Author Topic: Any Ploopy users on here  (Read 23276 times)

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Offline noisyturtle

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Any Ploopy users on here
« on: Fri, 18 September 2020, 17:28:11 »
Due to hand issues I've been doing a lot of research on trackballs. Anyone here own a Ploopy? I understand it's based off an old Microsoft model.

The price is a bit steep for something 3D printed that you need to build yourself, in fact some may say the price is downright stupid for those very reasons. But hey, I'm a trackball noob and would love to hear any hands-on because people are swearing by these things.
https://www.ploopy.co/

Offline noisyturtle

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #1 on: Thu, 15 October 2020, 00:52:38 »
literally none?  :-\

Offline Tefrem34

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #2 on: Mon, 09 November 2020, 15:56:02 »
I am waiting for the new self build mouse that they are putting out after the initial launch.

Offline hwood34

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #3 on: Tue, 10 November 2020, 23:26:29 »
they could not have chosen a worse name for something that resembles a turd
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Offline nevin

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #4 on: Thu, 03 December 2020, 00:37:10 »
i got the mouse version, was just delivered earlier this week. already using it as my daily mouse.

this is what i've been waiting for, for years! there have been a number of open source pmw3360 input devices (and i've already built one so far), they work well but all had minimal options in the firmware implementation. the ploopy solves this problem and then adds even more functionality on top of that.

between compiling the firmware to your liking as well as the VIA compatibility to remap the buttons on the fly it's truly a dream come true.

... apologies if i'm gushing.
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Offline Kavik

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #5 on: Mon, 07 December 2020, 10:48:42 »
I remember seeing something like this on Reddit, but I thought it was just a DIY 3D printed thing. I didn't realize it had come to market. I'm interested in anyone's experience with it also.
Maybe they're waiting for gasmasks and latex to get sexy again.

The world has become a weird place.

Offline nevin

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #6 on: Mon, 07 December 2020, 10:50:33 »
i have the mouse. what would you like to know?
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Offline Kavik

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #7 on: Mon, 07 December 2020, 10:58:44 »
i have the mouse. what would you like to know?

I am interested in the trackball. My main concern is how well it fits the hand (no odd bumps in the palm swell, no fingers hanging off the sides) and how easily the buttons are reached without shifting hand position. I have a CST Trackball, whose ball is very good but whose shape is not in any way ergonomic: I can't click and hold the ball at the same time, and my hand basically has to hover over it or else my wrist gets a hotspot from the pressure. Because of this, I've been using a Logitech M570 for a few years, which is much better but has its own ergonomic issues after extended use.

I've been using a mouse most of the time this year, but I have a wrist injury that may end up requiring surgery at some point, so having another trackball option would be nice.
Maybe they're waiting for gasmasks and latex to get sexy again.

The world has become a weird place.

Offline nevin

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #8 on: Mon, 07 December 2020, 11:28:36 »
believe the shape is based off the Microsoft Trackball Explorer. since the ploopy is rather new there aren't a whole lot of reviews yet. do a search for reviews of the MTE and see what's said about ergonomics. and compare with your hand size, etc...

as far as the ploopy hardware... it's great. i've been playing with custom mice for a while and these are excellent, polished devices (professional/finished product feeling, not that the 3d prints are polished...just to be clear).
they are well worth the price. with the ones i was playing with, they were over $70 just for the parts alone, not including the shell. using the same pmw3360 sensor.

if you are handy and can put one together, there's no reason not to get the diy version. they are $139.99 CAD ($109.44 USD atm)
- you can pick from a couple colors
- you can choose left or right handed (how often do you see a left-handed trackball)
- it's fully programmable, make any button, any action in QMK (can use keyboard codes in mouse/trackball)
- on the fly keymapping with VIA
- open source & readily available parts (they even sell a maintenance kit)
https://www.ploopy.co/trackball

i've been waiting for years for devices like these to come to fruition.
- PROGRAMMABLE (will work on any OS, no supporting app/software needed running in background & hogging resources)
- customizable
- open source
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Offline Kavik

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #9 on: Mon, 07 December 2020, 15:04:01 »
believe the shape is based off the Microsoft Trackball Explorer. since the ploopy is rather new there aren't a whole lot of reviews yet. do a search for reviews of the MTE and see what's said about ergonomics. and compare with your hand size, etc...

as far as the ploopy hardware... it's great. i've been playing with custom mice for a while and these are excellent, polished devices (professional/finished product feeling, not that the 3d prints are polished...just to be clear).
they are well worth the price. with the ones i was playing with, they were over $70 just for the parts alone, not including the shell. using the same pmw3360 sensor.

if you are handy and can put one together, there's no reason not to get the diy version. they are $139.99 CAD ($109.44 USD atm)
- you can pick from a couple colors
- you can choose left or right handed (how often do you see a left-handed trackball)
- it's fully programmable, make any button, any action in QMK (can use keyboard codes in mouse/trackball)
- on the fly keymapping with VIA
- open source & readily available parts (they even sell a maintenance kit)
https://www.ploopy.co/trackball

i've been waiting for years for devices like these to come to fruition.
- PROGRAMMABLE (will work on any OS, no supporting app/software needed running in background & hogging resources)
- customizable
- open source

Awesome, thanks for the info  :thumb:

The DIY version is definitely what I would get. It saves money, and the soldering required looks really easy. Being able to customize button layouts is a definite plus given the unorthodox button positions.
Maybe they're waiting for gasmasks and latex to get sexy again.

The world has become a weird place.

Offline nevin

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #10 on: Mon, 07 December 2020, 15:42:36 »
and because it's qmk, you can use key codes, including Fn's!
so physically the trackball has... 5? buttons. but you can multiply that with layers.

i'm using the mouse, and i'm currently playing with two layers (but you can have many more), so a total of 13 buttons/functions (mouse has 7 physical buttons X 2). would be 14 possible with two layers, but you're holding one for the Fn key. you can set it as dual function so you don't have a dedicated Fn key. example: tap = page down, hold = Fn (layer2).

i think the only ones that understand how truly awesome this firmware is on a pointing device are ones that are already familiar with qmk. (though it's not hard to learn quickly) and the VIA app is a HUGE BONUS for beginners.
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Offline noisyturtle

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #11 on: Tue, 05 January 2021, 18:46:53 »
I didn't know it had 13 programmable layers, that's a huge selling point. I still think the price is really steep, like nearly 2x more expensive than it ought to be. IDK what their overhead is though, but the price seems high for a 3D printed thing you have to build yourself.

It almost seems to have the same form factor as the cheapest Logitec trackball that goes for like $20 so it seems like you are paying for the software and exclusivity.
« Last Edit: Tue, 05 January 2021, 18:48:28 by noisyturtle »

Offline Kavik

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #12 on: Tue, 05 January 2021, 19:27:32 »
I got the kit for Christmas, but I haven't been able to get the left and right click switches to work, so I can't provide any feedback yet on its utility. I'm not sure if I ruined something during assembly or if it was defective, but the creator has provided excellent support for troubleshooting it with a multimeter. He finally ran out of ideas though, so I guess I'll need a replacement. Once I actually get the thing running, I'll come back here and provide an impression.
Maybe they're waiting for gasmasks and latex to get sexy again.

The world has become a weird place.

Offline nevin

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #13 on: Tue, 05 January 2021, 21:51:30 »
you can't compare it to cheap brainless mice & trackballs. a better comparison would be programmable gaming mice or something like the kensington expert mouse (with top tier programmability and parts from the ground up).

i built another 3d printed mouse based on the same sensor (pmw3360) and all said & done i had spent about $70 in parts and got the 3d printed shell free.
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Offline katotaka

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #14 on: Fri, 08 January 2021, 10:21:56 »
I'm interested in the mouse but I wish I can print the shell(or all the 3DP parts) myself to make the cost lower, or make my own design say a more vertical grip and relocated buttons

Offline Sintpinty

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #15 on: Tue, 19 January 2021, 18:25:26 »
Due to hand issues I've been doing a lot of research on trackballs. Anyone here own a Ploopy? I understand it's based off an old Microsoft model.

The price is a bit steep for something 3D printed that you need to build yourself, in fact some may say the price is downright stupid for those very reasons. But hey, I'm a trackball noob and would love to hear any hands-on because people are swearing by these things.
https://www.ploopy.co/

I thought you meant the term from Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Offline Kavik

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #16 on: Wed, 27 January 2021, 09:36:27 »
I don't know if Noisy still cares about this, but I have finally received my replacement PCBs and constructed this trackball. Here is my initial impression:

Assembly is rather straightforward. Just make sure to actually follow the instructions! There are some quirks to figure out when assembling the shell.

The shape is very ergonomic, but it's hard for me to keep my hand planted on anything. I have a tendency to hover my hand above it and rest only my wrist on it; that's just the way I am. If my hand is planted, the trackball is reachable only by my index finger, but I prefer using my index, middle, and ring fingers together to move the ball, which is easier with a floating hand.

The buttons all click nicely, provided you assemble it correctly. It's very touchy about slight differences in angles when screwing in the buttons and the top and bottom shells, so once you get it put together with everything working, just don't mess with it again. The hardest part to get working well is the scroll wheel. It will get stuck if things haven't been put together "just so". There is a 1-1.5mm gap between the right-click button and the upper shell, but this is purely cosmetic.

The ball itself is rather rough. I've read it smooths out over time, which I hope is true. When brand new, it's not very pleasant, but it is accurate.

I haven't tried reprogramming it, so I can't provide any feedback on that. Thus, my left and right click buttons are on the left side.

Two improvements the user could make to this are adding some kind of weight inside the shell and/or replacing the included cork feet with rubber feet in order to prevent its slipping around the desk, which is a slight problem given the left click button presses in from the side.

Overall, CST vs. Ploopy: CST's ball is way smoother, but Ploopy's ergonomics are way better.

So far, I like it!




Maybe they're waiting for gasmasks and latex to get sexy again.

The world has become a weird place.

Offline noisyturtle

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #17 on: Tue, 02 February 2021, 19:49:14 »
This seems to fit all my wants in a mouse but I cannot bring myself to drop that much without being able to test and try it out. Especially since their return policy is probably not great.
What a terrible business model. Pay a lot, build it yourself, and if you don't like it too bad.

Offline xtrafrood

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #18 on: Wed, 03 February 2021, 00:27:32 »
This seems to fit all my wants in a mouse but I cannot bring myself to drop that much without being able to test and try it out. Especially since their return policy is probably not great.
What a terrible business model. Pay a lot, build it yourself, and if you don't like it too bad.

The price looks reasonable for small batch manufacturing.  I mean, a Teensy alone can cost a person ~$32 (depending on the model--not apples to apples, just a slightly relevant example).  Custom PCB ("Completely assembled and programmed electronics assembly"), decent sensor, and a ball that looks halfway decent.  Actually now that I think about it.. if I had a use for it.. maybe..  Something about holding down a button and scrolling a page with a captured ball is really satisfying for some reason.

Offline nevin

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #19 on: Wed, 03 February 2021, 13:08:54 »
What a terrible business model. Pay a lot, build it yourself, and if you don't like it too bad.

it's not a business model. that's how this whole HOBBY is. and if you don't like it, turn around and sell it.
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Offline noisyturtle

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #20 on: Wed, 03 February 2021, 18:01:10 »
What a terrible business model. Pay a lot, build it yourself, and if you don't like it too bad.

it's not a business model. that's how this whole HOBBY is. and if you don't like it, turn around and sell it.

you are right, look where we are :))

I just like to complain

Offline xtrafrood

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #21 on: Wed, 03 February 2021, 21:31:56 »
Quick glance at the firmware source code shows that the sensor is a Pixart PMW3360, and CPI is set to 1200 (I have no insider info).

If this PWM3360 was used, then the CPI range is ~100-12000.  The Ploopy (?) might be an answer for those looking for the fabled CST L-Trac-X.

Offline nevin

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #22 on: Wed, 03 February 2021, 22:55:52 »
yep. same sensor in diy form.

i have the mouse version of the ploopy and run it at 4,000cpi. LOVE IT!
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Offline tex_live_utility

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #23 on: Tue, 13 April 2021, 21:24:21 »
I ordered the kit but haven't put it together yet. I also got the traditional mouse, and it's really nice. Looks weird because it's 3D printed, but I'm happy with the purchase and I'm looking forward to putting the trackball kit together.

I do also have an original MS Explorer, and I have to say, the shape is really really nice. So they picked a good base design, at least.
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Offline nevin

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Re: Any Ploopy users on here
« Reply #24 on: Tue, 13 April 2021, 22:06:46 »
congrats.

they are really well put together, very good 3d prints, and of course... the programming is fantastic.
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