Ploopy’s 3D-printed, open-source trackpad is thoroughly customizable - The Verge

By Andrew Liszewski, a senior reporter who's been covering and reviewing the latest gadgets and tech since 2011, but has loved all things electronic since he was a kid.

Ploopy is expanding its collection of mod-friendly peripherals with a new seven-inch trackpad that supports multi-finger gestures and features like palm rejection. Like Ploopy’s mouse and trackballs, its new trackpad runs on the QMK open-source firmware, further expanding how its functionality can be customized.

The trackpad is powered by a Raspberry Pi RP2040, while finger tracking is handled by a Microchip ATMXT1066TD processor which can all be found on a single mainboard that’s easy to swap into another case. Although Ploopy says the included 3D-printed case “has a fantastic surface finish” and is “great to use all day,” you can download the case’s open-source design files to print it using a different material or change its design entirely.

Ploopy’s trackpad is slightly larger than Apple’s Magic Trackpad, but its actual tracking area is a bit smaller, measuring in at over six inches. That’s still enough room to accommodate gestures using up to five fingers, although the trackpad only supports Windows and Linux right now.

The trackpad does rely on a USB cable connection to a PC at all times. Wireless capabilities aren’t included, and while that’s potentially a modification you could undertake, it could be a complicated upgrade, given QMK’s limited support for Bluetooth hardware.

The Ploopy trackpad is available now in two different options. You can preorder one that’s fully assembled and ready to go out of the box in black or gray for around $94 ($129.99 Canadian) or as a DIY kit that will require tools like a screwdriver, tweezers, and pliers to assemble for around $73 ($99.99 Canadian). The expected delivery timeline for both options is currently “within 20 weeks of the order date.”

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