• 2 min read
A $179 Stream Deck cloned Codex Micro for less
OpenAI’s $230 Codex Micro sold out fast, so ZDNET rebuilt its core controls on a Stream Deck+ for less — with deeper customization.
Image: ZDNET
OpenAI’s $230 Codex Micro sold out almost immediately, so ZDNET’s David Gewirtz built a cheaper substitute with an Elgato Stream Deck+ instead. His argument is simple: while the Codex Micro is a dedicated controller for Codex users, a Stream Deck can mimic most of its functions and then switch layouts entirely for other apps.
The original Codex Micro was developed with custom keyboard maker Work Louder. According to the source, it includes three main elements:
- Agent keys that switch between agents and sessions
- Programmable keys for actions like accept, decline, branching, and voice dictation
- A dial and joystick for navigation and mode selection
Gewirtz says the Stream Deck approach is more flexible because each key can display its own icon and change by app profile, instead of relying on fixed physical keycaps. Pricing also favors Elgato’s hardware: the 15-button Stream Deck starts at $149, while the Stream Deck+ he used costs $179. He also mentions a Stream Deck + XL at $349 with 36 programmable buttons and six dial wheels.
How the Stream Deck+ was configured
To recreate the Codex Micro look, Gewirtz captured images of the original keycaps from the product page and edited them into button graphics.
He then created a dedicated Stream Deck profile tied to the ChatGPT app, since the Codex app is now the ChatGPT app, as he puts it.
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Most of the setup relies on keyboard shortcuts defined inside ChatGPT. In the app’s settings, users can configure many of the shortcuts needed for Codex-related actions.
From there, the Stream Deck dials were mapped to navigate menus, pick modes, open the sidebar, and scroll through prompt history.
Buttons were assigned for voice, confirm, cancel, and branching. For example, the microphone toggle used a custom Control-M shortcut defined in ChatGPT’s Voice settings.
The one feature that needed a paid add-on
The hardest part to copy was the Codex Micro’s light-up status keys, which change color and pulse based on agent activity. Gewirtz says he solved that with Beautiful Thread Pulses by Lideal Innovation, a paid Stream Deck app that cost $27.
That pushed his setup closer to the Codex Micro’s visual behavior, but the broader point remains: a general-purpose control surface can do the same job while staying useful elsewhere. As Gewirtz sees it, the Codex Micro is slick but narrow, while the Stream Deck can jump from Codex to Claude Code, Final Cut, or studio controls without swapping a single keycap.
Computing Editor
Tomas lives in the terminal. He covers chips, laptops, and operating systems with a focus on performance and efficiency. He reads kernel changelogs the way other people read fiction, and he's always on the hunt for the perfect mechanical keyboard switch. If it processes data, Tomas has an opinion on it.
via ZDNET
