BrushKnob Puts a Knob and Button at Your Fingertips for Photoshop

brushknobfeat

BrushKnob is a new control device for Photoshop that aims to speed up your workflow by putting two extra physical controls at your fingertips: a knob and a button.

The device was created by Wataru Kami, a concept artist based in Tokyo, Japan, who’s currently running an Indiegogo campaign to bring his product to market.

“BrushKnob is a very simple control device that allows the user to intuitively operate Photoshop tools,” Kami writes. “There are only 2 functions: a) the knob controls the brush size, and b) the switch allows you to switch between the brush and the eraser tools.”

brushknobf

The device uses standard keyboard signals, so you don’t need to install any extra software to get it set up and working. Simply plug the cable into your Windows or OS X computer or tablet — the BrushKnob is recognized as an extra keyboard — and start editing.

Since the signals from BrushKnob are interpreted as keyboard shortcuts — ‘, b, and e — you can actually use it with any application as long as you use those same shortcuts. It will also be possible to customize the device for your own needs, as the source code and circuitry are open source.

Here’s a short video in which Kami introduces and pitches the BrushKnob:

If you’re interested in funding this project, you can do so over on the Indiegogo page. A $28 contribution will get you one of the first BrushKnobs if/when it successfully launches.

Discussion