Ploopy A+ Trackball
Tied for most recommended of 4 trackballs
Open hardware trackball that people find well built and comfortable to use. Critics say the printed body looks cheap and it lacks Bluetooth.
Open hardware trackball that people find well built and comfortable to use. Critics say the printed body looks cheap and it lacks Bluetooth.
9 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 6
- criticize it
- 3
- approval share
- 67%
Recommended in 2 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: not recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 6 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 2 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 2 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Looks and feels good
“The finished item looks like a good trackball.”
Comment from 15 Aug 2026 in “The Ploopy A+ Trackball Is Here” “while it looks 3D printed, it feels great”
Comment from 15 Aug 2026 in “The Ploopy A+ Trackball Is Here”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Cheap-looking printed body and site
“They should really invest in an SLA printer. Everything on their site looks terrible.”
Comment from 15 Aug 2026 in “The Ploopy A+ Trackball Is Here” “the poor quality of the 3d printed body”
Comment from 15 Aug 2026 in “The Ploopy A+ Trackball Is Here”
Other trackballs people recommend
The three most recommended other trackballs, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ploopy A+ TrackballThis page | 6 | 3 | 67% | 2 | — | — |
| Ploopy Adept trackball | 6 | 0 | 100% | 2 | — | — |
| Keychron Nape Pro | 6 | 3 | 67% | 1 | — | — |
| Kensington Expert Trackball | 5 | 1 | 83% | 3 | — | — |
What people said
9 of the 10 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“then hid 2 of them so they'd have a "new version" once the sales of the old one slowed down”
“Because there is nothing to be learned or gained from it.”
“while it looks 3D printed, it feels great”
“They should really invest in an SLA printer. Everything on their site looks terrible.”
“the poor quality of the 3d printed body”
“The finished item looks like a good trackball.”
“Who the hell wants to solder their own trackball?”
“I do wish this was bluetooh and ZMK based.”
“The repairable, open hardware angle is the real sell for me.”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.