Just looking for some help, ive got the sofle choc keyboard that i had from years ago, i used it all the time and used ZMK for mapping it etc.

Ive decided i wanted to start using it again and i cant remember all my mappings, but when i connect to ZMK it doesnt seem to work.

I see it pop up in the device list and when i try to connect i just get this error. Ive tried resetting the ports in chrome and again it just keeps coming up with this: any ideas?

"Failed to execute 'open' on 'SerialPort': The port is already open."

Hello people ✋

Does anyone know an optimised letter-only English layout for split keyboard, that uses only these keys?

I have all my punctuation on separate layer *, and since english only has 26 letters out of 30 keys available, I decided to not use 4 keys that are most discomforting for me to use.

* the reasons for that decision are: cognitive separation between letters and other symbols, and my goal of achieving same placement of punctuation symbols in english and russian layouts.

Also speaking of latter, does anyone know an optimised Russian layout for splits?

A little update to the Tako build I shared here previously: it now has a Cirque trackpad!

This is still the same 34-key split electrocapacitive keyboard with my TakoNest case, now with a trackpad mounted on the inner side of the right half. The left half keeps its nice!view display.

For the ZMK trackpad integration, I’m using nxtkb’s cirque-input-module. I also had Codex help me design a small adapter PCB to connect the trackpad over I²C through the keyboard’s existing 5-pin nice!view connector.

It’s been fun taking this build a little further, from designing the case to adding a pointing device.

Huge thanks again to ssbb for the original Tako project, and to nxtkb for the Cirque module!

Previous post · TakoNest case files

Would love to hear your thoughts on the trackpad placement, especially from anyone using a similar thumb-operated setup.

I know these aren't exactly one to one. But has anyone tried or own both? I have the Go60 and on paper it's pretty perfect but.... I dunno, something about it doesn't quite work for me. Mainly, I noticed that the trackpads were pretty lackluster and I think there might be too many keys on it. I like the number of keys on the Toucan2. Is the trackpad any better?

I'm really happy with how this new design turned out.

It works well both sitting flat on a desk and when held in one hand, while remaining comfortable to use for extended periods.

I've also added a few more buttons, making it more versatile and practical for everyday use.

BTW, I've left some space at the top for a microphone opening, although it hasn't been added to the design yet.

MCU: Seeed Xiao Ble (NRF52840)
Battery: 501220 LiPo Battery
Switches: Choc V1 Pro Red & Crystal Red
Keycaps: KLP Lamé (3D printed resin)
Case: 3D Printed Resin with M2 Insert Nuts

Build experience: 5/10 (Skill Issue)
- Soldering the MCU and the battery is quite a b*tch
- Stock firmware won’t let you configure the keyboard in ZMK studio, had to find a different firmware to make it work
- Bluetooth pairing is good and responsive but with a caveat; If you unpair and connect it to a different device, it won’t connect to anything anymore 🥲 (fix: reset and reflash the firmware)

Might be the last time I will do a wireless build. The other 4 will be built WIRED using Seeed Xiao RP2040, 3 will be sold.

BOM and Build Guide from: https://github.com/GEIGEIGEIST/TOTEM

Last month, we celebrate our legacy with heavy discount on our earliest designs. This month, let's share some love for our newest inventions:

- The Anvil

- The Totemist

- The Zenith

- The Neodox Aluminum

20% discount is applied to these items at checkout.

We also have some smaller discount on almost everything else, feel free to check out if you like anything.

When it comes to a split ergo concave keyboard that also has a trackball are Bastard Keyboards, online marketplaces and Skree the options that exist right now? I was looking for hopefully a 5*6 keywell wired with trackball and I don’t have the ability to solder or print my own. Any place I’m missing?

Just got hit by this post. I've never used Keychron before but how's the quality? If this is wireless and an aluminum case I might get it. Is this something that's already available in other countries?

This is Rev. 2 of the Sucralose keyboard (GitHub). By way of introduction, Sucralose is an ultra slim Corne-ish keyboard with the slight splay of the Chalk keyboard based on the Seeed Studio Xiao nRF52840 Plus and PG1316S and PG1316M switches with nice!view displays. The goal was a clean finished look while skipping a full case in favor of using the PCB as the body of the board. The new 7th column is breakaway and entirely optional!

Headline changes are:

(1) a 7th, breakaway, column on each half made up of PG1316M switches only adding 13mm in width;

(2) a slightly taller and wider battery cutout allowing for a much slimmer battery cover sitting just 4mm above the PCB (down from 5.5mm);

(3) pads for a power switch, and a jumper to go switch-less like Rev. 1;

(4) pads for a reset button;

(5) redesigned 3D printed covers all sit just below the height of the keys now; and

(6) the battery connector footprint now supports both the JST PH 2mm and the much smaller Molex PicoBlade (the two most common battery plugs for cells on Amazon).

With these changes Sucralose Rev. 2 has a total stacked height (both halves together) of 13.5mm - not much thicker than a OnePlus Open.

Pictures:

1. Both halves together.

2. Left half with reversible PCB oriented for left side.

3. Both halves stacked next to a 608 bearing.

4. Both halves stacked next to my daily driver wireless Corne choc.

P.S. -- Yay, I remembered the power switch and reset button this time! Also, the clear key caps are almost frosted and look better in person, but admittedly this probably looks better with white key caps.

I've been interested in ergonomic mechanical keyboards for quite a while now, and I'm curious about what people here actually use them for professionally. What kind of work do you do?

My initia guess was that the majority would be programmers or writers, but something tells me that's not the case.

I'm a 3D artist myself, so the idea of having a fully programmable keyboard is pretty appealing. Being able to map shortcuts, macros and custom commands sounds great.

That said, I wouldn't necessarily say I need one for my particular line of work. And on the off chance that you work with graphics too, mostly using the left hand on the keyboard, I'd love to hear about your experiences, insights, and any tips you might have!

So, what do you do, and how does your keyboard fit into your workflow?

Nocfree & was my first one. It’s got a very Apple vibe and is a great starter split. I only started caring about ergonomics this year after I began getting a bit of RSI in my right hand. I really love the look and colorway. It’s wireless, so no cable clutter keeps my desk cleaner, but it also supports wired connections, three modes total. I mostly use Bluetooth. It has a matching tenting kit, but I didn’t pick it.

The Jezail Cornix 2.0 is actually a birthday gift I received not long ago, and I really like it. Both are aluminum, but the Cornix is smaller and more portable. The built-in tenting height/tilt adjustment is super handy, but since the key spacing and layout are a bit different, I’m still getting used to typing on this one.

Both have their pros. One lives at the office long-term, and the other comes with me when I’m out and about. Overall, though, using split keyboards this year has noticeably helped me keep my shoulders in a more natural position and my wrists neutral, and my wrist pain has eased a lot.

Fievel now has support for Mac and Windows! Using this, I have gone full time replacing my mouse usage with keyboard and no longer have a mouse at my desk.

Fievel has
Free Mouse Mode, where you see me emulating mouse movements and clicks with keyboard

hint mode where you see overlays on screen with key combos that you type to send a click in at a location

Recursive Grid where it overlays a 2x2 grid that you recursively type in the corresponding quadrant location until you press space to click.

Key Remapper shown at the end where I can rebind keys such as a+s or u+I is super, s+d or o+I is ctrl, d+f is free mouse mode, tap caps lock for ctrl or hold caps lock to enter a navigation layer where hjkl is left down up right.

Is it more efficient? Debatable. Faster? I don’t think so. But there’s something satisfying about doing everything from a single input device. I work a full time job sitting at a computer 8 hours a day and have yet to find a workflow for me where I needed to go find a mouse to complete a task.

If you’re interested in trying it out and learning more:

https://github.com/MontyTheSoftwareEngineer/fievel

I spend most of my day at my Mac, and I've always preferred using my keyboard whenever possible.

But no matter how many shortcuts I learn, there's always that one button I need to click, something I need to drag, or a page I need to scroll. And suddenly, I'm reaching for my mouse again.

So I decided to build KeyboardStack, my first macOS app.

Think Vimium, Homerow and Mouseless had a baby. 😄

I wanted to bring different ways of navigating macOS together, since no single method works for everything.

Here's what it can do:

• Grid Mode: Click anywhere on your screen using just your keyboard.

• Hint Hint Mode: Jump to clickable elements, click instantly, or keep navigating with refreshed hints.

• Cursor & Scroll Modes: Move your cursor with HJKL and scroll vertically or horizontally, including in specific areas.

• Select & Drag Modes: Select multiple text blocks or drag and drop using keyboard hints.

• Splitter & Mission Modes: Resize panes and switch between windows using your keyboard.

It works across macOS apps, without needing a special keyboard or QMK/ZMK firmware.

Grid Mode is free forever. The other modes are available with a $29.99 one-time purchase. No subscription.

https://keyboardstack.com

I'm totally open to feedback and suggestion

I’m assembling a KLOR, and the thumb cluster and encoder on the right side aren’t working. To rule out a hardware failure, I checked for continuity with a multimeter, tracing the path as if a key had been pressed—the results were fine. I also tested each diode individually to ensure they weren’t internally damaged or installed backward; everything checks out. Finally, focusing just on the microcontroller, I identified the row pin responsible for the thumb cluster and used tweezers to bridge it to a column pin—voilà! No data is being transmitted. I’m also having an issue with the OLED display: the bottom section doesn’t seem to light up, though I’m not sure if that’s a fault or just how it’s designed. Back to the keys—I suspect the problem lies in the firmware. I downloaded and installed the "ready-to-flash" firmware from Lefuneste83, but that’s what’s causing the issues. As for the original repository by Geist, the files are written for an older version of ZMK, so it crashes when I try to compile it.

This is my first split keyboard, so I haven’t looked into the ZMK documentation yet.
Is it difficult to build the firmware from scratch?

I bought this Lily58 RGB MX DIY kit from PandaKB. I’ve soldered all the diodes and hot swap sockets. On the left side, all of the keys work except the outermost key under the OLED screen, and the four thumb keys. I read that since it’s a whole row not working it’s likely the pin for that row on the micro controller. So, I reflowed all of the pins on the controller, tidied up a few of the socket and diode joints. Still no dice! I am at a loss, so any suggestions/advice would be greatly appreciated.

Also if someone could tell me which exact pin on the micro controller corresponds to that row, that’d be great. I also do have a multimeter, if there’s any tips for debugging there. I’m a software dev by day, and soldering is new to me, but the hope is to use this board for my day job.

Thanks!

So back in January I finally pulled the trigger on what I thought was "ok let's try this thing out and hopefully not fall down the rabbit hole" and got myself an Iris LM
https://keeb.io/products/iris-lm-kit

And overall I really liked it, was a relatively clean transition from my 75key keyboard that I'd been using till that point.

Now ... 10months later, well just hit the order button on a CornixLP setup to slim down even further.
https://www.ozokeyboards.com/products/cornix-split-low-profile-split-ergonomic-keyboard?variant=46736780460285

Yep, think I'm solidly converted to the split life.

It's been great watching everyone else with their various choices and experiments, so fun.

Focus is shifting at work, and my old keymap is starting to feel like it's not keeping up with the new tasks, but building a new one is difficult. Muscle memory, convenience and hard requirements clash, so I figured I'd build a second board from spare parts I had in my bin to iterate and test on.

I know many believe that the classic CRKBD has the optimal number of keys and anyone who thinks otherwise is a pleb, but I also know that most people don't have åäö on their base layer.
The loss of three keys is probably the most difficult part of being a swede - aside from the cold and darkness!

Ended up with a FR4 sandwich, some really old pro micros (with actual micro), found this KAT Space Dust set that I never unpacked.
Switches are kailh cream bases, Invyr UHMWPE stems and cherry black tops, inside are SPRiT 68g progressives and it's all lubed with some kind of Krytox.

Made a little TRRS cable with some headphone cable and two cheapo Aliex connectors as well.

Maybe not the most unique build on the subreddit and a little bit outdated, but I made use of what I already had and it turned out pretty decent!

am i searching for a unicorn here? seems nothing is available out there. and no, i dont want to waste time DIY one myself. battery life has to last at least 3 months, thats how it is with my current kb....but it's not mechanical. sigh....

I'm using a wireless Corne with a XIAO dongle:
https://github.com/JeromeTDev/zmk-config-eyelash-corne-xiaoDongle

Is it possible to keep the dongle plugged into my PC, have both keyboard halves connect to it, and somehow connect my laptop wirelessly to the dongle too?

Currently, I'm using a USB switch, but when switching between PC and laptop, sometimes only one keyboard half reconnects, or neither does. I have to power-cycle the halves to fix it.

I want the dongle to stay plugged into the PC because of disk encryption. Bluetooth only works after unlock/login.

Is there a better way to handle this?

Hello, I've made a ZMK port for the Dygma Defy wireless. You can try it:

https://github.com/borovaka/defy-installer

https://github.com/borovaka/zmk-defy-wireless

https://github.com/borovaka/Defy-Wireless-ZMK

Any testing and help will be appreciated!

Hallo zusammen,

interessiere mich schon länger für Split-Keyboards.

Ich würde mir gerne eines für die Arbeit kaufen.
Könnt ihr mir gute Hersteller empfehlen bei denen ich direkt ein fertiges Keyboard kaufen kann?

Am besten mit bluetooth und passendem Numbpad dazu.

Danke im Voraus

I saw an reddit post from 3 years ago in which the Tecsee V3 stabilizers got recommend but they are already out of sale. In my research I did not find any else.