Keyboard Builders' Digest / Editorial

Behind the scenes #187

Keyboard projects, reviews, quick news, in the mailbox, meetups, vendors, discounts.

dovenyi
Published February 28, 2025

Hey, what's up everyone!

Welcome back for another recap and behind-the-scenes write-up. In the past few days, I've been trying to catch up, and just started to compile the February switch overview as well. Ranking update and switch article next week. I had to postpone publishing this week's review since the product in question is not yet available for order.

If you are new to kbd.news, you can read how this started out and what this is all about nowadays. If you like what you see, subscribe to the newsletter (free) and donate some bucks to keep this otherwise free and ad-free project alive.

Some posts worth sharing

• Will Pucket writes about experimenting with smaller boards and collaging layouts, trying to make his board fulfill its promise of comfort. Featuring his Sessile, a 28-key monoblock split keyboard.

• Veronica of Keykrush talks about the development journey of the ORCA – an exciting wireless ergo split keyboard in the fundraising phase.

• PHDesign's PH60 is an open-source 60% keyboard project – now with a HHKB variant.

• Arctic is a 60% wireless split keyboard shared by Yamil Essus.

• RaphCoder13 shared a handwired 40% split: Porg40 with trackpad and LED matrix.

• A noname 3D-printed ergo keyboard with keywell and semi-parametric design – by Gregory Zhizhilkin.

• A wireless split with katana layout: Sai44 by leafflat.

• A cute macropad with ISO Enter: ISO13715 by Daniel Gotteswinter.

TIPS

• Matte ceramic keycaps from Cerakey. Black and white options (only white is available at the moment).

The matte keycap texture has been one of the most highly requested features in our community. Following a year of experimentation and testing, the matte finish option has now been introduced to the V2 family. If you are not a fan of the glossy texture, maybe this is the one for you – Cerakey.

• Coral is a cool case by Kyek for his Urchin keyboard.

• Custom Sofle palm rests.

• QMK RGB control display by neoberg.

I switch between keyboards and I use this one as an rgb display keyboard when it's not used. But I was tired of setting it to the color/effect I want each time using the KB keys. So I built a cli to update the colors automatically at times. I also added a simple ui on top. The feature uses Raw HID.

Closed-source, WIP, etc.

• K:03 PRO v2 by ergohaven. With a large 65x49mm touchpad.

• Banana keyboard by RGBKB. Haha, we exchanged some thoughts about this ergo project with Legonut more than a year ago. I'm glad it has evolved into a real product. Deluxe aluminum and budget 3D-printed versions.

• A gorgeous paper keyboard project with lots of progress photos. Posted by Appropriate_Hippo.

• Custom palmrest with buttons and roller encoder – by sinnofinger.

• Splinter – a split Minivan [GB] by Leviathan-Mech.

The perfect board for me didn't exist - so I made it. Split 40% minivan style, wired, chonky bezel, nav columns, 3u & 1.25/1.75 exploded spacebars, hotswap alphas, arrow cluster, flexy typing feel. It's exactly what I was hoping it would be – Leviathan-Mech.

• Gossie's JoyKey is an interesting data input device by Gossie/Till_Popular.

• Cheebo by Felix-Kyun. A handwired Hillside46 derivative with more splay. 3D-printed case on onshape.

• KHEops70 is a WIP analog (HE) ortho board by m_g_s_g.

• Adam Leblanc's (aka LeverMind) futuristic Schist01 project is an eyebrow-raiser for sure. An experimented with a wrist-mounted ergo keyboard with a trackpad, running on ZMK.

• DarfBoard V2.1 a 6x6 Dactyl by Darfer with a large trackball.

• Hmmm. A Reviung with ISO Enter? Committed by icelongclaw.

• The layout of this WIP Wolfjaw build reminds me of my 1985 Reuters terminal keyboard: ortho and 0.5u offset stagger combined.

History

• The long read: A great essay by Marcin Wichary about Gorton the typeface – not just on keycaps and keyboards: The hardest working font in Manhattan.

• Vintage videotex keyboard editor with the distinctive Siemens caps I posted too…

• …here on my Siemens PLC programmer.

• Triumph-Adler SE 1040 & 1041 Ergo Study keyboard by Chyrosran. Yummy!

Keyboard art

• Sibelius layout by Laogeodritt. Custom keymap and keycaps for music notation entry. Caps manufactured by Yuzu.

• Colorful silk screen – by Azeuth.

• Pastel/wood theme by first-castle.

• Combining leather crafting and ergo keyboard design. Concept drawing by Notxtwhiledrive.

• Another iteration of moobel's monopleg10 – now with cats.

Weekly Diderot effect

• Wegner Design's split sleeves.

• NovelKeys Classic-GLO. Injection molded TKL case in three colors – glowing in the dark.

• Not sure about comfort, but these wooden wrist rests look cool.

• Another nice wooden thing: a Dusk67 build by Foxicious1. I wonder how this is related to Akko's MU01. Too many similarities.

In the mailbox

I've been fighting with Fedex and the local customs staff for a parcel from Kinetic Labs – since January 30th! So no new switches and deskmats this week. I hope they won't be sent back by these ignorant folks…

Donations

• As always, many thanks to my awesome regular supporters and everyone who helped this project thus far.

For all the donation options check out the donation page!

Meetup database

This meetup database serves as both a calendar and an archive, so feel free to send me upcoming events or even ones from the recent past to make this collection as comprehensive as possible.

Recently added:

• Iowa Keyboard Meetup 2025, May 3, Des Moines, IA, US

Vendors & Discounts

Feel free to use the KBDNEWS discount code at 168 keyboard shops! And do not hesitate to report any issues – like Edward did this week. Thanks! :)

New shops and updates to the database of keyboard vendors this past two weeks:

• Wylderbuilds news. ("If you're waiting on a refund from Wylderbuilds, I'm sorry. Your money's been stolen" – k3d3)
• This post about MechanicalKeyboards.com and their MK trademark went some rounds in the community.
• I've marked some shops as closed: MK NZ, 415keys, Alchemybox, Azio, Checkerboards, Clackeys, etc.

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That's all for today. Thanks for checking by. As always: Keep learning and building!

Until next time,
Tamás

Published on Fri 28th Feb 2025. Featured in KBD #187.

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