我试用了 OpenAI 新款 AI 小键盘：部分程序员会觉得很好玩，其他人可能一头雾水

OpenAI 上周推出了其首款硬件产品：一款设计精致、可与 ChatGPT 配对使用的小键盘。这款名为 Micro 的产品由 OpenAI 与专业键盘设计商 Work Louder 合作开发，本质上是一件手工感十足的办公桌新奇玩意，许多科技爱好者会很喜欢，但也可能让其他人感到有些困惑。

OpenAI 进军硬件市场的过程并非毫无风波。数周前，Apple 起诉了这家 AI 实验室，指控其窃取商业秘密，由此拉开了一场势必长期持续的法律争端。与此同时，OpenAI 正在开发的另一款智能家居产品也引发了关注：据报道，这款同样旨在与 ChatGPT 配对使用的设备由前 Apple 工程师开发。

在这场法律纠纷尘埃落定、OpenAI 更广泛的硬件雄心成为现实之前，这家创业公司目前能提供的只有 Micro——一款风格古怪的小键盘，显然是专门为取悦科技行业的编程爱好者而打造。

OpenAI 向 TechCrunch 寄送了一台 Micro 测试机。第一次拿起这款小键盘时，最明显的感受是它相当结实——结实到即便 AI 配件这条路最终走不通，它也完全可以兼任镇纸。你还可能注意到另一件事（而且我并不是唯一指出这一点的人）：它的包装是一个极其整洁的白色盒子，设计简约流畅，颇有 Apple 风格。至于这意味着什么，就见仁见智了。

这款小键盘的顶部设有六枚磨砂质感的“Agent”按键，可自定义为在 ChatGPT 或其 Agent 式编程工具 Codex 中执行特定任务。下方还有六枚命令按键，可用于控制这些程序。你可以通过蓝牙连接或 USB 线缆，将 Micro 与电脑配对。

图片来源： Lucas Ropek/TechCrunch

Micro 提供的最便利功能或许是一枚语音听写按钮：你只需告诉应用想让它完成什么任务，它就会开始代你工作。按住听写按钮后开始说话；说完后，点击旁边的“发送”按钮即可提交请求。

你可以直接在 ChatGPT 内自定义 Micro 小键盘。其中的 Micro 标签页可让你调整各种设置，包括按键灯光亮度，以及希望绑定到各个按键上的具体命令和项目。

这款设备真正的目标受众——硬核程序员——目前并没有真正接纳它。Reddit 用户的评价大多负面，其中一名 Reddit 用户称它是“恶作剧，而不是真正的产品”，其他人则表示，严肃的程序员不会碰它。一家较小的独立媒体 Aftermath 的评测措辞更加尖锐，认为与更便宜的 DIY 和现成替代产品相比，其 230 美元的价格很难合理化。（该评测的标题是：“OpenAI 昂贵的宏键盘，感觉像是专门设计出来惹我生气的。”）

新用户确实可能需要一些时间，才能弄明白 Micro 的工作方式以及该如何使用它。

当我弄清楚如何按自己的喜好编程这款小键盘后，我发现它其实相当有趣。你可以将不同的 ChatGPT 会话分配给特定按键，从而轻松地在各个项目之间切换。再结合听写按钮，整个体验会明显变得更高效、也更愉快。

但它依然存在学习门槛。Micro 的按键采用颜色编码：白色表示 Agent 空闲，蓝色表示其正在思考，绿色表示任务已完成，红色则表示发生错误。你需要记住这些颜色含义，也要记住每枚按键具体绑定了哪些项目。

最大的问题在于：Micro 小键盘在功能上是否真的比继续直接使用笔记本电脑更方便？简而言之：既然我已经会用电脑的鼠标和键盘，为什么还要花一周时间学习如何编程和操作这个东西？

归根结底，你使用 Micro 的体验将高度取决于你使用 ChatGPT 的频率。由于我日常并不怎么使用 AI，我大概并不是它的目标用户。

不过，如果你是 ChatGPT 重度用户、有 230 美元可支配预算，并且喜欢带有清脆按键的复古风硬件，那么 Micro 大概不是一笔最糟糕的消费——它甚至可能让你的日子稍微明亮一点。

OpenAI launched its first piece of hardware last week — a fancy little keypad built to pair with ChatGPT. Micro, which was developed in collaboration with specialty keyboard designer Work Louder, is essentially an artisanal workplace novelty that many tech enthusiasts will love and that may leave everyone else a little puzzled.

OpenAI’s entrance into the hardware market hasn’t arrived without drama. Several weeks ago, Apple sued the AI lab and accused it of trade theft — kicking off what’s certain to be a long-simmering legal battle. Meanwhile, news of another smart home product in development at OpenAI has also raised eyebrows, as the supposed device — which is being built to pair with ChatGPT — was reportedly developed by former Apple engineers.

Until the legal battle works itself out and OpenAI’s broader hardware ambitions materialize, the most the startup has to offer is Micro — a funky little keypad clearly engineered to delight the tech industry’s code monkeys.

OpenAI sent TechCrunch a Micro test unit. The first big thing you notice when initially handling the keypad is that it’s a sturdy little device — enough so that if the AI accessory thing doesn’t end up working out, it could easily double as a paperweight. The other thing you might notice (and I am not the only one to point this out), is that the packaging — an immaculate white box with a sleek, clean aesthetic — is pretty Apple-coded. Make of that what you will.

The keypad’s layout involves six frosted “agent” keys at the top of the pad, which can be customized to carry out specific tasks within ChatGPT or its agentic coding tool Codex. Below them are six command keys, which can be used to control those programs. You can pair your Micro with your computer either through a Bluetooth connection or a USB cable.

Image Credits: Lucas Ropek/TechCrunch

Perhaps the most convenient thing Micro offers is a button for voice dictation — meaning you simply tell the app what you want done and it will get busy working on your behalf. Just hold down the dictation button and start talking. When you’re done, tap the “send” button next to it to submit your request.

You can customize your Micro keypad within ChatGPT itself, where a Micro tab allows you to adjust everything from the brightness of the light from the keys to the specific commands and projects you want tied to those keys.

Hard-core coders — the device’s actual target audience — haven’t exactly embraced it. Reviews by Redditors have largely negative, with one Reddit user calling it “a prank and not a real product,” and others saying serious coders won’t touch it. A review by the smaller independent outlet Aftermath was even harsher, calling the $230 price tag hard to justify next to cheaper DIY and off-the-shelf alternatives. (The title of that review: “OpenAI’s expensive macropad feels engineered to piss me off specifically.”)

It’s definitely the case that new users may need some time to figure out how Micro works and what to do with it.

Once I figured out how to program the keypad to my liking, I found it was actually pretty fun. You can assign various ChatGPT sessions to specific keys, which then allows you to easily toggle back and forth between all of your various projects. When you combine that with the dictation button, it makes the whole experience considerably more efficient and enjoyable.

But there’s still a learning curve. Micro’s buttons are color-coded. White means an agent is idle, blue means its thinking, green means a task is complete, and red means there’s been an error. You’ll need to memorize that, along with memorizing which specific projects are coded to each key.

The big question is whether the Micro keypad is functionally easier to use than just continuing to work on your laptop. In short: Why would I spend a week learning how to program and operate this thing when I already know how to use my computer’s mouse and keyboard?

Ultimately, your experience with the Micro will depend heavily on how much you use ChatGPT. Since I don’t use AI much day to day, I’m probably not the target audience for it.

That said, if you’re a ChatGPT power user, have $230 to spare, and like vintage-looking hardware with clicky buttons, Micro probably isn’t the worst purchase you could make — it might even brighten your day a little.