ErgoMechKeyboards
Ergonomic, split and other weird keyboards
Rules
Keep it ergo
Posts must be of/about keyboards that have a clear delineation between the left and right halves of the keyboard, column stagger, or both. This includes one-handed (one half doesn't exist, what clearer delineation is that!?)
i.e. no regular non-split¹ row-stagger and no non-split¹ ortholinear²
¹ split meaning a separation of the halves, whether fixed in place or entirely separate, both are fine.
² ortholinear meaning keys layed out in a grid
No Spam
No excessive posting/"shilling" for commercial purposes. Vendors are permitted to promote their products/services but keep it to a minimum and use the [vendor] flair. Posts that appear to be marketing without being transparent about it will be removed.
No Buy/Sell/Trade
This subreddit is not a marketplace, please post on r/mechmarket or other relevant marketplace.
Some useful links
- EMK wiki
- Split keyboard compare tool
- Compare keycap profiles Looking for another set of keycaps - check this site to compare the different keycap profiles https://www.keycaps.info/
- Keymap database A database with all kinds of keymap layouts - some of them fits ergo keyboards - get inspired https://keymapdb.com/
view the rest of the comments
What about something like this?
https://www.amazon.com/Touchpad-Trackpad-Portable-Notebook-Desktop/dp/B0B21V9SYC/ref=sr_1_18?crid=1PQJP5YH98Z13&keywords=trackpad+module&qid=1689719215&sprefix=trackpad+module%2Caps%2C182&sr=8-18
It's about 8cm^2^, USB, and ~US$26.
This one is similar and supports multitouch:
https://www.amazon.com/Perixx-PERIPAD-501-Professional-Wired-Touchpad/dp/B001CX85I8/ref=sr_1_31?crid=1PQJP5YH98Z13&keywords=trackpad+module&qid=1689719495&sprefix=trackpad+module%2Caps%2C182&sr=8-31
This one is more expensive, but it's tiny (35x28mm) and even shown stuck in the middle of an ergonomic keyboard, but also it's PS/2:
https://www.amazon.com/Smallest-Computer-Touchpad-Trackpad-ETP001MTPPS2/dp/B087WQXTRG/ref=sr_1_52?crid=1PQJP5YH98Z13&keywords=trackpad+module&qid=1689719634&sprefix=trackpad+module%2Caps%2C182&sr=8-52
Yeah, I have seen all of them. I'm not going to discount them completely because they are on the small side, but they do all seem to be from the land that time forgot and almost designed for kiosks or something like that? As you say one has a PS/2 connector. Mice have come on leaps and bounds with support for multiple bluetooth profiles, great tracking and so on. I guess there is very little demand for trackpads.
As separate devices from finished consumer electronics, yes not much demand. What does the solution you have in mind look like though, if not a trackpad and buttons mounted in its own housing?
If you're handy with electronics and microcontrollers, you might be able to build what you want using one of these sensors: https://bela.io/products/trill/
Oh those look like fun. It might be a bit beyond me right now - the combination of everything - but yeah for the future I quite fancy that.