@TheDbaru
I switched to a split keyboard and trackball about a year ago, both mounted to my chair's arms. It's supremely comfortable, and now my typing is probably ~40-50% faster than it was using a standard keyboard. For the first time in my life I'm also a full touch-typer. But I have a full split keyboard, I'm not sure how well I'd do with a compact one.
@Anita95_original
I have used a split keyboard setup with a trackball in the middle for 30 years. I keep a mouse plugged in as well since trackball is very good for ergonomics and office tasks while the mouse is better for gaming... As for compact keyboards, it is possible to have a numpad and/or macropad to the left side, it is fairly easy to become accustomed to a numpad in your left hand and trackball or mouse in your right for number heavy tasks...
@JoelJosephReji
The reason why you struggled with the keyboard a lot is probably because it is ortholinear. We are so used to the slight misalignment between the rows that an ortholinear layout really throws us off. (At least, this is what I have heard from the mechanical keyboard youtubers and other youtubers who have switched to ortholinear layouts.) I have also heard that ortholinear layouts are better for the fingers since they reduce the finger travel from the resting positions so I would encourage you to continue with that. (Edit: changed orthogonal to ortholinear)
@justinankeney6344
I love the 8-Ball track ball! I am a HUGE fan of the track ball mice! I use the trackball mice with the ball on the side so I use my thumb to roll the track ball.
@JoshuaB86
I'm a developer who had to make the swap to an ergo keyboard about 2 years ago to try fend off the daily pain I started having. I feel your slowness pain on the 15wpm. I opted for the kenisis adv360 pro and it was about the same start for me. The good news is it solved my pain problems. Took around 2 months of just sticking with it to get "smooth" and eventually full speed again. The strange thing is one you get used to the ergo layout you can still use a traditional keyboard just as easy.
@SaraTheBlack
I'm getting hand surgery later in the year and upgraded to the wired version of that Kensington. It took me about 3 days to really get used to it. I'm currently using a normal keyboard with a riser and a wrist pad but definitelly watching uploads like this to narrow down what ergo I'll eventually change to. Thanks a lot for this!
@mitchellsmith4601
I bought a Kinesis Advantage2 ergonomic keyboard a few years ago and it’s been great. Yes, there’s a bit of a learning curve and it will take a few weeks or months to adjust, but I’ve never looked back. Totally worth the money, and my typing speed is back to where it was with a standard keyboard. And the best part? Your mind automatically remembers where the keys are in a standard keyboard AND where they are on the Advantage2 so you can go back and forth.
@ccpowerhour7607
I will forever champion any split keyboards by Ergodox. Quality builds and user-friendly interfaces to customize the layouts which lets you do fun stuff like auto-shifting numbers/punctuation or swapping layers for a single keypress (which you can do with other mechanical boards, this just makes it easier to implement). I have an Ergodox EZ which is closer to a full split keyboard, complete with wider buttons along the outside edges; my actual layout is mostly the same as a regular keyboard but I've moved infrequently used keys like capslock to the small thumb keys. I'm thinking about getting a Voyager for when I travel but I don't travel often enough to justify the expense yet. And you're absolutely right about the wrist-bending of a regular keyboard. When my office went fully remote in March 2020 I quickly got wrist and shoulder pain from working at the same desk all day with a cheap logitech wireless keyboard and moving to a split layout immediately resolved those issues.
@brddork
The MX Vertical is the slightly larger vertical mouse you're looking for. As for trackballs, they're fantastic for things like illustrator and NLEs/DAWs where you want to make minute movements since the ball is stationary. On a mouse, you can run out of arm or desk space while attempting to click and drag, which just isn't an issue with a trackball. I admire your courage to try such a compact split keyboard for your first foray into splits, but you're probably right that it's changing a bit too much at one time. It's frustrating enough having to learn how to type again but the compact keyboards rely heavily on layers so you have that added friction. I've been using some form of Kinesis Advantage (currently the 360 pro) for years and these more compact keyboards (of which I also own a few) are a challenge.
@gothicchocobo
I've got a Split keyboard (Lily58) and trackball mouse (Elecom Huge) and I love them. They do take a while to get used to, but I've printed some 15 degree rises and moved the 'p' key down a row and it's so much more comfortable. Now I just need to learn where everything is on the second layer! lol. I'd love to hear how you get on with other split keyboards if you try a few others, I would advise getting a wrist rest (or a keyboard with a built in wrist rest) or getting used to hovering your wrists a bit with them. Once you get a split keyboard layout your brain works with and you've worked out any bad habits you have from a regular keyboard you can really go fast with a split keyboard, but until you get everything down they really highlight any bad habits you have and it really kills the flow.
@Lucifaar
I decided to jump right into the deep end and went from a normal qwerty keyboard and got the ZSA Moonlander. It was a wicked learning curve and I'm still not quite perfect at it, but it is by far the most comfortable typing experience I've ever had. Definitely recommend. If you're not ready to get a split keyboard, at least look into getting an ortholinear one. Also in regards to the mice, I think a lot of people have issues because their sensitivity is so low. I daily run mine at 2600 dpi and never once had any wrist issues even after playing games literally all day. I've seen many tech youtubers play video games and they've got a football field of space on their desks because they need to move their mouse so much to get very little movement. Playing at a higher sensitivity allows you to move your cursor all the way across your screen for very little wrist moment.
@bigrob029
i agree, and dont even worry about it. youtube keyboard typists are nuts. the wpm drop on any new keyboard is the norm. take comfort over speed. however.... what them mini monitors do?? wfh always has the hotness on non-standard monitors. love to see them!
@houcemkabboudi
hey! love the video. I think that the MX Vertical is fairly bigger than the lift. I got my self one a year ago and it was the best decision that I have made when picking a mouse. I still use a regular mouse for fps games tho.
@--Zeke--
Love it! I never realized thats what ergonomics was, I thought is was just not getting aches from typing/etc. :)
@DygmaLab
You should also check out the Dygma Raise and Dygma Defy 😊
@mailiefs
Thanks for the vid, you should definitely stick with the split columnar/ortholinear keyboard, and like the conclusion you already came to you might need to try one that isn't quite so compact. I love my moonlander for reference :) Took me a few weeks of deliberate practice to return to my expected typing speeds
@JoelJosephReji
I personally got the logitech mx ergo which is a trackball which using the thumb for moving the trackball and the buttons are pretty much the same. I would have like a bit more tilt to the trackball but it is more ergonomic and my hand just adapted right away to it (took me 2 days, maybe). It has a much less learning curve, similar to logitech lift (much less vertical though). You can probably look into that.
@adenansu
Switching to a columnar keyboard can throw you off, but I've been extremely happy since making the jump with my Dygma Defy keyboard
@nathanielfoo96
Theres a MX Vertical mouse for bigger hands, the Lift is great for my hand size. Lift is for S/M hand sizes, while the Vertical is mainly for L sizes
@davidbudzynski9290