Matias Offers Sneak Peek At Ergo Pro Mechanical Keyboard For Mac
We were fortunate to get an early release sample of a new ergonomic keyboard, X-bows, which. The X-Bows is a USB ergonomic keyboard with mechanical keys. It’s compact but offers a full keyboard experience and works across Macs, PCs, Chromebooks, and Linux machines. What is unique about this keyboard is what the company calls a “cross bow radial design” where the keys are arranged in a pattern to reduce the amount of lateral movement your wrist and fingers need to travel to type.
If you use this keyboard properly, you can do the vast majority of your typing without needing to move your wrist around laterally. Below is our video review followed by our written review. Video Review Overall Build – Made Quite Well This keyboard appears well built. I dropped it a couple of times and pried on the keys a bit, of course not with hulk-like strength but with enough force to expose el cheapo products.
This one passed. Being a mechanical keyboard, every single key had the same tactile response and my unit came with Gateron Blue switches. You can pop off and pop the keys back on but you can’t switch the underlying mechanical key structure. In other words, you can remove just the tops of the keys for cleaning and pop these caps back with no problem, but you can’t change to a different type of mechanical key. I believe the Kickstarter launches with just the Gateron switch in red, black, blue, or brown. The company said they may offer other options like Cherry MX switches. I initially thought my sample came with Cherry MX.
I can’t really tell the difference! They are both excellent switches. The first thing I noticed with this keyboard was the standard Micro USB USB-C port (sorry I stand correctedit’s not Micro but USB-CI looked over that quickly and assumed Micro). Over the years I have damaged a couple of USB cords for my keyboards. Having one that uses any Micro USB USB-C cable makes this issue go away.
If this cord breaks, get a new one and you are back up and running. Notice also the gap between the base of the keyboard and the keys. No doubt stuff will get into this gap but this design should make for easy cleaning.
A can of compressed air should clear out this keyboard in seconds. Not sure what colors are available but I like black.
Hides the crap that will cover your keyboard as time goes on. A Bluetooth keyboard would be a nice upgrade though I have been using wired keyboards for the past decade so the cord didn’t bother my setup. The back of the keyboard has two tabs that allow you raise up the angle of the keyboard so it slants from front to back. Flipping these tabs up adds about half an inch of height to the back.
These tabs don’t have setpoints. You either keep the keyboard flat or move both up to the max height for that small adjustment. I wish it came with wrist pads that fit this compact design and was just told wrist pads will be an option! There are also rubber pads on the bottom to keep your keyboard from slipping. I have a dog and so far after a couple of weeks I don’t see any dog hair so it’s not particularly magnetic towards dog hair 🙂 Typing Ergonomics – Very Good Quick backstory: this keyboard was invented by a medical doctor who specializes in medical imaging. In his practice, he was seeing a similar injury over and over again and created this design to offset the symptoms of RSI- repetitive strain injury for his patients.
Now on to the ergonomics I think it’s a general rule that the better the ergonomics, the longer it will take to get back to your original typing speed. Because of this, some really great ergonomic designs may make the learning curve too steep for many.
See our review on the for an example. This keyboard is not the easiest to adjust from a standard keyboard and my guess is you will need 2 to 3 days to get back to a decent typing speed. And that’s a good thing as the ergonomics are excellent. The keys are laid out to force your hand into a more natural position and is laid out so your fingers don’t have to move laterally as you type.
You won’t be able to type on this keyboard using harmful wrist and hand positions. The company designed a unique layout for this keyboard. I found a couple of adjustment areas I should point out:. There is only one Shift key and your right thumb presses it near the center of the keyboard.
Try and type a capital A. You need to move your hand most likely your left pinky presses the ‘Shift Key’ and your left ring now presses the ‘A’ key. This design allows your fingers to remain in place and your thumbs now control the ‘Shift, Space, Enter, Control, and Backspace’ keys. Over time this becomes second nature and I guess you should be able to type a bit faster. I haven’t used it long enough to see that speed gain.
Switching to other keyboards may become tricky. I guess over time like playing multiple musical instruments you should be able to adjust to this keyboard and others on demand with little issue. I haven’t gotten to that point yet.
I’ve used the X-Bows at home for a couple of weeks and a Kinesis at work. Switching between the two was tricky at first and has gotten better so far, but not yet totally natural. The company notes that the keyboard is completely remappable. I didn’t test this out as I don’t see that as a super common feature to use. They do note that you can set keys for shortcuts that you use frequently and am assuming if you already do this you can also do this on this keyboard to create the shortcuts you need. This image highlights their unique cross-bow radial design. The regular keyboard above shows the lateral movement we need to make as we type.
This design allows the fingers to go up and down while maintaining a natural wrist position. They note that the area boxed to the right in purple is for people not yet used to the design and that ultimately you’ll stick with the main keyboard and use the green boxed area and keyboard shortcuts which can be customized to keep your fingers and wrist in one place. I didn’t get there just yet. For the first week I was using the backspace key on the right in that purple box area and didn’t even notice that there is a second backspace key right in the middle that I can access with my index finger without moving my wrist at all. That was a nice find and good bold key placement! One thing I wish I had were wrist rests made for this keyboard. I asked and wow they already had them planned!
They sent me this render below and will be adding this as an add on option for $25. That’s a good deal and I like the dark color.
I’ve had gray wrist rests that look nasty after just 3 months of use. Compatibility – Works Across All Major Platforms I tested the keyboard on a Dell Ubuntu laptop, Microsoft Surface Pro, Lenovo Chromebook, and Macbook Pro. All of these laptops worked fine out of the box no configuration though I do have tips for Mac users who may need to go through one more step. When I first plugged in the X-Bows into my Macbook Pro, I was asked to choose a keyboard type. For me this was an obvious choice (ANSI for the U.S.).
This is not a Japanese keyboard and I am not sure about European language support so my guess is you will go with the ANSI option also. I did go into the keyboard preference manager for my Mac and that got confusing. When I clicked on identify keyboard it asked me to “Press the key to right of the left side Shift Key” which doesn’t exist on this keyboard. I ignored that screen.
You won’t need to do this. Also for Mac users, the ‘Windows Key’ is what you use for the Mac command function. I got the “PC” optimized version for this test though if you order one you can order the “Mac” optimized layout. With this layout the “Alt” key on the original X-Bows will become Apple’s command function and the keycap will have the appropriate design. The windows button will become alt/option. The F-row will also change to look like that of Apple’s products. Am moving more towards Chromebook full time even for software development so I think I got the right layout for my needsseem to be using my Macs less and less nowadays.
The Built-In Light Show (Backlighting Galore) I think backlighting is a critical option, if you write in dark places. When using my other keyboards like the I have to use a spot lamp to see my keys.
The X-bows come with backlighting on steroids. Here is what the standard backlighting looks like at night. It’s more light show than backlight. See our video review above for an example. The lights pulse and change and wave across the keyboard. If you are easily distracted I guess this could be a problem.
My boys thought this was the coolest keyboard in the world purely because of this light show. You can change the lighting effects directly on the keyboard. The manual will have the instructions such as “Hold Shift and Fn +Right Space bar to change logo lighting color. You can change the horizontal effects, color changes such as turning on a “color breathing effect,” adjust brightness, speed, etc. Again check out our video above to view these options. When I first started playing with these options I was pleasantly surprised! You can tweak the keyboard to create a subtle, low-light backlight or go nuts with pulsating bright rainbow colors that wave back and forth on your keyboard anchored by a logo lit up in your selected color.
Having a big Star Trek-like logo lit up in the middle of this keyboard may make it a cult favorite for all you Trekkies. I think they should put ads into upcoming Trek conventions booklets! That arrow is huge and does make a statement. Each of the keys has transparent parts for the letter or symbol allowing the LED backlighting to illuminate each letter and symbol. This works well in the dark.
They did use a somewhat artsy font for the keys on my test unit. Notice the O and P keys here to the right. These are not hard to read in but show that someone at this company really wanted to add subtle non-standard elements into this keyboard to make it stand out. I’ll guess they probably had a few meetings to decide on the font to use and glad they chose something different. Quite Compact with Full Sized Keys I am most impressed by the size of this keyboard.
It’s no bigger than your standard compact keyboard. Many of us, myself included, have limited areas for our keyboards. At home I use a pull-out keyboard drawer. Many split ergonomic keyboards simply don’t fit in that space and most don’t leave room for a standard mouse or trackpad.
This keyboard fits well in tight spaces while still providing excellent ergonomic design. This one fits in my other home desk keyboard drawer where I can fit the keyboard and any mouse or trackpad that I want.
Impressively compact! If you have limited space and have struggled to find a good ergonomic keyboard to fit in your limited area, this may be a great option. Bottom Line Overall, I can tell the company that makes this keyboard spent a ton of time in meetings working out details. They created a unique design with enough attention to detail to show they wanted to balance ergonomics with cool design, like the font choice on the keys and the standard USB-C connector port.
If you are ready to commit to learn how to re-type in a healthier position and don’t mind typing really slow for a day and then slowly building back up to and maybe even faster than your original typing speed, this is a good keyboard to consider. I am a bit torn. I like the compactness of this keyboard but if I start to use as my daily driver I will need to get a couple so I can have one at work and one in my home office. This is definitely one of the boldest compact designs I have ever seen. This one is priced between $99 and $129 which is a really good price for an ergonomic keyboard with mechanical keys.
For a comparison, you can check out our review of which has mechanical keys and costs about twice as much. You do get the split design and wrist rest for that price. You can get non-ergonomic mechanical keyboards with backlighting for $75 or so on Amazon but you won’t get good ergonomics. Oh for those of you worried about crowdfunding projects, this one is pretty real. The build is already solid and I have been using this for a couple of weeks. I have been burned on Kickstarter projects in the past and don’t think this one is going to fail to deliver. I recommend this keyboard for its ergonomics, compactness, and value pricing.
Without a doubt, you are going to have a keyboard that is bound to attract attention wherever you use it. If that is not your thing, steer clear. However, if you consider yourself an ergonomic ambassador you are going to strike up a ton of conversations when people see this keyboard.
Having used and love split keyboards for quite some time, I personally am leaning towards keeping split keyboards for my daily driver. Who knowsgoing to give this keyboard another couple of weeks. My boys certainly want me to continue using the coolest keyboard in the world. Macworld on twitter: photobulk 2 review: swiss army knife for mac.
Matias Offers Sneak Peek At Ergo Pro Mechanical Keyboard For Mac Free
I have decided that in order to have optimal efficiency and effectiveness at running a creative business or being in an employee role that requires extended time sitting at a desk in front of a computer, one needs four high-quality essential things: 1. A stable, comfortable, ergonomic office chair that ideally didn’t come from either the sale section of Ikea or from in front of a neighbor’s house 2. A quality, easy-to-use keyboard that enables you to type fast 3.
A large, high-quality, high-resolution, properly-calibrated monitor 4. Headphones with good sound and ideally noise-blocking capabilities, especially if one is sensitive to noise interrupting their focus ( Until recently, I had none of those things. I am frugal to a fault, and unfortunately it has taken me this long (12 years in business) to fully understand why spending a bit more money on things I use all the time every day is so critical to my work success. Here’s my current, and sad, situation in my home office:.
Recently I replaced my beloved but discontinued white leather office chair with a similar but severely uncomfortable (by the way- not all chairs of that design are created equal). I chose color over function and comfort. I’m using the standard Apple keyboard, which I loathe. (It cuts my WPM in half, easily). Although I love my 2010 30″ Apple Cinema Display (2560 x 1600), it now has weird dark ‘bleeding’ on the upper left part of the screen, and red discoloration at the bottom part. It doesn’t affect my ability to edit images yet, but it will soon I’m sure.
I need to cut that off at the pass, because being able to see images properly on a screen is kind of important. I was using that looked cool but had terrible sound. And somehow they always died when I needed them the most. Here are my solutions: CHAIR: I am returning my beautiful-looking but ass-killing tan office chair to Amazon and am scouring Craigslist for used, which are a dime a dozen here in San Francisco.
I’m hoping the chair I get will last a very very long time, unlike the failed VC-funded startup I will most likely buy it from. KEYBOARD: Tomorrow I will be receiving the. It was $144 not including tax. But I reminded myself that the only other object I use more is my cell phone. Cannot wait to fire off a bunch of emails with that bad boy!! MONITOR: I’ll get to that below. I need your help.
HEADPHONES: Last week I gulped hard and bought myself a pair of the. Lawd have mercy I have seen (heard) the light!! Listening to music while I work and being able to truly tune everything out is incredibly helpful to me being efficient. I’m what’s called a, and unfortunately that means that I’m acutely aware of every little sound in my environment (was that a helicopter I just heard over the East Bay?), so these headphones have truly improved my quality of life.
Were they worth the investment? Absolutely YES!! So once I have the keyboard in front of me and can actually type, and am listening to my music through my Bose headphones and have the Herman Miller chair and can sit without my ass falling asleep, that leaves one important thing- the monitor.
This is where I need your help and advice. I know 4k monitors are all the rage these days. Should I get one of those? Are there specific brands I should be looking at?
Should I wait another six months for the technology to improve and the prices to (inevitably) come down? Does Apple have yet another over-priced yet desirable monitor product up their sleeves for this year? Will it be worth the hype?
What if I go with something that’s close to 4k but not quite? This has awesome reviews and is 3440×1440, has a thunderbolt port and is capable of a 4-screen split.
Plus the product picture is very pretty, which is of course important when buying anything new. (Being facetious here). Advice about monitors would be appreciated!
Do you agree with this list of the top four workspace essentials? What would you add to this list? Facebook comments: Posted in, Post navigation. Hi Jamie, I was constantly frustrated with how my calibrated iMac didn’t match what was coming from Bay Photo. They explicitly told me that iMac just don’t calibrate as well. I decided to purchase another monitor.
I selected the NEC PA272W-BK-SV. It’s one of the high end monitors. Eizo was another recommended brand. Mostly I picked the NEC because another local photographer I know has it.
The model I chose came with what I believe is an NEC branded Xrite i1 Display Pro. The software has lots of choices to fine tune the white point and intensity which my colormunki for the iMac display did not have. However, even though I’ve had it for months, I’m still not convinced I’ve got the calibration right.
Bay has told me that metal prints come out darker than paper prints and my Epson 3880 prints more vibrant than Bay. If I can dial it for each situation, what the calibration software allows me to have a save preset that I can flip between if I was printing myself or what type of product Bay was printing. As Terri mentioned, I do like having two monitors so I can use both screens.
Lightroom on one and Photoshop on the NEC.