OsCube (also written OS Cube / OScube) is a mechanical twisty puzzle I designed and patented. It is built on a 2×2×2 core but is larger than an ordinary 2×2, and instead of colours to match it uses magnets and pop-up tiles. It is mass-produced and sold worldwide by QiYi (MoFangGe) as the “QiYi OS Cube 2×2”.
The retail QiYi OS Cube 2×2 — sold in several colourways (blue, orange, purple) and in QiYi’s “OS CUBE” packaging.
A puzzle with no colours to match
Every face of the OsCube is a single, uniform colour — there is nothing to colour-match in the usual sense. As you rotate the layers, the embedded tiles pop out (rise) or pop in (sink) through magnetic induction between the moving sectors, all over a standard 2×2×2 core. The puzzle is solved when every tile is popped in and all six faces are perfectly flat; solving it with all the tiles pushed out is the harder challenge.
Because there are no algorithms to memorise, the OsCube can be approached intuitively even by people who have never solved a Rubik’s-type cube — yet it still hides real depth. Tiles can be arranged in distinct pop-up patterns (single, same-side, diagonal, L-shaped, all, or none), which form the basis of the challenge cards shipped with retail copies.
Four ways to play
Four official gameplay modes — a double test of brain and speed. (Manufacturer artwork, QiYi.)
From a 3D-printed prototype to a worldwide product
From the original 3D-printed prototype I built at home (2019) to the engineering drawing (US Patent 12,109,502) and the “Four Elements” packaging artwork.
The OsCube grew out of my Auzzle series of 3D puzzles with movable sectors. I built and tuned the first working units on a 3D printer (the yellow-and-black prototype above) over 2018–2020. The refined design was then licensed to QiYi (MoFangGe), one of the largest speed-cube makers, and reached the worldwide speed-cube market in 2022 as the QiYi OS Cube 2×2.
“It has been way too much fun to play with… I can see this being a hit with anyone young and old who enjoys brain teasers.”— D.F., 5★ · TheCubicle
“I can’t figure out how it works but it’s so satisfying to turn.”— Brian, 4★ · SpeedCubeShop
“A fun and unique puzzle. Not the hardest to solve but a lot of fun to play with.”— Carl Q., 5★ · KewbzUK
“The cube is large and very beautiful, quite fun to solve and rotate.”— P***a (verified purchase) · AliExpress
“It comes with some alternative solve states which are fun to work out.”— Timothy Z., 5★ · SpeedCubeShop
“Great cube, twists well, doesn’t pop… love the click when you’ve completed a move, almost like it’s magnetic.”— Jovi.I, 5★ · Cuboss
The OsCube is one of several puzzles and devices I have invented, alongside the WOWCube entertainment system and the Auzzle / TrueChallenge puzzle series.
All inventions & patents →