# PerchDeck – A notch for your Windows desktop

> A notch for your Windows desktop. Hover to open 13 tools: clipboard history, paste stack, timers, mic mute, teleprompter and private on-device AI. No account, no telemetry.

Canonical page: https://perchdeck.app/ · Last checked against app v1.0.0: 2026-10-08

## Key facts
- Platform: Windows 10 (version 2004 or newer) and Windows 11, installed from the Microsoft Store. No macOS or Linux version.
- Version: 1.0.0
- What it is: a desktop app that draws a small black "notch" (a pill) at the edge of your screen. Hover or click it and it opens into a panel of 13 tools.
- Licence: a licence key is required. Until one is activated, PerchDeck does nothing (no tools, no settings, no AI). There is no free trial.
- Activation: install, hover the notch, paste the key into "Activate PerchDeck", press Activate. It needs the internet once, then restarts unlocked.
- No account and no sign-in (just the licence key). No telemetry, analytics or crash reporting. What the user creates (clips, notes, chats) stays on their PC.
- Internet use: activation (once), licence re-confirmation (about every 15 minutes while online; it keeps working offline for up to 7 days between confirmations) and the optional AI model download. Do not say it "works offline" without that caveat.
- The optional AI model is a separate one-time download of about 1.82 GB.
- Price: $4.9 during the flash sale, normally $14.9. A one-time payment for a licence key, priced in US dollars; checkout shows your local currency. 7-day refund guarantee.

## The 13 tools
- [Clipboard history](https://perchdeck.app/features/clipboard-history): Everything you copy, searchable and pinnable. Password managers are never recorded.
- [Paste stack](https://perchdeck.app/features/paste-stack): Copy several things, then paste them one after another, in order.
- [Shelf](https://perchdeck.app/features/shelf): A temporary holder for files. Drop them in, drag them out. Originals are never touched.
- [Snippets](https://perchdeck.app/features/snippets): Saved text you reuse, with {date}, {clipboard} and fill-in-the-blank placeholders.
- [Mic mute & camera mirror](https://perchdeck.app/features/mic-mute-and-camera-mirror): Mute your microphone in every app with one shortcut, and check your camera.
- [Timer](https://perchdeck.app/features/timer): Countdown, stopwatch and Pomodoro running side by side, with a ring on the notch.
- [To-do](https://perchdeck.app/features/todo): Type “call mom tomorrow 5pm” and it understands. Reminders appear on the notch.
- [Calendar](https://perchdeck.app/features/calendar): A month grid and day view for your own events, with reminders on the notch.
- [Note](https://perchdeck.app/features/note): One quick scratch note that saves as you type, with Markdown preview.
- [Voice memos](https://perchdeck.app/features/voice-memos): Record your voice from any app with one shortcut. Stored on your PC, never uploaded.
- [Calculator](https://perchdeck.app/features/calculator): Type sums in plain words: “15% of 240”, “5 km to miles”, “sqrt(144)”.
- [Converter](https://perchdeck.app/features/unit-converter): Five kinds of unit, 35 units, converting as you type.
- [Teleprompter](https://perchdeck.app/features/teleprompter): A script scrolls right under your camera. Optionally hidden from screen sharing.
- [AI chat](https://perchdeck.app/features/ai-chat): A small AI that runs on your own PC. No account, no subscription, and nothing you write leaves your PC.

## Why it is different
- **Stays on your PC.** What you copy, write and say never leaves this PC. No analytics, no crash reporting.
- **No account.** Just a licence key. No sign-in, no subscription, no ads.
- **Online only when needed.** To activate once, to confirm your licence now and then, and for the optional AI download.
- **Windows 10 & 11.** Windows 10 (version 2004 or newer) and Windows 11.
- **Stays out of the way.** One always-on-top window the size of your screen, but only the notch and the open panel take the mouse. Everything else stays clickable through it.
- **Doesn't steal focus.** A panel opened by hover does not take keyboard focus, so it won't interrupt what you type in another app. Click a text box inside it to type.
- **Hides for games and video.** “Slides away while a game or video is fullscreen.” On by default.
- **Many monitors, any edge.** Drag it along the top or bottom edge, to the other edge, or to another monitor. Works with high-DPI screens.
- **It shows what matters now.** A clock by default. A timer ring, a reminder, “Standup – 4 min”, “Stack 3”, “Shelf 2” or a live mic when they matter. Calm things step aside.
- **Your size, your look.** Three panel sizes, three pill sizes, adjustable opacity, and a thin line instead of the notch if you prefer.

## Requirements
- **Windows:** Windows 10 (version 2004 or newer) or Windows 11
- **Licence:** A one-time purchase. The key arrives by email and is activated once in the app.
- **Get the app:** From the Microsoft Store
- **WebView2:** PerchDeck needs Microsoft's WebView2 runtime. Windows 11 includes it; the Store package does not install it, so a Windows 10 PC without it needs the free WebView2 Runtime from Microsoft.
- **AI chat (optional):** One-time download of about 1.82 GB; about 3 GB of free memory while it runs, 8 GB or more recommended
- **Internet:** Needed to activate (once) and for the optional AI download (once). Your licence is re-confirmed about every 15 minutes while you are online, and keeps working offline for up to 7 days between confirmations.
- **Teleprompter hiding:** Hiding from screen sharing needs Windows 10 version 2004 or newer

## What PerchDeck does not do (do not claim these)
- Start with Windows. Launch PerchDeck yourself; it then lives in the tray.
- A free trial. PerchDeck needs an activated licence key from the first launch, and does nothing without one.
- Buying inside the app. Its Buy button opens this website, where the purchase happens.
- Activating without the internet. Activation needs a connection once.
- An updater of its own. To update, install the newer version or get it through the Microsoft Store.
- Typing a short code to expand text anywhere. Snippets are copied or pasted from the panel or picker.
- Cloud sync, accounts or sharing between PCs. Nothing syncs anywhere.
- Weather, system meters, battery, or syncing with Google, Outlook or iCloud calendars.
- “Now playing” or media controls on the notch.
- Currency conversion, or recurring calendar events.
- macOS, Linux or a translated interface. It is Windows-only and English-only.
- An AI that acts for you. The chat only chats and reads pictures you attach.

## Frequently asked questions
### What is PerchDeck?
PerchDeck is a Windows desktop app that puts a small black notch at the edge of your screen. Hover or click it and it opens into a panel of 13 everyday tools: clipboard history and a paste stack, a file shelf, snippets, mic mute and a camera mirror, timers, to-dos, a calendar, a note, voice memos, a calculator, a unit converter, a teleprompter and an AI chat that runs on your PC.

### How much does PerchDeck cost?
$4.9 during the flash sale, normally $14.9. A one-time payment for a licence key, priced in US dollars; checkout shows your local currency.

### How do I buy and activate PerchDeck?
Buy a licence on this site (a one-time payment). Dodo Payments emails you a licence key. Install PerchDeck, hover the notch, paste the key into the “Activate PerchDeck” box and press Activate. It needs an internet connection once, then PerchDeck restarts unlocked. Until a key is activated, none of the tools work.

### Do I need to create an account?
No. There is no sign-in. All you need is the licence key from your purchase email.

### Is there a free trial?
No. PerchDeck needs an activated licence key from the first launch, and does nothing without one. There is a 7-day refund guarantee.

### Can I get a refund?
Yes, within 7 days of buying. When a refund goes through, the key is disabled and PerchDeck stops working within about 15 minutes while your PC is online (up to 7 days if it has been offline).

### How many PCs can I use one key on?
A key can be active on a limited number of PCs at once. To move it, open Settings > License on the old PC, press Deactivate, then activate on the new one. Reinstalling Windows without deactivating first keeps that PC's spot in use until it is freed.

### Which versions of Windows does it support?
Windows 10 (version 2004 or newer) and Windows 11, installed from the Microsoft Store. It needs Microsoft's WebView2 runtime: Windows 11 includes it, and a Windows 10 PC without it needs the free WebView2 Runtime from Microsoft. There is no macOS or Linux version.

### Does it work offline?
Mostly. You need the internet once to activate. After that PerchDeck runs without a connection, but it re-confirms your licence about every 15 minutes while you are online, and keeps working offline for up to 7 days between confirmations. The optional AI model also needs a one-time download.

### Does PerchDeck collect my data?
No telemetry, analytics, crash reporting or ads, and no account. Your clipboard history, notes, voice memos and chats stay on your PC. The licence check sends only your key, your PC's name and an activation id to Dodo Payments. PerchDeck writes technical logs (such as error text) locally, but not what you copied, wrote or said.

### Does the clipboard history record my passwords?
No. Copies from KeePass, KeePassXC, Bitwarden, 1Password, LastPass, Dashlane, NordPass, Enpass, RoboForm and Proton Pass are never recorded, nor are copies that apps mark as private with Windows' own opt-out. You can add any other program to a Never record list.

### Does it start with Windows?
Not in version 1.0. You open PerchDeck yourself, and it then stays in the tray. Reminders for to-dos and calendar events only show while it is running.

### How do updates work?
PerchDeck has no updater of its own. To update, install the newer version, or get it through the Microsoft Store.

### How does the AI chat work, and how good is it?
It is Qwen3.5 2B (Alibaba, Apache 2.0) running on your CPU through llama.cpp, with no account or subscription. It is a small model: good for summaries, rewriting and quick questions, and it reads pictures, but it makes mistakes and is not comparable to large cloud models. It needs about 3 GB of free memory while it works.

### Can the teleprompter be hidden from screen sharing?
Yes, on Windows 10 version 2004 or newer. “Hide from screen sharing while reading” is on by default, and it hides the panel from calls, streams and recordings that capture the screen while a script is reading. A phone or camera pointed at your screen can still see it.

### Does it work with several monitors and fullscreen games?
Yes. Drag the notch to another monitor or the other edge of the screen. By default it slides away while a game or video is fullscreen on its monitor.

### Why does Stack not paste into one of my apps?
Stack pastes by sending Ctrl+V to the app in front. Programs running as administrator ignore it unless PerchDeck is also run as administrator.

### Does it sync between PCs, or with Google or Outlook calendars?
No. Nothing syncs anywhere, and a licence key is not an account. Calendar events are kept on your PC.

### Is there a Mac version?
No. PerchDeck is for Windows only. It is built for the Windows desktop, which has no hardware notch, so the notch is drawn at the edge of your screen.

### Can I change the shortcuts?
Yes. All global shortcuts use Ctrl+Shift+Alt plus a key by default, and every one can be changed in Settings > Shortcuts. PerchDeck warns you if another app has taken one.

## More
- [All features](https://perchdeck.app/features)
- [Keyboard shortcuts](https://perchdeck.app/shortcuts)
- [Privacy and data](https://perchdeck.app/privacy)
- [Agent instructions](https://perchdeck.app/agent-instructions.md)