If you’re not aware, Google isn’t the same in every country. It’s true that most divisions are governed largely in the same way. However, there are markets, like Japan, with more specific needs. The branch of the Asian country has had a tradition of exploring experimental and unconventional hardware concepts for some time. Now, Google Japan is continuing that path with its latest keyboard project: the Gboard Dial Version.
The Gboard Dial Version design moves away from the traditional QWERTY layout entirely. The company is reimagining the keyboard as a series of rotary telephone dials used for text input.
Google’s Gboard Dial Version is the ultimate retro keyboard DIY project
The particular form factor is a throwback to the days of analog phones . In those times, users input numbers by physically turning a dial and waiting for it to spin back. The engineering challenge here involves adapting a system originally meant for ten digits (0-9) to handle the full range of characters required for a modern computer keyboard.
The solution presented in the Gboard Dial Version is a modular, multi-dial setup. The system incorporates multiple dials, ensuring that users have dedicated rotary input for letters, function commands, and modifier keys. Even the essential Return key takes the form of a rotating dial. This makes the entire typing experience a purely mechanical, rotational process. The full build features a total of nine dials to cover all standard keyboard inputs.
Plans available on GitHub
This project is not a commercial product, though. Rather, it functions as an open-source contribution to the community of custom hardware enthusiasts. Google has made the Gboard Dial Version plans fully accessible on GitHub , providing documentation for those interested in building the keyboard. Makers can download the necessary files for 3D printing the physical components and outlining the required wiring schematics.
Developers and hobbyists can choose between two main options . First, there’s a simplified single-dial version focused only on character input. There is also the more ambitious, full 9-dial edition that replicates the total functionality of a standard keyboard.
The Gboard Dial Version stands as a notable entry in the world of alternative and custom keyboards. The project will surely be well received by the DIY community.
