Keyboard Builders' Digest / Projects
Harite
Dane Lipscombe shared his Harite, a split input device with 5-way switches and trackpads.
Published June 29, 2024
Dane Lipscombe aka dlip/fata1err0r81 came up with this split keyboard sporting 5-way switches instead of the usual keys. The Harite is open source.
I considered the svalboard, but I wanted something more simple, cheap, light and compact that I could travel with easily – Dane.
The switches look very heavy on paper (1.2N lateral and 2.35N down, manufacturing variance is +/- 0.69N), but once you attach the sticks the torque makes them feel very light. It doesn't fix the issue on center though which is pretty stiff and not really usable in the author's opinion, especially for the ring and pinky fingers. Dane hopes that if this style of keyboard becomes more popular, we will get better switch options in the market.
By the way, the name comes from the sumo slap attack in Japanese ((張り手 or open hand strike).
Specs
- SKRHADE010 5-way switches – rated at 1,000,000 cycles for each direction
- RP2040-Zero controller
- USB-C to connect the halves
- dual 40mm Cirque trackpads (optional - you can put a Ploopy or other small trackball in place instead)
- QMK firmware
Video demonstration
Resources
Published on Sat 29th Jun 2024. Featured in KBD #168 (source).
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