Open source computer mouse by Ploopy
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I needed another corded mouse and this time around I thought of @[email protected] and @[email protected] instead of Logitech's shareholders. These guys make open source mice among other open source hardware under the brand Ploopy. You can order one from them, assembled or as a kit, or you could print and build it entirely by yourself.
The mouse itself is pretty great. Coming from a long line of Logitech (MX518/G5/G500/G502), it's a bit larger than what I'm used to but I think I'm getting accustomed to it.
Here's another shot of it:
Now do printers.
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How do you use a trackball mouse? Does moving the mouse and moving the trackball both move the pointer? Or one moves the pointer and the other does something else?
The mouse stays in one location with grippy feet and the trackball moves the cursor. There is no sensor for mouse movement. It does take a while to get used to.
The reason I chose it was that I didn't have enough desk space to move a mouse. I barely even had enough space to put the mouse. Now that I've moved house, I just like the novelty. It's not as accurate as a regular mouse.
I would love a mouse that could do both regular movement and trackball movement so I could have 4 axis inputs. Sadly, I haven't found any like that.
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They do have a trackpad, but not in this shape.
I was surprised when I started using the Steamdeck. The Steamdeck's trackpad felt almost identical to my trackball mouse, and it took effectively no time to get used to it.
The advantage of a trackball over a trackpad is that you can spin the ball for high movement speed, then stop it after a set time for fairly accurate distance. A trackball (or trackpad) will never be as accurate as a regular moue, but it is surprisingly usable (after a few months or practice).
wrote last edited by [email protected]I've used several trackballs, but they have all been seriously uncomfortable for me and my specific brand of RSI. My current "mouse" is a Steam Controller, but using it one-handed isn't great due to the uneven weight distribution. I also have much better accuracy using a trackpad vs a trackball.
Ideally, I just want a Steam Controller cut in half with a more confortable grip that doesn't dig into my palm.
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Now do printers.
Yes please!
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Chatgpt, give me the most business answer possible with airtight logic that eliminates the possibility of imagining a different way.
Chatgpt :
Logitech, like any publicly traded company, exists to maximize shareholder value, not product longevity, so using cheaper switches—even in a $120 mouse—isn’t corner-cutting, it’s strategic. A $0.10 upgrade per unit sounds trivial, but across millions of units it erodes margins significantly, and more durable components risk extending the product lifespan beyond the optimal refresh cycle, cutting into predictable repeat sales. Making switches hard to replace and binding functionality to proprietary software isn't anti-consumer—it's deliberate lock-in that ensures brand dependency and data capture, both of which are monetizable assets. With shareholders expecting year-over-year growth, not stability, any move that delays repurchase or encourages repair undermines the core business model. The $613M profit on $4.3B revenue isn’t greed—it’s the result of a finely tuned system where every design and pricing decision serves one purpose: sustainable, scalable profitability.
The robot knows what's up.
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I've got to say "Ploopy" is one of the absolute worst names I've ever seen. Before I even saw the picture, I thought "I bet it looks like shit."
It's like an alien name out of Rick and Morty.
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It's like an alien name out of Rick and Morty.
you mean you dont like my plumbus? what about glorp?
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Layer lines, too expensive.
Looks less comfortable than one of those 10~15€ brandless mouses at MediaMarkt
Layer lines
You say "free hand grip for less strain" weird.
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Now do printers.
pretty stupid that we can print in 3 dimensions well, while 2-dimension remains locked behind capitalism.
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I think they're 3D-printing them. Maybe one day they'll progress to something that gives a nicer result
Yes they are 3D printed
Poorly 3D printed.
The layering issue could be solved by orienting the object at a 45° angle
Or even smaller layer height. That looks like .2 or .24 minimum.
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The PCB has electrical buttons permanently attached. The 3D printed parts have protrusions that touch the buttons.
You could possibly redesign the 3D printed parts only, but at some size increase you may need to start looking into redesigning the PCB.The good news is that the mouse itself is bigger than the picture makes it seem. You might actually be OK without modifications.
If you do want to give it a try, I highly recommend buying the kit and fully assembling it yourself. That way you know that it works, and you have a solid foundation to apply the modifications to.
Good point. It measures at about 13x8.5cm.
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RSI is caused by repetitive motions. No mouse can help that. Look at exercise to combat RSI.
I have carpel tunnel syndrome on my right hand after using mice for dozens of years. It became so painful I learned to use a computer mouse with my left hand.
That worked for years until I squeezed a couple dozen lemons my neighbor gave me. Of course I used my right hand. Had pain I cannot describe, I could not function. The doctor had shoot cortisone into my wrist.
PROTECT YOUR WRIST
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I've got to say "Ploopy" is one of the absolute worst names I've ever seen. Before I even saw the picture, I thought "I bet it looks like shit."
Ploopy fills my hand really well
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I needed another corded mouse and this time around I thought of @[email protected] and @[email protected] instead of Logitech's shareholders. These guys make open source mice among other open source hardware under the brand Ploopy. You can order one from them, assembled or as a kit, or you could print and build it entirely by yourself.
The mouse itself is pretty great. Coming from a long line of Logitech (MX518/G5/G500/G502), it's a bit larger than what I'm used to but I think I'm getting accustomed to it.
Here's another shot of it:
wrote last edited by [email protected]I hope someone makes something like this that looks just like IO1.1
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pretty stupid that we can print in 3 dimensions well, while 2-dimension remains locked behind capitalism.
wrote last edited by [email protected]I have written a more detailed comment on it before, but 2d printing is much more technically complicated than 3D printing, and the resolution is literally an order of magnitude difference (0.2mm vs <42um) and the printer has to print full color on any surface with microdots in a very very short time. People would throw the printer out if it took 10 minutes for a single paper like a large first layer takes in 3D printing.
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I needed another corded mouse and this time around I thought of @[email protected] and @[email protected] instead of Logitech's shareholders. These guys make open source mice among other open source hardware under the brand Ploopy. You can order one from them, assembled or as a kit, or you could print and build it entirely by yourself.
The mouse itself is pretty great. Coming from a long line of Logitech (MX518/G5/G500/G502), it's a bit larger than what I'm used to but I think I'm getting accustomed to it.
Here's another shot of it:
Super cool and I totally see the appeal, but at nearly 3x the price of my Logitech g502 for a 3d printed mouse with a technically inferior sensor, it's a big ask.
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I needed another corded mouse and this time around I thought of @[email protected] and @[email protected] instead of Logitech's shareholders. These guys make open source mice among other open source hardware under the brand Ploopy. You can order one from them, assembled or as a kit, or you could print and build it entirely by yourself.
The mouse itself is pretty great. Coming from a long line of Logitech (MX518/G5/G500/G502), it's a bit larger than what I'm used to but I think I'm getting accustomed to it.
Here's another shot of it:
I've been using this mouse for almost a year now. No complaints.
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I needed another corded mouse and this time around I thought of @[email protected] and @[email protected] instead of Logitech's shareholders. These guys make open source mice among other open source hardware under the brand Ploopy. You can order one from them, assembled or as a kit, or you could print and build it entirely by yourself.
The mouse itself is pretty great. Coming from a long line of Logitech (MX518/G5/G500/G502), it's a bit larger than what I'm used to but I think I'm getting accustomed to it.
Here's another shot of it:
Those layer lines look like a perfect place for all sorts of shit to gather and stick to.
If one has sweaty hands - stay away from 3D-printed / soft plastic shell mice.
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What is your experience with the scroll wheel? Some time ago I was interessted in a Ploopy but the non clicky scrollwheel put me off.
I have the same mouse, and that scroll wheel is unusable. It requires a ton of effort to just scroll tiny amounts because the sensitivity is waaay too low and it cannot be adjusted. The rest of the mouse is really nice because it runs QMK.
I set up drag scrolling as a workaround for the shitty scroll wheel, which allows you to press a button (or a combination of buttons) and then use the mouse's optical sensor as an omnidirectional scrolling device until you release the button.
I set that up on my Ploopy Adept hand trackball mouse as well. It's my favorite mouse I've ever used.
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I've got to say "Ploopy" is one of the absolute worst names I've ever seen. Before I even saw the picture, I thought "I bet it looks like shit."
Opensource projects often have terrible names.
Gimp, libreoffice, lemmy, Apache... just the ones that come to mind.
