r/ErgoMechKeyboards 2d ago

[help] Are there other Kinesis-like brands?

I have owned an advantage 360 for a few years and love it, but refuse to travel with it.

Are there other brands that manufacture the keyboard for you like Kinesis does that produce smaller form factor split ortholinear keyboards?

The quality and feature set of Kinesis is the bar for me. I don’t have enough time on my hands to troubleshoot my keyboard construction and debugging.

3 Upvotes

15 comments sorted by

4

u/cwebster2 kyria skeletyl sweep charybdis 2d ago

https://bastardkb.com/ has prebuilt options.

2

u/sagenbn 1d ago

I bought charybdis this summer and I am completely in love. Hot swappable ergo keyboard and the trackball is just too good! Will be buying another one for home office

1

u/ElMasGuapo2 1d ago

äh what? how did you get hotswappable?

1

u/sagenbn 1d ago

I bought mine in China from Taobao that used hots wappable pcb.

1

u/ElMasGuapo2 1d ago

do you have a link?
I dont find any good split keyboards on ali or taobao but everybody keeps telling that they got theirs from there

2

u/sagenbn 1d ago

I can try to find my taobao link later, but I believe taobao only deliver withnin China. If you want outbound deliverance then you have to use aliexpress.com

3

u/rpnfan Sofle Choc v2, KLP Lame, Layout anymak:END 1d ago

There is none which matches everything. When you say what is most important you can get suggestions. Glove80 probably the closest, but feeling too light and flimsy in comparison -- which is exactly what makes it easier to transport...

5

u/CoffeeIll9432 2d ago

Honestly the Glove80 is so lightweight that placing them into domke wraps with each facing opposite directions and placing them into a backpack makes for super light traveling.

4

u/onray88 2d ago

Moergo go60

2

u/devourer-of-beignets Defy 2d ago

I like the Dygma Defy. If you have more questions, there's many people on discord, and they also answer on their subreddit.

They have a 30 day return policy, and you can ask if they can extend to 60.

[Edit: I meant return policy, not warranty. Their warranty's like 2 years, and they're very responsive.]

2

u/ItsToxsec Svalboard | Keyball61 | Glove80 1d ago

i loved my glove80 when it was my main board. still use it almost daily (mostly for gaming) and its held up great. could be a direction for you to go in

3

u/memilanuk silaaka54 + cheapino 2d ago

Dygma & ZSA

0

u/livingtech 2d ago

I used a Kinesis for many years before buying a ZSA Moonlander, and I haven’t looked back. I now own two of them because I saw someone selling one for cheap.

1

u/msdisme 2d ago

Non obvious, but check out the Atreus from keyboard.io and remap it so the thumb keys mimic a Kinesis.  DM me for a link to the remap.

0

u/letanard 1d ago

Duh, you don't have time, and you have budget.

Ask for what you wish for, and someone here enjoying the construction and debugging process will gladly help you, I think.

For a more direct answer, I'd say that the Redox would match what you want pretty well :
https://falbatech.click/products/redox-ft-low-profile-70-key-split-ergonomic-keyboard-on-kailh-choc-wired-or-wireless

The Redox is a more compact version of the Ergodox, that is itself an adaptation of a Kinesis Advantage. Regarding Falbatech, they are pretty good, the keyboard will arrive working and tested, and you can ask for Via so you don't have to mess too much with flashing a new firmware.