Programming the ATMega1281 on a Cricut Expression

The motherboard in the Cricut Expression model 1 (CREX001) machine contains an ATMega1281 microcontroller. A 10 pin ribbon cable header is available on the front edge (labelled J5) that can connect directly to an ISP programming header on your AVR Dragon, STK500 or other programmer devices.

Also available for more advanced users are the test connections for a JTAG interface. This can be used to program and debug the firmware on the chip.