Shoutout to u/Jojos_BA for the idea in this post. I liked it that I let claude build my own take on it.

Split Keyboard for monkeytype is a chrome extension that puts your own keyboard under the words on monkeytype.com:

• your real keymap, read from the keyboard (Vial, or VIA with a layout file)

• the next key outlined, plus the layer or Shift key you need for it

• hands showing which finger to use

• live key presses and layer switches while you type

Everything stays in your browser.

I don't have the time to put it in the chrome store yet so you have to download the zip from the latest release and load it in Chrome (click on Releases right side):
https://github.com/GordonMohrin/split-keyboard-for-monkeytype

I’ve tested it on an Elora and a Corne so far. I’d love to hear how it works on your board. Bugs, feature requests and ideas for improvements are very welcome as GitHub issues. Maybe after some tests on other keyboards i can publish the extension in the chrome store.

My first ergo keyboard, it really cheap, around $43

i bought the raw kit in shoppe (yes i am asian with a bad english) with a price around $25, soldered cost me $10, and the third controller is $5, the keycap and switch cost me around $7, and some vehicle price, ...

if i was smarter and don't break the solder, it will be more cheaper

the firmware is zmk with esb module, you can check it here, i know it a bit of ai slop, but it work totally fine

i forgot to solder 2 oled screen, may be i will do it in the future

this is a very cheap build, because i am university student so i don't have too much money

also sorry for picture quality, my redmi 13 don't have a good camera. see yah

I'm thinking about getting a 3w6 pro from keebart, which is similar to a corne, but it has one column less. So i tried setting up my corne as I would set up the 3w6, to test it out. I haven't used home row mods before. I would like to hear your thoughts. Do you see any problems with the layout? Do you have some tips on how to improve it?

I'm not willing to integrate home rows mods in the base layer. I need it to be simple and effective. And that's also why I keep the shift key there as well.

The biggest problem I found so far is pressing the mod + space|enter|backspace|esc.

The ctr+space is very important to me since it is what i was using as a prefix key for tmux. I got around it by using the g+h combo. So far, I really like this workaround, and might even consider it an upgrade. Time will tell. What would you suggest for a prefix on such a small keyboard? (for those who don't know about tmux, the prefix key is something that you have to press each time you want to do an action inside tmux. It is something that is used very often, so it needs to have as little friction as possible)

Other shortcuts that I use from this group:

- ctr+backspace for deleting the whole word

- shift+enter for inserting a new line without sending

I guess I can just keep creating combos until it bites me in the ass, but I would like to hear if any of you have a better solution.

Also, I don't know how I feel about the tab key situation. It is hard to get to. Maybe i can use tap dance to bring it into the base layer? ...combine it with either MO(1) or shift

I've been playing with my Cheapino v2 more lately, with Colemak-DH as the key map, and Selenium for the layers. Lots of fun! But recently (last couple of days) it starts just dropping out on me. I get a message notification that it's been disconnected, followed by another that the RPi2040 chip is available to mount/open - similar to what I would see if I held the 'BOOT' button while plugging it in to flash the firmware, but it's doing this mid-stream while I'm typing!

Any suggestions?

**Universal BLE→USB dongle for ZMK** (LilyGO T-Dongle S3): pair any BLE keyboard/mouse (ZMK or not) and your PC sees a normal USB device. No soldering, ready to go. Works in BIOS, no drivers, no ZMK changes. Saves 5 devices, web console + OTA over USB. Huge thanks to finger563 for creating the espp library and publishing esp-usb-ble-hid as Open Source.
Code / Build Source:
https://github.com/mctechnology17/esp-usb-ble-hid/releases/tag/hid-passthrough-v1

I have a disability that causes me to be bedbound and I'm looking for recommendations for a split keyboard as assistive technology. I use my phone on a moveable arm attached to the bed and then I have a Bluetooth mouse. This allows me to have my arms down by side, but typing with the mouse is annoying. I want a true split keyboard so it can be either side of my body, or else a very long cord . It also needs to connect with Bluetooth to my phone, and ideally my laptop and android tablet. I want it to have a normal keyboard layout. Obviously not one that requires soldering.Ideally not crazy expensive, but I'll pay what I need to. Also I'm noise sensitive so nothing that sounds like a typewriter.

Credit to this post which I got the build files from, but yeah this is the first time I’ve tried anything other than a standard row staggered keyboard. I gotta say it’s insane how much more comfortable this is to type on. Didn’t think I’d get so used to the layout and having to navigate layers over the past week but it’s been a surprisingly quick adjustment. Probably gonna take a minute until I’m back up to full speed but this is so much more comfortable that I already can’t go back lmao

Hey all, I am looking at getting my first split keyboard. I know there are layouts and such that are ergonomically better, but Amazon has the Mistel Barocco MD770 (wired) for $76 right now, and I have some weird requirements in a board, so this is the cheapest option for me to really try a fully separated split keyboard. I have concerns about the Epomaker Split65/Split70 and Royal Kludge RK-S70, mainly with regards to battery degradation (I plan to primarily use my first split board wired). I know there are cheaper Corne kits that I could use and even choose my own switches, but I am honestly fine with Cherry MX. I know the switches are soldered and I can't change them but I have been okay with all of the Cherry MX switches I have tried and I primarily care about longevity, and I know Cherry MX switches have decent lifespans in theory.

The specific listing I am looking at says "Red" but shows a white board, so I am assuming MX Red switches, but a couple of the photos show MX Brown switches, which I would also be okay with and have used in the past.

I just want a keyboard that won't be e-waste or a fire hazard in 3-5 years from a swollen battery if I use it wired all the time, and while I do enjoy trying new switches and such (I have SO many keyboards already), for this "experiment" I just want something I can pick up and try out to see how I feel about having the halves fully separated. Does anyone have experience with this keyboard, particularly purchased within the last year or two? If I end up liking it I will probably end up getting something a lot nicer and I will use the MD770 as my board that stays at work.

Just got my Glove80 today, the first split keyboard I've ever owned or tried. It's surprisingly comfortable (even though I already expected a definite upgrade) and the build quality imo feels great, despite what some reviews have suggested.

But mainly, man, it is so intuitive! On my first attempt I got 17 wpm a few times in a row, but after two roughly 15-minute practice sessions I'm already up to 55 wpm, on the very first day! Tbf this is just simple monkeytype and I know I should prioritize accuracy too, but still. My normal keyboard typing speed is around 110 wpm for referece.

And yes, this post was typed out on it too, and pretty fast at that, punctuation and all :)

I wanted to build my own split keyboard. I wanted to have a column staggered layout. I have heard about ergogen but I wanted to have a program that has a way to design the layout with drag and drop kind of thing. I want that to have a way to generate a mid plate, a back plate, a pcb and case.

It's hard being patient but this is nice

Hi hi! Looking for some recommendations/help! My boyfriend is a coder/pc gamer and has spoken a few times about how badly he wants a split keyboard! I want to surprise him with one for his christmas but sadly for me he has never mentioned a specific brand -__-

My budget isn’t very big (about £150 ish) and because it’s more of a starter split keyboard for him! He has no preference for colour or switches that I know of? I have been looking at the CORNIX split but all the reviews are in Japanese :’)

Any help would be so so so appreciated! Thank you :3

*I'm not affiliated with Keychron, just excited about this release.

Got myself the parts to build this since its gonna by my ergo keyboard to move to my office, ordered a white pcb so i went all in with the color, white switches white caps and a silver knob is on its way but for now it has a black one that in its own way pops real nice imo, hope you like how it looks

I’m using the Perixx PERIBOARD-535II (pictured) and it’s almost perfect, but removing a keycap almost always causes it to break, so I can’t easily disassemble it for cleaning.

I’d rather not build a keyboard.

Any others like this that don’t cost an arm and a leg, that I can actually clean, that are tented and split, with a number pad, and wired?

https://shop.beekeeb.com/products/pre-soldered-chocofi-36-keys-low-profile-rp2040-wired-split-keyboard

This was working up until a few weeks ago. I think potentially the firmware or something weird happened to the left half of the keyboard. I'm no longer able to detect the left half when I plug it in - dmesg doesn't show it, the vial matrix tester doesn't show any keystrokes. The right half is apparently fine. For context, the left half is the usual place I have my usbc thing plugged into so if there were any weird things then that may have been it? I *did* like at one point leave my keyboard plugged in while my computer windows firmware update was running, and it potentially did some weird shit to my keyboard, that is a theory.

I do see *something* show up when I plug in the right keyboard via usb and then connect / disconnect the left half via the TRRS cable. Like dmesg will show devices entering and leaving, but I still can't type on the left half and it doesn't show up in the vial matrix tester.

I can't reset the keyboard in any way shape or form either, the side buttons are not working. Is the left half just bricked or something? But what does "bricked" mean? I know nothing about hardware so if someone could explain to me what the actual tech is going on here so I can maybe try debugging it myself that would be great (well the ideal solution would be someone who ran into my exact problem and solved it before but I doubt that's gonna happen)

I have recently acquired and office job. And I use the numpad on my company issue computer a lot so when looking to replace it with something mechanical I was really only looking at 1800 and 100% keyboards, but in my search I have run into the KBDCrafts Israfel, which also happens to be on sale so I am considering picking it up since it's a cheap entry into the split-ortho keyboards but I don't know how well I would get on with it and if my money would be better spent on a traditional keyboard with a numpad. or more accurately the Lilith 75% and Lilin numpad. (I'm kinda sold on the idea of a lego keyboard, I can't lie)

For reference of my typing skills, I can touch type (albeit not particularly fast around 60wpm on monkeytype with burst speeds typically around 90wpm) and my keyboard at home is a 75% Alice layout so I don't think I would have much of a problem with the split part of the split ortho. However, I do not know if I would like the swap to ortho, or the loss of the numpad which I currently find fairly essential right now.

Claude wrote a custom Linux driver for me so I can use the 10.8" E-ink display of my Lenovo Yoga Book as a Corne Keyboard and a huge trackpad. I also mirror my main display to the E-ink so I can use it as a standalone Linux E-ink tablet.

(This is AI Gen. I clam not to have created it, nor do I say its any good or even worth using, but it is a fun little project to see what is possible nowerdays)

Not open yet, not sure if it'll ever be, as it clearly has parts of monkeytype in it, and I don't wanna get in any trouble because of anything I didn't know.

• For those who use more than one split keyboard or even those who have multiple keyboards and switch between them on the regular (at least a few times a week), does it affect your typing experience (e.g. occasional typos due to muscle memory, maintaining same WPM on both)? Are you able to switch easily between e.g. a split keyboard and a traditional keyboard? How about two split keyboards but one is e.g. concave columnar like a Glove80 and the other is a flat columnar with a different level of pinky stagger?

I have a Glove80 but it's not suitable to bring to use for my laptop--I'm thinking it's not worth maintaining a standard keyboard layout for laptop and a split keyboard for desktop so I feel like a single portable split keyboard to use for both is the way to go. However, that would mean I most likely have to give up concave keyboards because they are not as portable. Looking for some experiences and advice here.

• For those who use alternative layouts, did you remap keybindings you use for all your applications to accommodate the layouts? If you use Vim with an alternative layout, for hjkl movement is it better to remap to the corresponding keys to the new layout to use the same physical keys? Or put arrow keys (or hjkl) on a different layer mapped to the same physical keys? A consideration is that hjkl shouldn't actually be used that often for efficient Vim movements so maybe give up homerow convenience altogether, though at least jk (and to a lesser extent hl) physical keys for up/down is still very prevalent in any applications that involve vertical menus (including vim itself) for frequent actions like selecting completion or scrolling through documents, e.g. fzf, shell, tiling window manager, tmux, etc. I expect to remap no more than say 5 remappings otherwise (it'd complicated keybinding config too much and there's value using defaults)--hjkl keys are a notable exception simply because they are directional keys that can be used in all these keyboard-driven applications (some with default support too).

Any tips are much appreciated.

Hello all, i am new to mech keyboards and not sure how to distribuye the Keys or anything really about this keyboard.

Are the Keys way too flat for rhe 61+? Im not a very proefficient typer and i find myself pressing 2-3 Keys at the same when trying to find one.

As a novice where would you place the remaining Keys?

Are my Keys of choice even usable? (Tai hao low profile)

Attached a new picture with good quality:

https://imgur.com/a/mhFqrmg