If you have been using an ergonomic mechanical keyboard for more than year, let us know which keyboard it is, and whether you plan to keep to keep using it for at least another year or if there’s another keyboard you are considering trying instead.

  • bradmoor@lemmy.nz
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    11 days ago

    I’ve been using my 34 key ferris sweep for a couple of years now and I love it.

    I have a charybdis nano that I need to wire up, it makes me really appreciate the tighter choc spacing on the sweep, that and the low profile keys are doing a lot for comfort IMO

  • zibby@lemmy.ml
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    12 days ago

    I use a moonlander absolutely love it. Been using it for ~3 years. I have no plans on changing this keyboard. Ive macros on it to manage a lot of my tmux and ssh sessions which makes server admin a breeze. Only minor problem I have with this keyboard is I have never used the left big red button, could probably add a macro there for something though.

  • gianni@lemmy.ca
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    13 days ago

    I’ve been using a Kinesis Advantage for over a decade now. I’ve tried most of the ergo options out there and I keep coming back to the Advantage. It’s the only one that gets the thumb keys right in my opinion.

    I currently run a heavily modified version done by the guys at Upgrade Keyboards.

  • markstos@lemmy.worldOP
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    14 days ago

    After starting with an Ergodox, I’ve been using a 42-key Corne keyboard for the last few years.

    I love it. My current board is the Boardsource Unicorne.

    I’m experimenting the cocot46plus as a “unibody Corne with trackball” for cases when an all-in-one keyboard and pointing device might be more useful, but plan to keep using a Corne a daily driver.

    I pair it with MT3 keycaps and Cherry MX2A Browns.

    After some practice, my typing speed increased to about 85 wpm on the board vs 65 wpm on my more traditional Happy Keyboard Lite 2 60% keyboard.

    I use the markstos layout

  • jaredj@infosec.pub
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    10 days ago

    I’ve been using a tshort dactyl manuform 4x6 for 5 years now, having never planned to use it for even 1 year. I only commonly use the two innermost thumb keys; I didn’t think I would like the thumb cluster from watching a video of someone typing on it, and I indeed don’t like the thumb cluster. The switches are Kailh Brown; one of them started to stutter and I replaced it with … a TTC Brown or some such.

    I’ve printed, but not finished, a Splaytyl. I think it’s going to feel nice, but it’s only 4x5, and I’m nervous about not having Tab and Enter on the base layer.

  • cairn@lemmy.world
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    13 days ago

    I’ve been using my bad wings (v1) for over a year, and I didn’t think I’d ever give it up. It’s a 36-key mono-body split with a cirque track pad in the middle, and I use it with a miryoku layout. I used it as my only board for several months after I first built it, but I was constantly using it for travel and project computers (it’s perfect for tinkering with raspberry pis), so I put another board at my desktop computer and now my bad wings goes wherever I go for my laptop, or hot-desking, or projects, or anything else. I’ve even used the track pad on it as my only mouse for days at a time.

    I recently bought a bad wings 2 as a back up and so that I could convert my first one to wireless with ZMK. All in all, it’s been a fantastic board for me, and I’ll definitely be using it for the foreseeable future.

  • apfel@lemmy.world
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    14 days ago

    I’ve been using Zilpzalp basically exclusively for over a year, at this point I don’t think I’ll ever find a more comfortable board :)

    • markstos@lemmy.worldOP
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      14 days ago

      Now that you’ve been using this for awhile, how is your typing speed? Or is your preference for it more about comfort and enjoyment?

      • apfel@lemmy.world
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        13 days ago

        It’s definitely about comfort, but i’ve also never been faster on any other board. Gotta admit I’m not a fast typist, with around 80wpm.

    • freya_lou@lemmy.world
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      13 days ago

      that’s what your board should feel like, right. also same, except for splaytoraid of course. I don’t use anything else anymore.

  • something_random_tho@lemmy.world
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    13 days ago

    The only keyboard that solved all my wrist pain was the Kinesis Advantage Pro, which I learned alongside Colemak. Love the keyboard, and if it broke I’d buy it again tomorrow without hesitation.

  • sudo42@lemmy.world
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    13 days ago

    Been using a Matias Ergo Pro for several years now. Love the chonky CTRL, OPTION, CMD and Spacebar keys.

    Before purchase, I read reviews that some of the keys would tend to stick. Indeed, after a few months, the ‘F’ key decided that it was going to work according to its own plan. So the reviews were right. A good keyboard if they would just fix their d*mn key issues.

    Working on building a new custom keyboard to replace it.

  • kata1yst@sh.itjust.works
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    14 days ago

    4 years with my Iris V2. My only 2 complaints are that I didn’t like the default layering layout in QMK and that I couldn’t wait for V4.

    Incredible keyboard.

    I also highly recommend the Otemu Silent Sky switches I used in it, though sourcing them is a real pain. Tactile, buttery smooth, good resistance curves, and utterly silent.

    • rijom@lemmy.ml
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      12 days ago

      Love mine too. I’ve had one at work and one at home for about 3 years now. Only thing I dislike is that the upper thumb button is useless. I’d rather have an extra key on the lowest row.

      • kata1yst@sh.itjust.works
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        12 days ago

        Oh funny I love my upper thumb. Esc/` on one side and Del on the other. So not high traffic, but close when I need them.

  • evo@sh.itjust.works
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    13 days ago
    • I was a 60% guy until I borrowed (stole? I still have it) a Kensis Advantage from a coworker.
    • Not long after I built a couple Ergodox (Hotdox). I used all 76 keys for about 5 years.
    • I built a beautiful wireless Ergodox with a metal case and solar charging (SliceMK) that I have basically never used :/
    • For the last year and a half I’ve used a dactyl manuform (Wylder) that I soldered with ameba king per key pcbs. 39 keys (I don’t use a few) + a trackball.

    I don’t see myself changing anytime soon, auto mouse layer is amazing. I have a Draculad PCB and case but no real reason to build it since I wfh.

  • beeng@discuss.tchncs.de
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    11 days ago

    Self made Scylla for a year (it’s a dactyl type - 6x4 plus clusters, split, tented, welled, ortho) and I’m cruising on it.

    Still adjusting 1 or 2 keys on ZMK but from comfort its amazing.

    Bluetooth, USB-C and battery. Enjoying life!

  • TheAgeOfSuperboredom@lemmy.ca
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    13 days ago

    I’ve been using a Glove80 full time for over a year and I love it! It helped with my wrist pain too. I’ve not used any other ergonomic keyboards other than the Microsoft one, but I’m very happy with this one and see no reason to change.

  • ArtikBanana@lemmy.dbzer0.com
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    8 days ago

    Been using the Glove80 for over a year now and I love it.
    Everything about it is exactly what I wanted from an ergonomic keyboard and it’s also very customizable.
    It’s been very comfortable for me from the moment I got it up until now. And while I used to like rough PBT keycaps texture, I’ve learned to enjoy the Glove80’s smooth POM keycaps.
    I had only one keyboard before it which I could consider as “ergo” and have used for quite a bit - The Sweep. I liked it, but the limited amount of keys ended up being an annoyance for me. Especially when gaming. Plus the Glove80’s curve and palm rest make it substantially more comfortable for me, despite it being a larger keyboard.

    There are only 2 things left on my checklist for the “perfect ergo keyboard”:

    • Lighter switches - I got the red chocs before the red pro chocs were an option. I’m thinking of soldering the 20g ambient switches though.
    • Pointing input module - There was some work going on about an Orbital v2 touchpad integration with the Glove80. But I haven’t heard anything about it since (I think it’s been over a year).

    So I’ve been eyeing the Svalboard.
    I’m not sure it’ll fit my needs as it isn’t wireless and has less keys. But I love everything else about it.

  • I used an ErgoDox for years. I wasn’t thrilled with the switches, and I wanted more stagger.

    For the past few months I’ve been using a Piantor. I’ve learned:

    1. Thin is sexy, but I still haven’t found anything I loved as much as buckling springs, and maybe I should have opted for less sexy, but more tactile, than what’s available in Choc
    2. I really need to focus on a bat-wing style, connected keyboard next time. While the sides don’t slide around much, it really bugs me when they aren’t exactly where I expect them to be.
    3. I need more tenting; the tenting option(s) on the ErgoDox was good.
    4. 42 keys is just a few too few for me.

    I’m a fairly fast touch typist, and while I loved the chording for, eg, the num pad, I have to have too many keys under layers and I can’t quite get the QMK settings tuned such that I’m either not getting a layer switch fast enough, or I’m getting them unexpectedly.

    I think part of my problem is something the author of kanata found out and corrected for: I sometimes type a following key before fully releasing a previous key, which gets interpreted by QMK and kmonad as a layer switch (and, with 42 keys, almost every key is doing double duty). I suspect I can make QMK do what I want, but there are a lot of knobs and it can be hard to tell what to adjust.

    Anyway, I think next time I’ll go for less thin, max tactile, more connected halves, at least a couple more keys on each side; I miss those center thumb keys on the ErgoDox. Same stagger. I’m going to have to solve the QMK programming either way.

    • markstos@lemmy.worldOP
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      13 days ago

      You might like cocot46plus, although only one vendor in Japan seems it have it.

      Also check out the Vulpes Majora by Fingerpunch.

        • markstos@lemmy.worldOP
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          13 days ago

          There are a lot ZOMG posts about just-built keebs. That’s a moment worth celebrating, but I was curious which designs people actually stick with.

          I’m enjoying seeing the differences and similarities in what people are posting.

          • I’d been wanting a new keyboard for a while, mainly to get better tactile switches and more aggressive stagger. But I tried to swap some keycaps on my ErgoDox and broke a switch, and that was enough to justify a new keyboard. I’m sticking with the Piantor for a while because I don’t want to afford to drop $250 on keyboards every few months. So, in my case, I’m sticking with it for financial reasons, not “in love with” reasons.

            I do like the better programmability, tho. Definite win, although kanata certainly filled that need adequately.