The HelvePic32 Boards use the Arduino/chipKIT Codebase and can be programmed easily using the Arduino IDE or the UECIDE. The code, which is known from the Arduino platform, can be used on the chipKIT platform with non or minor adjustments. The main differences between chipKIT and Arduino are:
The new HelvePic32 SMD board adds more power and IO to the HelvePic32 family.
The additional pins are added in the center of the board.
8 pins are aligned with GND and Vcc to build GVS triplets commonly used to add sensors or servos.
The additional 13 pins are aligned in a group of 16 pins includng GND, 3.3V and 5V so that you can connect any breakout board with a 16-wire flat cable (commonly used with LED matrices)
For beginners, the HelvePic32 PTH kit offers a nice way to completely solder a microcontroller board using only "Through-Hole" parts.
The grove wing offers connectivity to the broad choice of Grove modules from Seeedstudio