I pretty much had the FW13 ordered when I realized it doesn’t have a trackpoint. Didn’t even occur to me there might be people out there wanting laptops without one… Very unfortunate, there’s no way I’m going to use trackpad.
For an alternate perspective, I have had trackpoint devices on several of my laptop computers, and never used them, beyond a first test, and thinking oh, that’s nice.
I never used it enough to be comfortable in controlling the mouse with it.
I did appreciate the physical buttons that the device usually came with, however.
So, for me, a trackpoint, is a leave it device. Don’t really care whether a keyboard has it or not.
Appreciate the choice, though, for those that want it!
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ya me too i think the idea of adding a trackpoint to framework laptops would be really nice beacuse i really like the trackpoint but the design would be better if the design would be like the hp 9480m what i am using now
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I’m uh also here to ask if we could get a trackpoint added keyboard. I’d like to buy it!
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Actually I took some measurements and it looks like the T400s/T410/T420/X220 keyboard could very well fit onto a Framework 13 with a custom lower chassis. It comes in at 287.3mm wide, which is less than the 296.6mm of the Framework 13.
The hard part is…designing that chassis to accommodate the keyboard. The Thinkpad keyboard is pretty thick by modern standards (around 6.3mm), hence you would have to design a new chassis to hold that keyboard along with the Framework motherboard and all the other parts of the laptop. It would cost at least a few hundred dollars to get it CNC machined out of aluminum. You would also have to design make a custom keyboard controller PCB for the Thinkpad keyboard and Trackpoint, and wire that into the USB interface for the fingerprint reader on the motherboard, though that’s quite doable nowadays (you’ll probably some STM32 running QMK or ZMK, and a USB 2.0 hub IC to accommodate the Trackpoint as well)). In all, a pretty substantial project, but very doable by a hobbyist (or several). I’m low-key looking into doing it after gathering some more data (I have a T410 and a W520 keyboard on me, and also ordered a Framework 13 AMD Batch 7, though that won’t show up for a while)
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I don’t know, but I think this picture fits well here.
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would it be possible to make a keyboard with a built in trackpoint? I much prefer trackpoint to touchpad. Hence, my curiosity.
I wondered also if others might be interested in this.
Probably more likely people who were fans of thinkpads or certain hp elitebook laptops. Touchpad is sometimes annoying, but I digress.
Welcome to the forum.
There have been some discussion. A bit in this thread if I recall.
[RESPONDED] Any chance of trackpoint?
And also project in the early stages.
You can find more threads and talk by searching “trackpoint”.
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It would probably be possible first on the 16 Framework due to the modularity of the keyboard. 13 Framework would require a new chassis design to incorporate it. Would definitely be a nice addition.
+1! I would Immediately buy a trackpoint module with dedicated clicker buttons instead of a trackpad - it seems like there are a lot of people who want this, so I hope Framework considers actually making one!!
Welcome to the forum.
HP does pointersticks, and several other companies have as well. But they are usually on business-class models, which have features needed/desired by companies and business users.
If you search “Trackpoint” you’ll see several threads.
This is the one with most of the discussion about it
Lenovo probably has a trademark on the name - other manufacturers call it differently, and they probably have to for legal reasons.
I don’t know about patents - they should be expired by now.
One problem is getting decent quality thing that can be used in a non-Lenovo notebook.
The Lenovo spare parts typically come as a whole keyboard including a trackpoint which is not very practical. You can get some random Chinese clones but the quality is not guaranteed unless you do your own QA.
Another problem is that the trackpoint is BIG. The space reserved for the keyboard in the 13" framework is not big enough to fit in a trackpoint. The 16" model might be better in this regard but it remains to be seen.
As shared above, Lenovo’s trackpoint are in a variety of sizes. A small trackpoint could likely be used.
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As said, you cannot reliably get a Lenovo part in bulk, only some Chinese clones, and there are not that many of them that you would get all these sizes.
And the part extending above the keyboard is only one side of the story. The other is that you need to mount an extra PCB below the keyboard, and that’s going to be difficult as well.
It doesn’t necessarily have to be directly below the keyboard: some trackpoint assemblies use a flat connector (Kapton,I think?) Between the sensor and the PCB, allowing the PCB to be located elsewhere. You still need room somewhere in the case for that PCB, but it doesn’t have to be directly below the keyboard.
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That chart and that picture are both from the website of a person named Saoto Tsuchiya. He runs an Etsy store called SaotoTech where he sells aftermarket 3D-printed TrackPoint caps, and has released CAD data for the “soft rim” (concave) version of the “Super Low Profile” (4mm) TrackPoint cap.
I prefer SaotoTech’s aftermarket TrackPoint caps to Lenovo’s TrackPoint caps. This is because Lenovo only offers TrackPoint caps in the “soft dome” (convex) shape, and no longer offers the “soft rim” shape. The “soft rim” shape requires less force to manipulate the cursor, which in my opinion, makes it more comfortable to use. Here is a visual comparison of the TrackPoint cap shapes.
The existence of these aftermarket caps is proof that nobody needs to depend on Lenovo parts to implement a pointing stick.
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How about using old thinkpad’s keyboard module?
I’m designing for X40 series and X60 series.
And they’re available yet and have good trackpoint module
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I’m looking into this now, too; I’ve ordered a Thinkpad X1 Carbon Gen 10 keyboard for investigation (measuring, pinout hacking, etc). I’ve chosen to discuss the hardware details over in Thinkpad keyboard mod (supper early stages)! in the hopes of combining efforts.
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Hello! just created an account to be ready to order as soon as there is a reasonable trackpoint solution with pointer within GHB and 3 buttons below the spacebar. just in case someone is counting, a good framework trackpoint solution would cause the exchange of a whole fleet here as well. 
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