Thank you so much for the most thorough review of our product we've seen to date 🥰 We've heard you wishes! Some of them are on the pipeline already, like improving the color editor or the overlay app, and the rest I have just added 😅 Oh, and the tenting leg thing can be fixed too, I'll send you an email on how to fix it 😊
Thank you thank you thank you so much for entrusting me with such an expensive piece of gear. Using and reviewing this keyboard was and honor and privilege. Can't wait to see what your team does next :)
been waiting for this review for ages! After daily driving the moonlander for almost a year and loving that keyboard, I found myself wishing for something more and this is just a keyboard that I haven't seen a LOT of content for. super glad for what I assume is thoroughness based on length. Cheers!
I use this keyboard daily for software dev, and have to say it played a large part in getting my back issues under control. After a year it still feels like a dream to use. Thanks for inspiring my new sunset backglow theme for the primary layer! Just posted a short typing demo.
Thanks for the video. I'm on the verge of purchasing a Defy and you covered a lot of topics that I was looking for that others didn't like gaming use cases.
Nice review, thanks for the obvious effort you put into this. My perspective on a few things as someone using the Defy for near a year. Colors- come up with a plan for a color palette that helps remind you of what keys do. Create the palette, then assign to keys. That way you avoid the many of the pains you mentioned and if you decide to edit a color later, it changes all keys that have the purpose you assigned that color too. Numbers- I originally set the number row as super keys, tap for number, hold for symbol, and tap hold for function. I have left that so far, but did find myself also wanting them closer. I have a one-shot layer with numbers and hold for symbols on the home row, calc keys on the right outside edge. I put some some brackets above and below and period/decimal on the index finger below (US layout M key). So far, I'm finding it easier than my layer with the numpad layout and I occasionally still reach for the traditional number row. I ordered wired (save money as I work on one workstation), tented (ergo), without underglow. Without underglow because I work in the dark and don't want color/light pollution affecting my graphics and photo editing. For me the pain phase lasted about 2 weeks and I was typing normal in about a month. I used bazecor and printed 1:1 layouts to get my layouts close to final before the keyboard arrived. Staggered encourages bad habits. Columnar rewards good touch typing technique, punishes bad. That and using thumbs for more than space are the main hurdles. There is a firmware in testing that will make home row mods better that I'm looking forward to.
You did a Great job!!! I actually purchased it and hour before I found you video. Im definitely much more happier with my purchase now. Thanks again and Great Video.
I've been using the Raise 1 with the tenting kit that was later released. This is such a game changer on using a keyboard is so nice that I'd like to have this for all the things now. Gaming, it's super comfortable. Even typing it's nice to use since I'm in a relaxed position. If I could, I would bring this keeb everywhere I could go with.
I realllllyyyyyyy want to get a Raise 2 and try that out vs the columnar layout... I think I might actually prefer it as the 8 key clusters might be too much for me. But I absolutely love everything else!
@@Naaackers I was thinking the reverse since my sister has thr Defy. But at the moment for the games I play, its fine since 4 thumb clusters per side should be enough with enough layers. The only thing I'm missing honestly is the wireless.
I wouldn't have gotten the Dygma Defy if I hadn't also been interested in moving away from using the QWERTY layout. The Defy allowed me to map a modified version of the Dvorak layout onto an columnar keyboard, which made all the difference when put together. The only reason I'm not quite as fast a typist on the my new Dygma Defy setup is because I've been using it for far less time than I used a traditional keyboard. But the Dvorak keyboard layout is much more intuitive and easier to use, so I am confident that if I had grown up learning to type on this setup, I would be much faster than if I had grown up with a traditional keyboard. 😊
@Naaackers I know some people say that Colemak is better, but honestly Dvorak is a lot of fun. Having all the vowels on the left hand and common consonant combinations on the right hand makes a lot of sense, since English words tend to alternate between vowels and consonants. It started as an experiment in college--I had to write a term paper, and I decided to use the task as an opportunity to see if I could learn a new keyboard layout. I printed out a picture of the standard Dvorak layout, laid it over my hands, and started typing. It was agonizingly slow at first, and I made so many mistakes. But by the end of my term paper, I was touch-typing with Dvorak! (albeit slowly) Most computers I use at work, however, only permit Qwerty, so I actually have two keyboard layouts memorized.
Oh, and to respond real quick to the keycaps issue and whether you are kind of stuck having them where they are "supposed to be" or stuck with Dygma's keycaps...You aren't. Just get some uniform profile (e.g., XDA or XVX Low-Profile) caps, and you're golden! I use a set of white doubleshot PBT low profiles that are decently close to a color match of Dygma's ABS thumb cluster caps in white. That being said, 3DKeyCaps also makes a set of thumb cluster caps for the Defy that will material and color match other sets they have, so you could just do all of them through them (and I might)... It is kind of pricey, though... 🤷♂️
Thank you for these suggestions - I"ll check them out. And yes you're correct, you're not completely locked in, but you are heavily restricted to what kind of caps you can use.
I can't name or recommend one specifically, because I don't use them, but there's a number of key press overlay applications around, usually primarily intended for things like tutorials and technical presentations, that should work for your purpose as well.
I've been using a Keychron Q10 since release and it's been an amazing benefit! Solves 80% of all my hand/wrist pain and nominal typing adjustment. ... Just wish it was split.
My greatest disappointment after swapping to a Moonlander (which in practice seems very similar to the Dygma Defy) is how far away the numbers feel when in a columnar layout. I don't know why but on the standard stagger it feels easier to get from WASD to 123. My next split ergo is definitely going to be scooped
I FEEL THE SAME ABOUT THE NUMBERS. THEY ARE SO FAR. hahaha. It always felt SO much farther away than staggered and that bugged me a bit. Still present on the Defy but not as bad for some reason.
Following up here, The Raise is what I was eyeballing until I saw the price. Can't justify that at the moment, my in between was the Royal Kludge RKS70 on Amazon. I swapped out the switches for the Epomaker Flamingo's. Other than the software stuff I wish I had more control over with my keyboards (Galaxy80). the RKS70 has been pretty satisfying to hold me over until I want to upgrade and it gets Wife approved down the line.
@@Naaackers Figured that was the case, came from TikTok and have been waiting for this one. Dygma Defy or Raise are on my holy grail of pickups for keyboards at some point. After watching your video decided to finally take the plunge and at least try a split keyboard for work. So far I've been liking it but I haven't been in the office much to use it since I've been WFH more. Might bring it back home to daily some more.
You are correct, but if I want to make a bunch of changes, I'd rather have the ability to just generate a 1 time backup that I can revert back to, instead of relying on hoping the auto backup is working and their naming schemes.
I love my k14, but it’s a special bond because I broke that thing down to the PCB, custom painted it, and modded the whole thing. It was such a successful project and I think the board is beautiful. Behind that, the Melgeek mojo68 in transparent purple.
@Naaackers i get it. i also have a soft spot for my first custom keeb that i spent my time modding, even though i have more expensive and fancy ones now.
Thank you so much for the most thorough review of our product we've seen to date 🥰
We've heard you wishes! Some of them are on the pipeline already, like improving the color editor or the overlay app, and the rest I have just added 😅
Oh, and the tenting leg thing can be fixed too, I'll send you an email on how to fix it 😊
Thank you thank you thank you so much for entrusting me with such an expensive piece of gear. Using and reviewing this keyboard was and honor and privilege. Can't wait to see what your team does next :)
Hey @DygmaLab - how do you fix the tenting?
Came for the keyboard, stayed for the in-depth content, the great jokes, and the authenticity. Excited to learn more and watch more of your videos!!
Thank you so much ❤️
Came for the keyboard. Stayed for the handsome man. Been thinking of getting something like this anyway. Love the review bud!!
Always good to see you dude
4:32 Finally a true tech artist I can aspire to be
bhahahah YOU CAN BE ME ANY DAY, YOU HAVE IT IN YOU.
been waiting for this review for ages! After daily driving the moonlander for almost a year and loving that keyboard, I found myself wishing for something more and this is just a keyboard that I haven't seen a LOT of content for. super glad for what I assume is thoroughness based on length.
Cheers!
Thank you for you patience
I use this keyboard daily for software dev, and have to say it played a large part in getting my back issues under control. After a year it still feels like a dream to use.
Thanks for inspiring my new sunset backglow theme for the primary layer! Just posted a short typing demo.
Thanks for the video. I'm on the verge of purchasing a Defy and you covered a lot of topics that I was looking for that others didn't like gaming use cases.
SWEET! Super happy this could be of help. Customizing a whole layer just for gaming is a must have for me. Def one of my favorite features.
Nice review, thanks for the obvious effort you put into this. My perspective on a few things as someone using the Defy for near a year. Colors- come up with a plan for a color palette that helps remind you of what keys do. Create the palette, then assign to keys. That way you avoid the many of the pains you mentioned and if you decide to edit a color later, it changes all keys that have the purpose you assigned that color too. Numbers- I originally set the number row as super keys, tap for number, hold for symbol, and tap hold for function. I have left that so far, but did find myself also wanting them closer. I have a one-shot layer with numbers and hold for symbols on the home row, calc keys on the right outside edge. I put some some brackets above and below and period/decimal on the index finger below (US layout M key). So far, I'm finding it easier than my layer with the numpad layout and I occasionally still reach for the traditional number row. I ordered wired (save money as I work on one workstation), tented (ergo), without underglow. Without underglow because I work in the dark and don't want color/light pollution affecting my graphics and photo editing. For me the pain phase lasted about 2 weeks and I was typing normal in about a month. I used bazecor and printed 1:1 layouts to get my layouts close to final before the keyboard arrived. Staggered encourages bad habits. Columnar rewards good touch typing technique, punishes bad. That and using thumbs for more than space are the main hurdles. There is a firmware in testing that will make home row mods better that I'm looking forward to.
Thank you for all these tips!
You did a Great job!!! I actually purchased it and hour before I found you video. Im definitely much more happier with my purchase now. Thanks again and Great Video.
I love to hear this, thank you so much.
I've been using the Raise 1 with the tenting kit that was later released. This is such a game changer on using a keyboard is so nice that I'd like to have this for all the things now.
Gaming, it's super comfortable. Even typing it's nice to use since I'm in a relaxed position.
If I could, I would bring this keeb everywhere I could go with.
I realllllyyyyyyy want to get a Raise 2 and try that out vs the columnar layout... I think I might actually prefer it as the 8 key clusters might be too much for me. But I absolutely love everything else!
@@Naaackers I was thinking the reverse since my sister has thr Defy. But at the moment for the games I play, its fine since 4 thumb clusters per side should be enough with enough layers.
The only thing I'm missing honestly is the wireless.
I wouldn't have gotten the Dygma Defy if I hadn't also been interested in moving away from using the QWERTY layout. The Defy allowed me to map a modified version of the Dvorak layout onto an columnar keyboard, which made all the difference when put together. The only reason I'm not quite as fast a typist on the my new Dygma Defy setup is because I've been using it for far less time than I used a traditional keyboard. But the Dvorak keyboard layout is much more intuitive and easier to use, so I am confident that if I had grown up learning to type on this setup, I would be much faster than if I had grown up with a traditional keyboard. 😊
I respect anyone who tries dvorak. I could never XD
@Naaackers I know some people say that Colemak is better, but honestly Dvorak is a lot of fun. Having all the vowels on the left hand and common consonant combinations on the right hand makes a lot of sense, since English words tend to alternate between vowels and consonants. It started as an experiment in college--I had to write a term paper, and I decided to use the task as an opportunity to see if I could learn a new keyboard layout. I printed out a picture of the standard Dvorak layout, laid it over my hands, and started typing. It was agonizingly slow at first, and I made so many mistakes. But by the end of my term paper, I was touch-typing with Dvorak! (albeit slowly) Most computers I use at work, however, only permit Qwerty, so I actually have two keyboard layouts memorized.
Oh, and to respond real quick to the keycaps issue and whether you are kind of stuck having them where they are "supposed to be" or stuck with Dygma's keycaps...You aren't. Just get some uniform profile (e.g., XDA or XVX Low-Profile) caps, and you're golden! I use a set of white doubleshot PBT low profiles that are decently close to a color match of Dygma's ABS thumb cluster caps in white. That being said, 3DKeyCaps also makes a set of thumb cluster caps for the Defy that will material and color match other sets they have, so you could just do all of them through them (and I might)... It is kind of pricey, though... 🤷♂️
Thank you for these suggestions - I"ll check them out. And yes you're correct, you're not completely locked in, but you are heavily restricted to what kind of caps you can use.
I love mine, just in the pain/re-learning stage at the moment!
it does burn...hahaha
Not the double 69 😂
hehehehehhehe
4:35 => sub + like :D totally worth it
Thank you
I can't name or recommend one specifically, because I don't use them, but there's a number of key press overlay applications around, usually primarily intended for things like tutorials and technical presentations, that should work for your purpose as well.
This is good to know! Thank you.
I've been using a Keychron Q10 since release and it's been an amazing benefit! Solves 80% of all my hand/wrist pain and nominal typing adjustment. ... Just wish it was split.
I love those Q series of boards from them. So awesome.
My greatest disappointment after swapping to a Moonlander (which in practice seems very similar to the Dygma Defy) is how far away the numbers feel when in a columnar layout. I don't know why but on the standard stagger it feels easier to get from WASD to 123.
My next split ergo is definitely going to be scooped
I FEEL THE SAME ABOUT THE NUMBERS. THEY ARE SO FAR. hahaha. It always felt SO much farther away than staggered and that bugged me a bit. Still present on the Defy but not as bad for some reason.
Following up here, The Raise is what I was eyeballing until I saw the price. Can't justify that at the moment, my in between was the Royal Kludge RKS70 on Amazon. I swapped out the switches for the Epomaker Flamingo's. Other than the software stuff I wish I had more control over with my keyboards (Galaxy80). the RKS70 has been pretty satisfying to hold me over until I want to upgrade and it gets Wife approved down the line.
Yeahhhh the price is hard to swallow. Definitely an investment.
@Naaackers, Title needs fixed :) Devy vs Defy!
You're the GOAT. Thank you. I saw this notification just as I was standing up to go to bed. DON'T TITLE THINGS WHEN YOU'RE SLEEP DEPRIVED, EVERYONE XD
@@Naaackers Figured that was the case, came from TikTok and have been waiting for this one. Dygma Defy or Raise are on my holy grail of pickups for keyboards at some point.
After watching your video decided to finally take the plunge and at least try a split keyboard for work. So far I've been liking it but I haven't been in the office much to use it since I've been WFH more. Might bring it back home to daily some more.
Bazcor does backups automatically. I know if previous version you can manually take a backup. There are ways to import/export layer settings.
You are correct, but if I want to make a bunch of changes, I'd rather have the ability to just generate a 1 time backup that I can revert back to, instead of relying on hoping the auto backup is working and their naming schemes.
What switches do you use on your defy ?
I just pulled my lubed TTC bluish whites (which I still love) and put in some Kailh Jellyfish (clear ones) to test!
what is your current main kb/fav from the ones you didnt get for free?
I love my k14, but it’s a special bond because I broke that thing down to the PCB, custom painted it, and modded the whole thing. It was such a successful project and I think the board is beautiful. Behind that, the Melgeek mojo68 in transparent purple.
@Naaackers i get it. i also have a soft spot for my first custom keeb that i spent my time modding, even though i have more expensive and fancy ones now.
I wonder how easy it would be to swap out the regular switches for the letters to low profile switches (and keycaps).
I'm pretty sure that low profile and cherry have different pinouts so I don't think you can do a direct swap. Not 100% sure on that on though.
Came from TikTok. Thank you for this in depth video
Thank you for the platform jump
I could buy a Mac mini M4 for less!🤯
That's actually kinda crazy lol