this post was submitted on 01 Jul 2023
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ErgoMechKeyboards
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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
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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/
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I'm in Australia so this will be in AUD with Australian shipping.
I got the PCB's from JLPCB for $23.85
The keycaps diodes microcrontroller switches etc came to $50.17 total. I just used the ones linked in the github, as well as probably knockoff holy pandas and a knockoff soya milk set? They were both super cheap hahah.
So that's $73.22 AUD total, so a bit less than $50 USD!
https://github.com/tompi/cheapino
I've done some soldering in the past but never built a keyboard or anything like this. I was quite nervous but it was quite easy! Hardest part was making sure the switches were straight, but following the build guides tips I managed to do that pretty well (better on the right half then the left half I tried first hahaha.) Highly recommend this keyboard and project.
Really happy with the end result, I plan on building a Charybdis nano or Flow36 in the future to replace my trackball mouse but this is a great first step.
Wow, that's way less expensive then I thought! Seems like a fun project as well!
Thank you so much for all the info. This project is really compelling to me, so I might end up building something similar :)
Yeah crazy cheap, if you’re in Australia I’ve got 3 spare pcbs (JLPCB has a minimum order of 5) I’d be happy to send them to you with my spare rotary encoder and diodes
Thank you for the offer, that's very very kind of you! I'll have to pass though, as I live on the opposite side of the world. But I can give you a suggestion: If they are collecting dust anyway, you could use them yourself for a cool little macropad and bind whatever you want to them. Could be a nice gift for friends/family as well :)