most recommended other electronics books, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Secret Life of Circuitsby Michał Zalewski | 26 | 10 | 72% | 4 | — | Approved |
| The Art of Electronicsby Paul Horowitz and Winfield Hill | 11 | 3 | 79% | 7 | — | Approved |
| PySDR: A Guide to SDR and DSP Using Pythonby Marc Lichtman | 8 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
| Getting Started in Electronicsby Forrest M. Mims | 5 | 1 | 83% | 4 | — | — |
| Electronics for Kidsby Charles PlattThis page | 4 | 5 | 44% | 1 | — | — |
What people said
7 of the 9 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“The Mimms books are actually terrible.”
“Seems a cool book, from the chapter preview”
“so the intended audience is wrong”
“My father introduced this book to me when I was around 10. I will forever be grateful.”
“I find the age recommendations insulting.”
“I think you make excellent points and can't see anything I don't agree with.”
“this is a great but not free book”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.