duckyPad Is a New Mechanical Macropad Keyboard

There is little doubt in my mind that our society pushes people far too hard to work long, exhausting hours. For most people, a 40 hour workweek is the absolute minimum and far longer hours are common. The only way to combat this terrible system is to convince employers that these hours are neither sustainable nor necessary, and to increase your efficiency when you are working. I have no idea how we can do the former, but dekuNukem's new duckyPad mechanical macropad keyboard could help you increase your productivity in order to make the most of the hours that you’re working.

duckyPad is now funding via Kickstarter, and its campaign has already reached more than $20,000 — exceeding the goal in just a few days. Like all auxiliary keyboards, duckyPad provides quick and easy access to a variety of keyboard shortcuts or macros. Instead of having to remember the specific key combinations needed for all of the shortcuts in all of the software you use, you can simply press one of the 15 dedicated keys on this macropad. There are 32 profiles are available for you to switch between on the fly, giving you a total of 480 individual shortcuts to work with. You can set up those profiles to work with specific programs or for different kinds of tasks.

Pushing a key launches a user-created script that you can write in duckyScript. These can be as simple as reproducing something like Ctrl + S, or far more complex scripts to perform a series of actions. Each key is hot-swappable and has a Gateron Green mechanical key switch by default. Each key also has its own RGB LED backlight that can be configured however you like. A small OLED screen displays the shortcuts you have set up for the profile you’re currently using.

Based on an STM32F072C8T6, the keyboard is open source so you can hack it as much as you like and it works with all major operating systems. A companion app is available for Windows 10, macOS, and Linux to help you configure the macropad and your profiles. Using macros and shortcuts may only save you a couple of seconds at a time, but that can add up over your workday and increase your productivity appreciably.

If you want a duckyPad, the Kickstarter campaign will be running until November 30th. Early birds can get a complete duckyPad for $86. Rewards are expected to be delivered in December of this year.