When it is finished and plugged in, this controller works as a handheld gamepad with gyro aiming at its core. The maker Input Labs describes it as an open source, creative commons design built around a Raspberry Pi Pico, with two gyro sensors for advanced gyro controls. A touch-sensitive hexagon on the right side turns the gyro on, which should appeal to players who want mouse-level aiming from the couch, and the maker notes the gyro controls can help gamers with limited range of motion in their hands or fingers.
The construction path is well documented. The Pico sits on a carrier PCB using its castellated edges, and a custom green PCB is ordered with partial SMT assembly before the remaining components get soldered by hand, using solder wire, masking tape, a temperature-controlled iron and a printed soldering fixture. The casings, triggers, button caps and hexagonal faceplate come off a Prusa Mini, then everything is joined with hex socket bolts, nuts and an Allen key.
Several details stand out to me. The upper faceplate is electrically conductive, so touch input is built right into the printed part, and the finished unit offers face buttons, an analog thumbstick, a center scroll wheel, an 8-way switch and triggers. Polling runs at 250 Hz, deadzone and sensitivity are set directly on the controller, and profiles work at firmware level, covering genres rather than single games across eight curated and four user slots. It also plays nicely with the Steam configurator and has been tried on a long list of operating systems and hundreds of games.
As for what is unfinished, wireless operation has not been implemented yet, and console support through Xinput emulation does not work anywhere right now, with console compatibility not currently a priority for the maker.
Project by Input Labs. Watch it on their YouTube channel: