Hi all 👋, this week I've been reading about the Steam Machine and RAM costs, reviewing everything that happened at Config '26, thinking about starting a handwritten blog (will never happen with my chicken scratch), and checking out Grovemade's “Little Big Sale” on desk accessories.
Osume released a wonderfully simple and cute universal keyboard case, ScottoKeebs created another super unique low-profile board, and Mode Designs gave an update on their highly anticipated boards for the summer.
Let's dive in!
clicks 🔗
Courtesy of breezeit.app
→ I recently reentered the Android ecosystem with the purchase of a Samsung tablet for media watching and comic reading. This brought about a new need for software symbiosis across all my devices. While setting up the tablet, I was searching for ways to simplify file-transfers—photos, files, configs, etc., and came across Breeze. It's a local file sharing app akin to AirDrop, currently in Beta and works across all devices including iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, and Linux. It's simple, quick, colourful, and is built on the LocalSend protocol—an already popular and existing LAN sharing application. The “Inbox” feature was most useful for me, which stores and tracks what you historically received. Overall, super useful for sending files to myself, but I'm also keeping it in my back pocket for whenever AirDrop is unavailable (or when it doesn't work which feels like 9 times out of 10) for sharing with others.
Courtesy of usb.club
→ Switching gears a little, but staying within the file-sharing lane, we are going to talk about USBs. Shout out to Micah's fun write up on the topic for leading me to USB Club. A file-sharing social network (similar to Pinterest, Dribble, or Cosmos, just to name a few of the many) with a twist—you must have a physical USB drive to access it. They offer two USB club branded drives (one $40, one $180, guess which one I lowkey want) which upon purchase grant you access to the network. Plug in, get files, share files, rinse, repeat. The main idea here being that even if the site is shut down, these files will still exist out there, in the form of many shared copies. It's an interesting concept, kind of gatekeep-y, but the history and research behind its creation is captivating and feels genuine.
Courtesy of afterplay.io
→ Afterplay is one of the simplest and easiest ways I've found to play retro games and ROMs. In the past, I've talked about the Analogue Pocket and Delta for iOS, but neither of them are as accessible and quick as Afterplay. It allows you to bring your existing GameBoy, Atari, Sega, and other console games anywhere, and I mean anywhere. Not only is there an app for every major OS and mobile platform, there's also a browser-based version for any outlying use-cases. Best feature by far (other than it being free) is library cloud sync—I no longer have to store the large ROM files on every device I want to play on, just upload once and I'm good to go.
clacks 🔗
Courtesy of bowlkeyboards.com
→ Building off the bones of the premium Manta board, Bowl Keyboards and Alexotos have released the Schema M60. It keeps features like the steeper 8° typing angle, aluminum case, and back-fin design, but takes a detour to focus on PCB compatibility, simplicity, and customization. Lots of configurations can be created when selecting parts from any one of the vendors, including Canadian vendor Keybay, and I particularly like the look of the Frosted top and Machinist aluminum bottom. If you are really into mix-and-matching while also wanting to support the creators big time, there is a “Signature Bundle” that contains every top, bottom, and weight colourway, so you can create a new keeb everyday!
Courtesy of aokay.cool
→ Back when the newsletter was on break, this one-of-kind, industrial, toolbox-like keyboard called the MID.1 became available in a short reservation window. Unlike most group-buys or pre-orders, this window was treated more like an interest check for the first production batch. Since this is a one man show by Sean and his A.Okay! project, this will help guide the quantities for the very first batch. The stainless steel frame, carrying handle top case, and exposed screws/rivets paired with a pale fiery glow from the front LED grill and overall refined design give it a soft cyberDeck vibe that I really enjoy. Going to follow this one closely and hope I can revisit it once some in-stock units become available.
Courtesy of mouseless.click
→ If you're ever tired of constantly lifting your fingers away from home row for a few simple clicks of your mouse—this little utility called Mouseless is for you! Trade out clicks for clacks by transforming your entire screen into a coordinated grid of key combos with a double press of the CMD key and magically move your mouse cursor anywhere! You can trigger left clicks, right clicks, scroll wheels, and even dragging movements. There is also a Free Mode, a mode I've long been searching for in a keyboard utility, which changes your IJKL cluster into left, right, down, and up bindings. There is a rich amount of configuration here, you can change keybinds, alter cursor speeds, edit overlay colour—it's all able to be personalized. The learning curve is steep, but well worth it, and I love to see that accessibility tools like this exist.
That’s all for this week! I hope you enjoyed it, and now it’s time to hear from YOU 🫵. I want to know your opinion—what you liked, what you loved, what you didn’t like, what you skipped. Email [email protected] (or reply to this issue!) and have a great weekend!!
