ErgoMechKeyboards
Ergonomic, split and other weird keyboards
Rules
Keep it ergo
Posts must be of/about keyboards that have a clear delineation between the left and right halves of the keyboard, column stagger, or both. This includes one-handed (one half doesn't exist, what clearer delineation is that!?)
i.e. no regular non-split¹ row-stagger and no non-split¹ ortholinear²
¹ split meaning a separation of the halves, whether fixed in place or entirely separate, both are fine.
² ortholinear meaning keys layed out in a grid
No Spam
No excessive posting/"shilling" for commercial purposes. Vendors are permitted to promote their products/services but keep it to a minimum and use the [vendor] flair. Posts that appear to be marketing without being transparent about it will be removed.
No Buy/Sell/Trade
This subreddit is not a marketplace, please post on r/mechmarket or other relevant marketplace.
Some useful links
- EMK wiki
- Split keyboard compare tool
- Compare keycap profiles Looking for another set of keycaps - check this site to compare the different keycap profiles https://www.keycaps.info/
- Keymap database A database with all kinds of keymap layouts - some of them fits ergo keyboards - get inspired https://keymapdb.com/
view the rest of the comments
I believe most people here with ergonomic keyboards have one either because they are already experiencing pain, or are trying to prevent it.
I got one trying to prevent it (Glove80), but I ended up liking the keyboard for other reasons.
It's much more comfortable for me, extremely customizable - Interchangeable keycaps, programmable with ZMK, easy to change the tilt and tent, etc.
And I ended up really liking the low profile choc switches.
It depends on what you're looking for in a keyboard.
Well, there also are people like me, who use it because it's a productivity beast and being able to have control over everything while barely even moving your hands feels great. I never had much trouble with pain or discomfort unless I was typing with my full speed for extended periods. I tend to get tensed up easily, so then it was a problem. Otherwise, I was fine. Just wanted to see whether small keyboards are as cool as people make them. Hell yeah, they're even cooler.
I think getting a bigger ortho board like for example Atreus62 with the intention of removing keys and seeing what's your preferred layout is gonna be, is the best way to go about it. It's probably not gonna be your final board (endgame is a lie) so don't spend a fortune on it.
That's neat.
I've built a Sweep and a Fifi, which were very nice, but I found them too limiting. Especially for gaming.
Maybe with enough time it would've worked, I've seen people with some crazy layouts specifically optimized to their workflow. But the Glove80 also ended up being more comfortable so I'll be sticking to it.
Next stage for me would be adding a pointing device to the keyboard and then I'm set.