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@@RoySteinberg-l7m Probably with either a specialized keyboard or a typical keyboard used in an atypical manner, but even without that, speech to text has been around for decades...
I've used a Svalboard for the last few months after 15 years on a Datahand. It's no exaggeration to say that switching to Datahand literally saved my career - and Svalboard is an improvement over it in every way. Built-in pointing devices and being able to switch the keymap on the fly are a huge benefit. For a hand-built unit with a LOT of parts, the price is much more palatable when you compare it to months on medical leave, which was my alternative. So yes, in terms of ergonomic keyboards it's definitely the bottom of the rabbit hole - but it's also the last keyboard you'll ever need. So judge value accordingly 🙂
It's a cool device, but I feel like an opportunity was missed by not calling it a "bearclaw" or a "twitch". I've seen these around for years but can never remember the name.
@@Hamson666 I do both with it. Unlike chorded keyboards you type exactly what you mean to - so if you want punctuation precisely where you intended, it's great. And if you want to bind a single key to type "int main() {" then Vial lets you do that too!
@@Hamson666 With open-source firmware and layers and combos, people do programming with 34-key boards... and this one has 50. It should work well, but may take some configuration.
I just wonder how it would work with only having one good hand (for, say, amputees or people like me with extremely limited fine motor movement in one hand. I've adapted to standard keyboards and even using a manual type writer with only my left hand, but after 30+ years of typing on a standard keyboard the wrist and elbow are very unhappy to say the least.)
As someone who really likes ergo keyboards, seeing Hipyo showing the Svalboard feels really good. Usually I see people dismissing or outright insulting ergos, so it feels like a blessing to see a mainstream content creator chill with the creator of the Svalboard.
Been using a Sval for almost a year now. Love it. I'm an outlier, and was back to work in about a day. But my RSI pain is completely, completely gone. I love mine.
I'm so glad you're not a WPM gatekeeper or just promoting gaming products 🫶 your willingness to try different use case products is refreshing for a keyboard channel.
Ive been using mine since May, and i can definitely say that I'm never going back to a normal keyboard if i can help it. I don't have RSI or a pathological reason to "need" this keyboard, but I definitely think this is the most efficient design out there (if you're willing to put in the time to adjust to it). I get the ergonomics of a minimal 34 key layout, but without the concessions you usually have to make due to the low key count. Vial is also an amazing software for customizing your layout, and being able to adjust the layout on the fly without having to flash the board is awesome.
I can genuinely see a one handed variant being used for the disabled. Or just use what's there for those with RSI, or someone who wants /ALL/ of the macros for what theyr'e doing. meanwhile I'm wanting to know how well it works in mechwarrior. Because that looks either amazing or obnoxious for a maximalist piloting sim. Honestly I kinda want it regardless because 'look it's cool. i don't NEED a reason.'
You can program a frogpad layout in most programmable keyboards at least. Is it the most ergonomic method? I've played with Dvorak left and right and they weren't for me either.
@@singletona082 a "one-handed variant" is just leaving one side unplugged 🙂 There are a whole bunch of single-handed keyboard layouts available so you could definitely make something work. Macros are trivial with Vial, you can set single keys to do pretty much any key sequence - it's great for productivity!
I have a few folks with Duchenne muscular dystrophy and a bunch of folks with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome -- connective tissue pathologies and degenerative muscle stuff are definitely a core focus. If you know anyone facing interesting medical challenges who'd like to give it a try, feel free to reach out and I'll do my best to hook them up.
I literally got into custom mechanical keyboards because of my partner's disability*, so I appreciate you making videos about the fascinating variety of keyboards that fill people's atypical needs and use-cases. I did try using a keyboard with 20g switches once, it was uncomfortable since I couldn't rest my fingers on the keys. It's cool to see this keyboard try fo fix that problem with finger supports. *for anyone interested, their low visual acuity means they need to use a monitor close to their face. We have a monitor arm at home, but hotdesking at work meant they had to type with the keyboard pushed forward right up to their chest, which is ergonomically terrible. A split keyboard solves this problem -- put the two halves on either side of the monitor stand. Other than that it was a more typical layout, e.g. the Quefrency or Keychron Q11, rather than a thumb-cluster keyboard like an Ergodox or Corne.
I would imagine this could make for some interesting "no desk" setups. Wall mounted monitors, computer on the floor, and I'm imagining an arm sticking out of the wall to reach wherever you are sitting to provide you this keyboard/mouse. Not that I'd want to actually go through with, since it's obviously not good for gaming, but if you are primarily a controller gamer on pc, then it might be an interesting combo.
I thought this was really weird at first, but then I remembered how I've typed on a Japanese keyboard on the phone. It is peculiarly (but not exactly) similar, with the Japanese keyboard looking like a numpad and then you can swipe in cardinal directions for different characters.
So I learned this because of a comment I made on another channel: they have a “trial” program where you pay a $100 base fee and $100/month fee to try the board. That makes it much more compelling to try without a big up-front commitment. I’m still not quite to the point where I want to take that plunge, but it’s much more within reach.
@@faraonbre An Azeron is only one hand and not an intended to be used as keyboard; it’s a game controller. But sure, go ahead and try it. It might work for you if you buy two of them.
Keyboard on the desk is really an issue for everyone no matter what kind of board they're using. Unless you have a thin top desk that's short enough to sit at your lap, your arms are going to be too be too elevated. Ergonomics likes 90° angles at each joint. Bending your elbows up forces your wrists down and your hands to claw, splaying your shoulders for better elbow height makes your wrists splay the opposite direction. If you take ergonomics seriously, you have to relearn everything. It's also a bit ironic how desks have become less ergonomic over time. Even into the '00s desks still came standard with some kind of built-in keyboard tray drawer, had an elevated surface for the monitor, etc. Now they're all flat slabs that you have to get accessories for. I get minimalism and detrending big heavy console desks, but losing core features seems a bit ridiculous. DataHand-style devices, Azeron's Cyborg and the Svalboard being the main two, but any other fingerwell devices, are probably the hardest to learn and you do need to adapt to your own custom layout, just like how Qwerty doesn't work for everyone, nor does Dvorak, etc., same is true with mod layers. Once you get used to it, it can really be one very fast typist setup due to minimal movement and minimal force. You just need to get it set up properly and you need to understand your own flow. My only concern, since I don't have one to use, is the forward-palm trackball, it just seems like an odd place to me, one where you either need to adjust your hand position or really claw a finger to use it; I almost want a trackpad with a click under the thumb's pad, something like one of Cirque's 25mm or 35mm circlepads, which along with software could actually provide further functionality. I almost also want a knuckle key, alla Cyborg, just to have additional physical functions that layering can also play into; say, media and function row keys. Svalboard's current iteration shouldn't be the end-game, there's still a lot of areas where things could improve and where new ideas could be adapted into the platform.
That's why I've always diy a keyboard tray into my tables and raised the monitor position up (wouldn't buy a monitor that doesn't have adjustable height/ pivot). My only gripe with the old computer tables is that their keyboard trays were pitifully narrow in width. My first diy keyboard tray was literally an Ikea cabinet door (it's cheap, thin, well-finished, and robust thanks to being engineered material) and a pair of keyboard slides that cost me less than US$25 in total. These days, you can get away without a keyboard tray if you've a height adjustable table and monitor arms - lower the table top to accommodate the keyboard position and raise the monitor up. I do still have a diy kb tray installed into my height adjustable table because it clears the table top for other stuff - reading/ writing/ drinks/ snacks etc.
@@johnrogalski1004 Not mutually exclusive. I do have a simple foot rest and my chair is raised a little since I've the wheels replaced with the rollerblades wheels.
Hope the world gets interested in the Datahand/Svalboard again. We have so many more degrees of freedom in our fingers than a standard keyboard makes use of. We hyped up the Azeron Cyborg, so why not this?
If you're handy with a soldering iron you could make a cheap handwired keyboard with the switches mounted in a piece of cardboard. Or even squished into some (non-conductive) clay/putty if you want to experiment with putting switches at different height/tilt.
I remember that, but funny enough, I struggled to learn Mavis Beacon. Then, I got a BlackBerry equivalent for my birthday one year, started texting on the slide out keyboard, and then found I could type
It's a very very interesting solution. Probably not for me, at least, not yet, but it's awesome how configurable and how you can mod it. Love that Morgan been there also !!
15:30 actually, Hipyo, it is in fact supposed to be for everyone. Part of the point of these things would be to prevent RSI rather than to be used only once one already has RSI, right?
@@noth606 My intention is that they aren't one size fits all, despite their attempts to be. Everyone should find their most efficient ergonomic solution - but one keyboard will never be the cure all for everyone's individual setups and it shouldn't be.
It's for anyone who really needs it, but plenty of people will go through life just fine with free crappy keyboards, and I'm happy for them! One of the things I appreciate about Hipyo is that he has perspective on the scale of audience for things. Would I love everyone to use and buy something I sell? Sure! Is it for everyone? Nah. It's for *anyone*, but you gotta figure out if that's you. Adaptive tech is a buffet -- you find what works for your unique body. I'm just so excited to be alive at a time when manufacturing technology has made it possible for insane stuff like this to be viable-ish as a small business 🙏
Fair but if you're not already prone to those problems or if you're not willing or able to learn to use this admittedly very expensive and strange keeb, it's gonna be a waste of money
I thought at some point I was going to make a dactyl manuform but this one is super interesting! I’ll have to consider making this one instead 😊. Thanks for highlighting it and having the creator as a guest
Honestly, I'd be interested. I don't have any ergonomic issues really, but it's never bad to take preventative measures. I'd really want to see what I could do with it for gaming though. Wonder if it would make it easier to do hotkeys or make me faster at typing.
The biggest thing this keeb needs is replacement switches for people who just *SLAM* on the keys hard. Stronger spring force can prevent accidents for people with bigger / chunkier hands.
@@bluephreakr it'd be really hard to break them - they're not switches in the usual sense, but based around optical beam-break sensors. If you want higher force, it's simple - you get access to the print files on purchase, so you can just 3D-print one of a variety of keys with different forces to suit your need. Or, ask Morgan nicely and he'll likely just post some to you 🙂 They didn't really touch on it in the video, but force is easily tuned by adjusting the alignment between the magnets in the keys and the matching ones in the clusters that house them.
So my parents owned a word processing/typing business back in the 80’s and 90’s. I think everyone in my family could have avoided a lot of physical self-abuse with 2 of these keyboards at their office. I may have to check this out to save what’s left of my forearms
Could it be better than a normal keyboard? Like sure the learning curve is really steep but being able to press keys without moving surely would be faster
@HipyoTech yeah it's just a bit impractical. But hypothetically, if you did learn it for a few years, I'm sure it would be faster. Is it worth all that time just to type a bit faster? No, but I think it's cool especially since it helps people with health conditions :)
It's not designed with speed in mind. It was designed for people suffering from RSI who couldn't use a normal keyboard anymore. It's possible that you could type faster with it, but it's much more about comfort, ergonomics, and safety.
For speed and comfort nothing beats a steno keyboard. Also, middle and ring finger aren't meant to bend sideways. It'd be interesting to see this with a steno layout tho, like middle and ring having only two keys (down and back) and pinky and index four
Even one hand of this looks like it could be cool for gaming, since you can easily do multiple inputs even on thumb since they are already close to you fingers and look easy enough to press down
I ordered a Svalboard a couple weeks ago. I think it'll be my endgame, because it's so closely built around the shape of my hand, and my hand won't change.
goal of 10wpm is pretty respectable with something so different. Different keyboard layout is one thing, something completely different from a standard staggered or ortho keyboard is a lot to process. It took a month of 20 minutes almost every day to get up to 60wpm on an 36 keys split ortho, 15g chocs, in Colemak-DH. The hardest thing was going back to staggered qwerty every day for most of my typing because of work and gaming. It really tickled something in my brain though. Reminded me of learning a musical instrument.
There's a RUclipsr I enjoy who recently had a stroke and has limited mobility in their right hand. They asked for recommendations for keyboards and mice that could maybe assist them and I wonder if something like this could help.
Ok. I enjoyed watching this a lot. I feel like I wouldn't have much difficulty with the main 4 keys (asdf and the other ones), but the 5th keys + the functions? That would take some time. Other than that, it's a really cool product, and I'd like to use it to game (e.g., hotkey change QWER to ZXCV to mimic the finger down movement we use, because right now I've been playing with a slanted keyboard exatcly due to the discomfort.
Honestly this looks like itd be sick for gaming. Stuff like World of Warcraft or the equivalent ofna Steel Battalion controller for a Gundam or Armored Core game
literally 7 of my favourite youtubers uploaded a video within these 5 minutes and that's so funny to me I've been getting so many video from "3 minutes ago"
I remember thinking of simmilar keyboard when I was younger and had great sci-fi imagination and dreams. I never thought someone will have the same idea and implement it!
Hot take: Anything can be "for everyone", but we lazily say "it's not for everyone", because we erroneously believe that something has to be *easy* for it to be for everyone. Anything can be for everyone - some things just take an amount of effort and time to get going/become proficient. We don't look at five year-olds not being able to type on QWERTY keyboards, all, "Well, I guess typing isn't for everyone". Nah. That's just an excuse at that point to not have to put in the work to get better. If you want to do it, then do it. Period. If you want to be fast at something, you need muscle memory, which requires practice. Full stop. It doesn't matter what it is, or what you're used to, etc.
Well, yes and no. For a lot of things, most people can do them but not all are capable of doing them easily or excelling and, of course, some people have issues (such as disabilities or learning disabilities, and bear in mind that these may not always be diagnosed as it is unfortunately common for people to go through a large chunk of their lives with some conditions before actually finding out that they have them) that WILL make it impossible for them to ever learn how to do certain things. It may sound silly to say 'it's not for everyone' about something like typing, but some of those kids genuinely won't ever have the dexterity, spacial awareness, coordination, or memory, to touch type or have a very high word per minute count. Yes, it's very unlikely that any of them will fail to learn to type at all, unless they have a learning disability of a significant enough level that they can't read and write or something, but some will master typing well enough to work in an office, while others just won't have those skills and their apptitude will lie more in something that might make them an excellent mechanic or police officer or doctor or something. Should we let this be an excuse to not put out whole effort into becoming the best that we personally can be at every activity we try, be it typing or something else? No, of course not! We are always going to achieve a heck of a lot higher by dedicating ourselves to it and pushing ourselves to see how good we can get. We also shouldn't judge those who can't do something though and assume that it's just because they haven't tried hard enough. We don't know if they have a really valid reason that we (and maybe even they) don't know, that is making it harder for them than it is for us to do that thing and maybe the little that they have achieved in it took even more effort for them than our proficiency did for us...or maybe they got discouraged because it was so much harder or even painful for them, or, when no amount of effort worked, they chose to stop wasting their time on things that were only making them feel bad and focus on things that were more advantageous to them instead, and that's ok too. If we all persued the same things the world would be screwed, after all, wouldn't it, so it's probably a good thing we're not actually all good at the same things
Thanks for mentioning it! I wasn't aware of that keyboard, and got super interested once I saw a flash of it. It's the first keyboard I've seen that I think I'd prefer to my Ergodox. I'd also love to try the Svalboard, but the price is too steep for something I may not end up liking.
11:32 idk about this trackball but my Logitech trackball mouse is perfectly fine for gaming, in fact I prefer it I don't have to be behind a table or have a mouse pad for it. I think the reason they are not as popular is that you need to clean the thing sometimes unlike a mouse and users just don't do it and get frustrated when it doesn't work. I converted my wife and my dad to using these and so far no complaints, no learning curve really.
A very interesting concept. As is GravaStar Mercury Mechanical Keyboards. Hippo get hold of one and try it, so I dont have too... It looks amazing. I value your opinion on all things keyboards!
I watch Linus tech tips, but like he's right. He said it was boring. That's rude and honestly, I found the keyboard cool, but the fact he got the co. Founder of the keyboard, he's holding in the video. This is a way better video to watch in my opinion, because we get to hear the honesty. I can get to hear it from the person that created it😊
The first thing I thought of when I saw this was the old chording keyboards - most people would probably be familiar with the stenographs variants though. Very cool piece of tech but that price though
Loved the video - but i would adjust one of your last statements that ergonomic keyboards "aren't supposed to be for everyone". Better ergonomics should *always* be a goal and preventing injuries is a good thing! We just need to find a balance.
My intention is that they aren't one size fits all, despite their attempts to be. Everyone should find their most efficient ergonomic solution - but one keyboard will never be the cure all for everyone's individual setups and it shouldn't be.
as mmorpg wannabe, i would want one to try it. i kind of have a memory of a version, where you would have an extra switch as the palmrest, which would allow you to move in directions you were tilting or pushing. kind of like a joystick as a palmrest. that would make playing games pretty intuitive.
OK I didn't know you were friends with Pikarar, this is awesome! Please tell her we will always love Moustache Pikachu! She is a pillar of internet history and her Moustachu is under my Keychron 🥰
Personally I have much more issues with mouse hand ergonomics than anything wrong with a standard keyboard. This ends up being more effective on just the left hand for gaming. because the layout doesn't matter, having access to more keys without stretching does
I'm always interested in trying keyboards like this but it's such a gamble at the price tag. I'm not a touch typist by any means -- I usually use maybe 4-5 fingers total and regularly test at 115+ WPM so have never felt the need to learn touch typing -- but that meant my experiment with the Moonlander was a _struggle._ I'd like to keep practicing with the Moonlander but in the meantime it's such a hindrance to my work that I can't afford the drop in efficiency. It looks like it would be the same case for the Svalboard, with the added restriction that you can't even move your hand and use the "wrong finger" to hit a key if you get lost. Seems like you'd have to have touch typing down to a science or otherwise suffer quite significantly.
This reminds me of the Data Professional II keyboard. But that one had the key labeled. This makes sense considering the motions of your fingers. I would get this if it wasn't $850
Foreshadowing for a Dygma Defy review? As someone with a plethora of RSIs that are very specific, for me the ideal position is flat hands and moving my hands the least possible, this could be a great thing. But at the same time this would make it absolutely impossible to travel for work as I sometimes need to switch to my laptop and I ain't popping out the Pelicase for a 1 grand keyboard 🤔
Would you consider doing a video on Tex keyboards? I feel like they’re mostly ignored, but there's not many mechanical keyboards with trackpoint options.
A new stage on the ergo pipeline proper typing -> different keyboard sizes -> different keyboard layout -> split keyboard -> ergo keyboards -> specialty keyboards -> ??? At this point we just need a brain to computer interface and we'd achieve true ergonomics
weirdly, ive been playing Deadlock and I cant for the life of me find a bind setup i like cause its a MOBA and Shooter so you have to deal with all the binds and ive been struggling till i remembered about these and have been tempted to make my own...
Everyone has their own opinion. But I understand but my question is, wouldn't this be good for like a job like a hotel person that works at the desk because they're typing or they're doing a lot of things keeping track of dates and people coming and going out of the hotel, like the high-end ones, not the cheap ones, the expensive rich ones. Just an example I could think of if anyone could think of any other jobs or examples with this keyboard, let me know because it's cool. I understand it's not meant for gaming, but it's still cool. Cause I bet you give this to the right person that types, fast and understands this stuff. They're gonna make their workflow so much faster. I could just imagine someone in The next office over and they're gettin their stuff done with this faster than an average keyboard
How would this be to type on without QWERTY muscle memory? I never learned how to type properly (ended up learning to type one handed while looking at the keys) but this seems fascinating, especially when thinking about things like keyboard shortcuts in cad/etc programs that are annoying to do with a normal keyboard and mouse
I've been seeing this thing floating around the ergo mech sub occasionally and I've been entirely curious about it. Now I know that I probably won't like it that much! xD It's cool as hell though and I would love to give it a go at some point but I don't think I could ever keep it as a daily driver. Took me way too long to learn how to type on a normal qwerty split.
Hi Hipyo, I wanted to ask you if a rog falchion with red switches at €107 or a hyperx origins 60 at €65 is better? I'm looking for a slightly quieter sound
I learned to use this keyboard in 2-3 weeks. My friends and I specifically measured it - I started typing 4 times faster compared to a regular keyboard. It's like my fingers became synchronized with the brain center where thoughts are formed. This comment took me approximately 15 seconds.😅
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as someone with a disability tht makes it impossible to use a keyboard normally these videos are really fascinating
How are you typing… I’m sorry but, how?😅
@@RoySteinberg-l7mthey said normally, not that they couldn't type at all.
@@RoySteinberg-l7m Probably with either a specialized keyboard or a typical keyboard used in an atypical manner, but even without that, speech to text has been around for decades...
Voice typing on mobile is king 😌
You can dictate on any device@@Hypnotic-tist
I would really want to see Hipyo keep using this for a full two months and see where he gets to. Like give it the full commitment.
y e s
y e s
I've used a Svalboard for the last few months after 15 years on a Datahand. It's no exaggeration to say that switching to Datahand literally saved my career - and Svalboard is an improvement over it in every way.
Built-in pointing devices and being able to switch the keymap on the fly are a huge benefit. For a hand-built unit with a LOT of parts, the price is much more palatable when you compare it to months on medical leave, which was my alternative.
So yes, in terms of ergonomic keyboards it's definitely the bottom of the rabbit hole - but it's also the last keyboard you'll ever need. So judge value accordingly 🙂
It's a cool device, but I feel like an opportunity was missed by not calling it a "bearclaw" or a "twitch". I've seen these around for years but can never remember the name.
Does this keyboard works for programming or is it really efficient only for typing ?
@@Hamson666 I do both with it. Unlike chorded keyboards you type exactly what you mean to - so if you want punctuation precisely where you intended, it's great.
And if you want to bind a single key to type "int main() {" then Vial lets you do that too!
@@Hamson666 With open-source firmware and layers and combos, people do programming with 34-key boards... and this one has 50. It should work well, but may take some configuration.
I just wonder how it would work with only having one good hand (for, say, amputees or people like me with extremely limited fine motor movement in one hand. I've adapted to standard keyboards and even using a manual type writer with only my left hand, but after 30+ years of typing on a standard keyboard the wrist and elbow are very unhappy to say the least.)
As someone who really likes ergo keyboards, seeing Hipyo showing the Svalboard feels really good. Usually I see people dismissing or outright insulting ergos, so it feels like a blessing to see a mainstream content creator chill with the creator of the Svalboard.
Been using a Sval for almost a year now. Love it. I'm an outlier, and was back to work in about a day. But my RSI pain is completely, completely gone. I love mine.
I'm guessing you mapped the keys yourself, huh?
@@gabrielwatson5981yeah it's really really easy with VIAL
I'm so glad you're not a WPM gatekeeper or just promoting gaming products 🫶 your willingness to try different use case products is refreshing for a keyboard channel.
Ive been using mine since May, and i can definitely say that I'm never going back to a normal keyboard if i can help it. I don't have RSI or a pathological reason to "need" this keyboard, but I definitely think this is the most efficient design out there (if you're willing to put in the time to adjust to it). I get the ergonomics of a minimal 34 key layout, but without the concessions you usually have to make due to the low key count. Vial is also an amazing software for customizing your layout, and being able to adjust the layout on the fly without having to flash the board is awesome.
Why don't you spread your arms a bit when typing? The board is split, move them a bit further away from each other like shoulder width.
I can genuinely see a one handed variant being used for the disabled.
Or just use what's there for those with RSI, or someone who wants /ALL/ of the macros for what theyr'e doing.
meanwhile I'm wanting to know how well it works in mechwarrior. Because that looks either amazing or obnoxious for a maximalist piloting sim.
Honestly I kinda want it regardless because 'look it's cool. i don't NEED a reason.'
You can program a frogpad layout in most programmable keyboards at least. Is it the most ergonomic method?
I've played with Dvorak left and right and they weren't for me either.
@@singletona082 a "one-handed variant" is just leaving one side unplugged 🙂 There are a whole bunch of single-handed keyboard layouts available so you could definitely make something work.
Macros are trivial with Vial, you can set single keys to do pretty much any key sequence - it's great for productivity!
I have a few folks with Duchenne muscular dystrophy and a bunch of folks with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome -- connective tissue pathologies and degenerative muscle stuff are definitely a core focus. If you know anyone facing interesting medical challenges who'd like to give it a try, feel free to reach out and I'll do my best to hook them up.
I would have liked to see more of the creator typing
@@2slowpoke929 sorry I didn't really wanna put him on the spot cus my Setup was pretty bad for him
I feel a little bad saying this, but I think you’d have to agree: your setup is kind of bad even for you. 15:30 you look like a T-rex trying to type.
The creator going "FIRST WORD!!" was so wholesome haha
I literally got into custom mechanical keyboards because of my partner's disability*, so I appreciate you making videos about the fascinating variety of keyboards that fill people's atypical needs and use-cases.
I did try using a keyboard with 20g switches once, it was uncomfortable since I couldn't rest my fingers on the keys. It's cool to see this keyboard try fo fix that problem with finger supports.
*for anyone interested, their low visual acuity means they need to use a monitor close to their face. We have a monitor arm at home, but hotdesking at work meant they had to type with the keyboard pushed forward right up to their chest, which is ergonomically terrible. A split keyboard solves this problem -- put the two halves on either side of the monitor stand. Other than that it was a more typical layout, e.g. the Quefrency or Keychron Q11, rather than a thumb-cluster keyboard like an Ergodox or Corne.
I would imagine this could make for some interesting "no desk" setups. Wall mounted monitors, computer on the floor, and I'm imagining an arm sticking out of the wall to reach wherever you are sitting to provide you this keyboard/mouse.
Not that I'd want to actually go through with, since it's obviously not good for gaming, but if you are primarily a controller gamer on pc, then it might be an interesting combo.
I thought this was really weird at first, but then I remembered how I've typed on a Japanese keyboard on the phone.
It is peculiarly (but not exactly) similar, with the Japanese keyboard looking like a numpad and then you can swipe in cardinal directions for different characters.
13:30 having dropped $1050 is a compelling enough reason to learn this thing
So I learned this because of a comment I made on another channel: they have a “trial” program where you pay a $100 base fee and $100/month fee to try the board. That makes it much more compelling to try without a big up-front commitment. I’m still not quite to the point where I want to take that plunge, but it’s much more within reach.
@@ivanheffner2587 yeah or you can buy Azeron for good $200 :)))
@@faraonbre An Azeron is only one hand and not an intended to be used as keyboard; it’s a game controller. But sure, go ahead and try it. It might work for you if you buy two of them.
But moving my hands around my keyboard is my cardio for the day.
Keyboard on the desk is really an issue for everyone no matter what kind of board they're using. Unless you have a thin top desk that's short enough to sit at your lap, your arms are going to be too be too elevated. Ergonomics likes 90° angles at each joint. Bending your elbows up forces your wrists down and your hands to claw, splaying your shoulders for better elbow height makes your wrists splay the opposite direction. If you take ergonomics seriously, you have to relearn everything.
It's also a bit ironic how desks have become less ergonomic over time. Even into the '00s desks still came standard with some kind of built-in keyboard tray drawer, had an elevated surface for the monitor, etc. Now they're all flat slabs that you have to get accessories for. I get minimalism and detrending big heavy console desks, but losing core features seems a bit ridiculous.
DataHand-style devices, Azeron's Cyborg and the Svalboard being the main two, but any other fingerwell devices, are probably the hardest to learn and you do need to adapt to your own custom layout, just like how Qwerty doesn't work for everyone, nor does Dvorak, etc., same is true with mod layers. Once you get used to it, it can really be one very fast typist setup due to minimal movement and minimal force. You just need to get it set up properly and you need to understand your own flow. My only concern, since I don't have one to use, is the forward-palm trackball, it just seems like an odd place to me, one where you either need to adjust your hand position or really claw a finger to use it; I almost want a trackpad with a click under the thumb's pad, something like one of Cirque's 25mm or 35mm circlepads, which along with software could actually provide further functionality. I almost also want a knuckle key, alla Cyborg, just to have additional physical functions that layering can also play into; say, media and function row keys. Svalboard's current iteration shouldn't be the end-game, there's still a lot of areas where things could improve and where new ideas could be adapted into the platform.
That's why I've always diy a keyboard tray into my tables and raised the monitor position up (wouldn't buy a monitor that doesn't have adjustable height/ pivot).
My only gripe with the old computer tables is that their keyboard trays were pitifully narrow in width.
My first diy keyboard tray was literally an Ikea cabinet door (it's cheap, thin, well-finished, and robust thanks to being engineered material) and a pair of keyboard slides that cost me less than US$25 in total.
These days, you can get away without a keyboard tray if you've a height adjustable table and monitor arms - lower the table top to accommodate the keyboard position and raise the monitor up.
I do still have a diy kb tray installed into my height adjustable table because it clears the table top for other stuff - reading/ writing/ drinks/ snacks etc.
@@BigBenAdv You can always compensate by using a high chair paired with a footrest. But then, you'd have to raise the displays accordingly.
@@johnrogalski1004 Not mutually exclusive. I do have a simple foot rest and my chair is raised a little since I've the wheels replaced with the rollerblades wheels.
I was like "naah, this isn't for me" until the "tingles the brain" comment.
Damnit Hippyo, as a Click-Thoc war criminal, I'm in!
I want a pair!
"They cost 1050."
I don't want a pair!
I still want a pair, but am much less likely to get a pair!
Get an azeron keypad
@@Feligresa I have an Azeron for gaming. I have no interest in trying to type with one, but I do love it for what I bought it for.
I like the thumb stick over the thumb cluster.
Hope the world gets interested in the Datahand/Svalboard again. We have so many more degrees of freedom in our fingers than a standard keyboard makes use of. We hyped up the Azeron Cyborg, so why not this?
if these types of hyper adjustable thigns werent so expensive I would probably have one of these
If you're handy with a soldering iron you could make a cheap handwired keyboard with the switches mounted in a piece of cardboard. Or even squished into some (non-conductive) clay/putty if you want to experiment with putting switches at different height/tilt.
@@wereoctopus thanks willtry probably
Azeron is $200 cca if you want to try it out, you can also DIY it, but it's gonna be $100-150 easily
What the hell is this timing
I literally discovered this keyboard *1 hour before this video was made*
? How
@beepbuildsathing just posted his build guide yesterday, sheer coincidence but fun!
@@SvalboardLol yep. Had no idea when this Hipyo video would be posted, so I guess good timing? Heh
It is possible to push promotions in parallel to video releases. Think Google Adsense level of promotion.
@@codeman99-dev Man I wish I were that sophisticated or had time to do actual advertising 😅. Someday maybe...
@@codeman99-dev Well, this time it was sheer chance, heh. Cool to know that's a possibility though :)
It's best to start with home row layout, middle and top rows later, and then all keys. Not all at the same time. Mavis Beacon style.
I remember that, but funny enough, I struggled to learn Mavis Beacon. Then, I got a BlackBerry equivalent for my birthday one year, started texting on the slide out keyboard, and then found I could type
@@astralaegis6283 Super boring at times. Adadadafafafasasas. For left hand home row
All I wanted to see was someone ACTUALLY TYPING on the keyboard. Instead there is just endless non-sense around it.
I agree, it's such a time waste
The shade at ltt was funny 😅
It's a very very interesting solution. Probably not for me, at least, not yet, but it's awesome how configurable and how you can mod it. Love that Morgan been there also !!
15:30 actually, Hipyo, it is in fact supposed to be for everyone. Part of the point of these things would be to prevent RSI rather than to be used only once one already has RSI, right?
@@noth606 My intention is that they aren't one size fits all, despite their attempts to be. Everyone should find their most efficient ergonomic solution - but one keyboard will never be the cure all for everyone's individual setups and it shouldn't be.
The range of physical disabilities is too wide for any one device to be "for everyone"
It's for anyone who really needs it, but plenty of people will go through life just fine with free crappy keyboards, and I'm happy for them! One of the things I appreciate about Hipyo is that he has perspective on the scale of audience for things. Would I love everyone to use and buy something I sell? Sure! Is it for everyone? Nah. It's for *anyone*, but you gotta figure out if that's you.
Adaptive tech is a buffet -- you find what works for your unique body. I'm just so excited to be alive at a time when manufacturing technology has made it possible for insane stuff like this to be viable-ish as a small business 🙏
Fair but if you're not already prone to those problems or if you're not willing or able to learn to use this admittedly very expensive and strange keeb, it's gonna be a waste of money
I don’t have $1000, it’s not for me
I thought at some point I was going to make a dactyl manuform but this one is super interesting! I’ll have to consider making this one instead 😊. Thanks for highlighting it and having the creator as a guest
Thank you for trying out these "weird" tech. Now, I'm intrigued to try it myself.
Honestly, I'd be interested. I don't have any ergonomic issues really, but it's never bad to take preventative measures. I'd really want to see what I could do with it for gaming though. Wonder if it would make it easier to do hotkeys or make me faster at typing.
The biggest thing this keeb needs is replacement switches for people who just *SLAM* on the keys hard. Stronger spring force can prevent accidents for people with bigger / chunkier hands.
@@bluephreakr it'd be really hard to break them - they're not switches in the usual sense, but based around optical beam-break sensors.
If you want higher force, it's simple - you get access to the print files on purchase, so you can just 3D-print one of a variety of keys with different forces to suit your need. Or, ask Morgan nicely and he'll likely just post some to you 🙂
They didn't really touch on it in the video, but force is easily tuned by adjusting the alignment between the magnets in the keys and the matching ones in the clusters that house them.
So my parents owned a word processing/typing business back in the 80’s and 90’s. I think everyone in my family could have avoided a lot of physical self-abuse with 2 of these keyboards at their office. I may have to check this out to save what’s left of my forearms
Engineer Meets Keyboard Nerd.
Keyboard Nerd: "This is really clacky!"
Engineer: *nods*
Could it be better than a normal keyboard? Like sure the learning curve is really steep but being able to press keys without moving surely would be faster
I think I wouldn't call it better for faster typing just out of the STEEEP learning curve
@HipyoTech yeah it's just a bit impractical. But hypothetically, if you did learn it for a few years, I'm sure it would be faster.
Is it worth all that time just to type a bit faster? No, but I think it's cool especially since it helps people with health conditions :)
It's not designed with speed in mind. It was designed for people suffering from RSI who couldn't use a normal keyboard anymore. It's possible that you could type faster with it, but it's much more about comfort, ergonomics, and safety.
For speed and comfort nothing beats a steno keyboard. Also, middle and ring finger aren't meant to bend sideways. It'd be interesting to see this with a steno layout tho, like middle and ring having only two keys (down and back) and pinky and index four
Even one hand of this looks like it could be cool for gaming, since you can easily do multiple inputs even on thumb since they are already close to you fingers and look easy enough to press down
I ordered a Svalboard a couple weeks ago. I think it'll be my endgame, because it's so closely built around the shape of my hand, and my hand won't change.
goal of 10wpm is pretty respectable with something so different. Different keyboard layout is one thing, something completely different from a standard staggered or ortho keyboard is a lot to process.
It took a month of 20 minutes almost every day to get up to 60wpm on an 36 keys split ortho, 15g chocs, in Colemak-DH. The hardest thing was going back to staggered qwerty every day for most of my typing because of work and gaming. It really tickled something in my brain though. Reminded me of learning a musical instrument.
There's a RUclipsr I enjoy who recently had a stroke and has limited mobility in their right hand. They asked for recommendations for keyboards and mice that could maybe assist them and I wonder if something like this could help.
nah, thats the best keyboard ever
I love the OOOOOOOH YEaAAAAH parts 😂
Wheres it from
Finally, some links to typing test websites.
Ok. I enjoyed watching this a lot. I feel like I wouldn't have much difficulty with the main 4 keys (asdf and the other ones), but the 5th keys + the functions? That would take some time. Other than that, it's a really cool product, and I'd like to use it to game (e.g., hotkey change QWER to ZXCV to mimic the finger down movement we use, because right now I've been playing with a slanted keyboard exatcly due to the discomfort.
Honestly this looks like itd be sick for gaming. Stuff like World of Warcraft or the equivalent ofna Steel Battalion controller for a Gundam or Armored Core game
literally 7 of my favourite youtubers uploaded a video within these 5 minutes and that's so funny to me
I've been getting so many video from "3 minutes ago"
List the 7
Sponsored videos
I remember thinking of simmilar keyboard when I was younger and had great sci-fi imagination and dreams. I never thought someone will have the same idea and implement it!
I wanna see you do the CharaChorder One next! lol
YES PLEASEEEE
Yes PLEASE!!
Imagine a hacker who breaks in to your house to stole some important data from your PC and as he sits by your desk he sees this keyboard...
Hot take: Anything can be "for everyone", but we lazily say "it's not for everyone", because we erroneously believe that something has to be *easy* for it to be for everyone. Anything can be for everyone - some things just take an amount of effort and time to get going/become proficient.
We don't look at five year-olds not being able to type on QWERTY keyboards, all, "Well, I guess typing isn't for everyone". Nah. That's just an excuse at that point to not have to put in the work to get better.
If you want to do it, then do it. Period. If you want to be fast at something, you need muscle memory, which requires practice. Full stop. It doesn't matter what it is, or what you're used to, etc.
Well, yes and no. For a lot of things, most people can do them but not all are capable of doing them easily or excelling and, of course, some people have issues (such as disabilities or learning disabilities, and bear in mind that these may not always be diagnosed as it is unfortunately common for people to go through a large chunk of their lives with some conditions before actually finding out that they have them) that WILL make it impossible for them to ever learn how to do certain things.
It may sound silly to say 'it's not for everyone' about something like typing, but some of those kids genuinely won't ever have the dexterity, spacial awareness, coordination, or memory, to touch type or have a very high word per minute count. Yes, it's very unlikely that any of them will fail to learn to type at all, unless they have a learning disability of a significant enough level that they can't read and write or something, but some will master typing well enough to work in an office, while others just won't have those skills and their apptitude will lie more in something that might make them an excellent mechanic or police officer or doctor or something.
Should we let this be an excuse to not put out whole effort into becoming the best that we personally can be at every activity we try, be it typing or something else? No, of course not! We are always going to achieve a heck of a lot higher by dedicating ourselves to it and pushing ourselves to see how good we can get. We also shouldn't judge those who can't do something though and assume that it's just because they haven't tried hard enough. We don't know if they have a really valid reason that we (and maybe even they) don't know, that is making it harder for them than it is for us to do that thing and maybe the little that they have achieved in it took even more effort for them than our proficiency did for us...or maybe they got discouraged because it was so much harder or even painful for them, or, when no amount of effort worked, they chose to stop wasting their time on things that were only making them feel bad and focus on things that were more advantageous to them instead, and that's ok too. If we all persued the same things the world would be screwed, after all, wouldn't it, so it's probably a good thing we're not actually all good at the same things
You have a Defy and you haven't done a review on it!?
Thanks for mentioning it! I wasn't aware of that keyboard, and got super interested once I saw a flash of it. It's the first keyboard I've seen that I think I'd prefer to my Ergodox.
I'd also love to try the Svalboard, but the price is too steep for something I may not end up liking.
@@paholgI’ll pop in to point out that Morgan has fairly generous ‘rental’ terms for the Svalboard too.
The new upload schedule goes crazy
$850?!?! I see all the good points and stuff but at that price point and that much of a learning curve idk
11:32 idk about this trackball but my Logitech trackball mouse is perfectly fine for gaming, in fact I prefer it I don't have to be behind a table or have a mouse pad for it. I think the reason they are not as popular is that you need to clean the thing sometimes unlike a mouse and users just don't do it and get frustrated when it doesn't work. I converted my wife and my dad to using these and so far no complaints, no learning curve really.
Keep going, we need a part 2.
A very interesting concept. As is GravaStar Mercury Mechanical Keyboards. Hippo get hold of one and try it, so I dont have too... It looks amazing. I value your opinion on all things keyboards!
I watch Linus tech tips, but like he's right. He said it was boring. That's rude and honestly, I found the keyboard cool, but the fact he got the co. Founder of the keyboard, he's holding in the video. This is a way better video to watch in my opinion, because we get to hear the honesty. I can get to hear it from the person that created it😊
It looks HUGE. Has it been tried with smaller hands, like with a 3" wide palm? And under 7" from wrist to fingertip?
The first thing I thought of when I saw this was the old chording keyboards - most people would probably be familiar with the stenographs variants though. Very cool piece of tech but that price though
Loved the video - but i would adjust one of your last statements that ergonomic keyboards "aren't supposed to be for everyone". Better ergonomics should *always* be a goal and preventing injuries is a good thing! We just need to find a balance.
My intention is that they aren't one size fits all, despite their attempts to be. Everyone should find their most efficient ergonomic solution - but one keyboard will never be the cure all for everyone's individual setups and it shouldn't be.
as mmorpg wannabe, i would want one to try it.
i kind of have a memory of a version, where you would have an extra switch as the palmrest, which would allow you to move in directions you were tilting or pushing.
kind of like a joystick as a palmrest.
that would make playing games pretty intuitive.
Basically, it's a rip-off of the datahand 2 from 90s, right? But 3d printed and less smooth-looking
OK I didn't know you were friends with Pikarar, this is awesome!
Please tell her we will always love Moustache Pikachu! She is a pillar of internet history and her Moustachu is under my Keychron 🥰
Personally I have much more issues with mouse hand ergonomics than anything wrong with a standard keyboard.
This ends up being more effective on just the left hand for gaming. because the layout doesn't matter, having access to more keys without stretching does
I think people with keyboard centric workflow will benefit greatly from this. Would love to try if it weren't so expensive. Maybe I'll diy some day.
I think someone made something similiar where there is like keys ontop of ur fingers as well (made for gaming if I remember correctly)
Azeron Cyborg, but it has an analogue joystick on the thumb and the keys are less optimized
I'm always interested in trying keyboards like this but it's such a gamble at the price tag. I'm not a touch typist by any means -- I usually use maybe 4-5 fingers total and regularly test at 115+ WPM so have never felt the need to learn touch typing -- but that meant my experiment with the Moonlander was a _struggle._ I'd like to keep practicing with the Moonlander but in the meantime it's such a hindrance to my work that I can't afford the drop in efficiency. It looks like it would be the same case for the Svalboard, with the added restriction that you can't even move your hand and use the "wrong finger" to hit a key if you get lost. Seems like you'd have to have touch typing down to a science or otherwise suffer quite significantly.
it does'nt have to be for everyone but it has to be for every keyboard channel.
This reminds me of the Data Professional II keyboard. But that one had the key labeled.
This makes sense considering the motions of your fingers.
I would get this if it wasn't $850
Foreshadowing for a Dygma Defy review?
As someone with a plethora of RSIs that are very specific, for me the ideal position is flat hands and moving my hands the least possible, this could be a great thing. But at the same time this would make it absolutely impossible to travel for work as I sometimes need to switch to my laptop and I ain't popping out the Pelicase for a 1 grand keyboard 🤔
14:32 BY ACCIDENT
Are you going to stick to it on the long term? I’ve switched to a split keyboard and find it better (after 6 months) than the standard one.
Would you consider doing a video on Tex keyboards? I feel like they’re mostly ignored, but there's not many mechanical keyboards with trackpoint options.
this is an amazing feat of engineering
These things are best with donuts. Specifically, a bearclaw.
Someone just got a haircut and keeps playing with their hair!
A new stage on the ergo pipeline
proper typing -> different keyboard sizes -> different keyboard layout -> split keyboard -> ergo keyboards -> specialty keyboards -> ???
At this point we just need a brain to computer interface and we'd achieve true ergonomics
Tendonitis nightmare, such a cool design tho
the whole point of this keyboard is to cure and prevent tendonitis
I’d love to try that. If I could mount those on arm wrests, that would save my back.
Can't wait to get one of these.
big question for me is, are the keys programmable? i use colemak dh layout which seems really nice with this
I am pretty sure if you get to 20-25 WPM your next jump is gonna skyrocket. It’s a QWERTY layout afterall
this remind of the Azeron keyboard really cool
This keyboard would be a huge learning curve for me. I can barely type well on a normal keyboard! 🤪
weirdly, ive been playing Deadlock and I cant for the life of me find a bind setup i like cause its a MOBA and Shooter so you have to deal with all the binds and ive been struggling till i remembered about these and have been tempted to make my own...
Feels like this product can use a guitar hero style game to help people remember the location of each key and get use to it
Everyone has their own opinion. But I understand but my question is, wouldn't this be good for like a job like a hotel person that works at the desk because they're typing or they're doing a lot of things keeping track of dates and people coming and going out of the hotel, like the high-end ones, not the cheap ones, the expensive rich ones. Just an example I could think of if anyone could think of any other jobs or examples with this keyboard, let me know because it's cool. I understand it's not meant for gaming, but it's still cool. Cause I bet you give this to the right person that types, fast and understands this stuff. They're gonna make their workflow so much faster. I could just imagine someone in The next office over and they're gettin their stuff done with this faster than an average keyboard
I really wanna see Hipyos opinion on the wooting 80HE when it comes out
Hipyo Tech I have an idea. Make a balloon mod. u put normal ballons on ur keyboard to make it sound nice. It could work.
How would this be to type on without QWERTY muscle memory? I never learned how to type properly (ended up learning to type one handed while looking at the keys) but this seems fascinating, especially when thinking about things like keyboard shortcuts in cad/etc programs that are annoying to do with a normal keyboard and mouse
It is like AZERON KEYPAD
Yeah I wish 50-60 WPM was actually enough to get a job that demands more than 5 minutes of typing at a time
I would say data entry or office work in the Uk is more like 40wpm+...... been like that for at least last 30 years
Omg, I would love to try this❤
I've been seeing this thing floating around the ergo mech sub occasionally and I've been entirely curious about it. Now I know that I probably won't like it that much! xD It's cool as hell though and I would love to give it a go at some point but I don't think I could ever keep it as a daily driver. Took me way too long to learn how to type on a normal qwerty split.
Hey hipyo. I just bought my first mechanical keyboard. Its Aula f3287. Can i customise it any futher in terms of switches and keycaps?
please try the newmen gm326 it is insane for 20 bucks and spoiler alert it has a knob and hotswap again for 20 bucks
also it comes with rgb
2 colors(black and white)
and red switches
Hi Hipyo, I wanted to ask you if a rog falchion with red switches at €107 or a hyperx origins 60 at €65 is better? I'm looking for a slightly quieter sound
With that price-tag, this should be able to type itself !!
I learned to use this keyboard in 2-3 weeks. My friends and I specifically measured it - I started typing 4 times faster compared to a regular keyboard. It's like my fingers became synchronized with the brain center where thoughts are formed. This comment took me approximately 15 seconds.😅
Hi Hipyo! I found MAO keycaps and I wasn’t sure if they would fit on my Royal Klduge Rk61