This quirky, lightweight foot controller packed with soft, back-lit keys weighs about a pound and is small enough (17.5" x 4" x 0.5") to fit into a laptop case.

Meant to withstand typical musician abuse, the SoftStep has an elastomeric and carbon composite construction that the manufacturer notes is deceptively rugged. It has a 4-digit, alphanumeric display with 20 LEDs and 10 easy-to-view keys, each with 5 degrees of "freedom" or motion.

You can pre program the keys to control effects, software, or multimedia via USB, and once programmed, the SoftStep can function on its own, disconnected from the computer. Each key is laid out to be easily accessed by foot and can register movements such as up / down, left / right, inc / dec, pressure, and rotary motions. Furthermore, the controller has an expression pedal and expansion port and offers optional MIDI I/O and navigation buttons that can access presets or serve as a control for volume, scrub, or loop.

For even more control, the SoftStep comes bundled with SoftStep Connectivity software (shown below), comprised of tools to help you control presets, notes, continuous controllers, and transport commands.