Adorable Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W Laptop Receives a Cute Clip-On Trackball Mouse Upgrade

One of Apple’s lesser-known products was their first battery-powered computer: the Macintosh Portable, released in 1989. It would be a bit of a stretch to call that a laptop — it weighed a whopping 16 pounds—but it was a bit closer to that form factor than the luggables sold by other companies throughout the ‘80s. And, notably, it had a built-in trackball, which was a feature that would become popular among ‘90s laptops. Inspired by the design of the Macintosh Portable, Bijan Bowen created this adorable Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W laptop with a cute clip-on trackball mouse.

While Bowen says that the design of this laptop was influenced by the Macintosh Portable, it isn’t a replica; it is a unique creation that channels the Apple’s general vibes, but in a much sleeker and lighter package. Bowen doesn’t specify the weight, but we’re confident that it weighs at least a little less than 16 pounds.

Bowen’s original plan was for this laptop to run an OS without a GUI. Because all interaction would be through the terminal, he didn’t think it would need a pointing device. For that reason, the first version of the laptop that he showed off was only equipped with a keyboard. That is a 40% mechanical ortholinear keyboard from Microcenter’s Inland brand. The laptop also got an ultra-widescreen LCD screen and, of course, a Raspberry Pi Zero 2 W single-board computer. Power comes from a lithium battery via an Adafruit PowerBoost 1000C charger/distribution module.

With all of those parts in hand, Bowen modeled the distinctive enclosure in Autodesk Fusion 360 and then 3D-printed parts in what he hoped was an authentically 90s beige color filament. He assembled that and shared it with the world last month.

But as great as that was, Bowen decided it could use a couple of improvements. The most obvious change was the addition of a trackball mouse that clips onto the side of the laptop. Bowen made that using the innards scavenged from a cheap finger mouse and it makes the laptop suitable for use with GUI-based operating systems. The other big change was a complete reprint of the enclosure. Bowen did that partially to accommodate the mouse, but also to get a better shade of the beige. The original was a bit too yellow, as if it had been sitting in sunlight for a couple of decades.

Now Bowen has a svelte modern laptop with all the character of a classic, including the trackball.