5 Years of Split Keyboards Behind Me - My Review

I've been using Split Keyboards for 5 years and I can tell you they are a big part of my every day workflow. If you're interested in figuring out if you should get a split keyboard, then this video is for you. As a game dev and a software engineer - I like to invest in equipment that will help me improve my quality of life. Because I've spent the last 5 years using split keyboards, I think it would be helpful to share my experience and opinions on the matter. Especially for folks who are interested in buying and investing into split keyboards themselves.

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0:00 Why invest in split keyboards?
0:44 My first split keyboard and proof that it's been 5 years
1:15 One of the most useful things about split keyboards
2:03 How fast can I type with split keyboard vs. traditional keyboard?
2:43 Unlocking the true power of split keyboards
3:21 How split keyboards are amazing for programming
4:46 Why split keyboards are better than traditional keyboards
5:15 How your thumbs are used
6:02 Kinesis Advantage example
6:20 My final thoughts

#ajackster #mechanicalkeyboards

[Ajackster]

WOW I'm glad you guys enjoyed the video. Thanks for all the kind words and feedback. I have yet to try vim shortcuts like so many of you have suggested and am still using my archaic methods but I'll try them out and report back. Again thanks for the support :)


Toodles😘
Ajackster

[untitled]

Dude your video quality is amazing.. I thought I was watching a youtuber with 500k+ subs

[tapabase]

I came here for the keyboards and stayed for the expert level eyebrow manipulation

[radboi]

only 200 views? wtf, from the quality of this vid alone i wouldve expected 30k+, keep it up man, good work
edit: It feels good coming back to this video and see it get the attention it deserves, good job

[SkyKosiner]

This video was amazing! I have been using a split keyboard for over a year, and it has been a 100% game changer.

[ShuningLiuAtPlay]

In all seriousness, you should consider learning either Emacs or Vim-style hotkeys, which allowed for home-row oriented text navigation long before key remapping was a thing ex. In Emacs you can move next and previous line with "Ctrl+n" and "Ctrl+p" respectively

This actually makes you significantly less dependent on single purpose keys like "End" that you can then remap to something more interesting (given the Ergodox can have per-key macros)

[deezphillpeans]

i love your editing and film design of such a simple topic. Usually people just review the product, but i enjoy how you actually involve yourself with the video.

[Yotanido]

3:26 In that example, if the cursor starts on the first character of "function", I would do this in vim:
jWWevhcld
Then press escape to leave insert mode.

I've been considering getting a split keyboard, but I don't even use keys like the arrow keys. And sure, I could use hjkl, which is vim's equivalent - and the example I gave does use j and h - but the vast majority of my navigating actually happens with W and B to go forward/backward a whole word. (uppercase to use only space as word separator, lowercase to also separate words on symbols)

If you're interested, the breakdown of that sequence:
j - down one line
W - go to the next word, using only space as word separator
W - again
e - go to the end of the word, also considering symbols as word separators
v - enter visual mode to select text
h - go left one - "dl" is now selected
c - delete the selected text and enter insert mode ("change")
ld - insert "ld" (since we are in insert mode, any characters typed now get inserted at the cursor position)
And finally escape to go back to normal mode.

I will say, learning vim was one of the best things I could have done. Most other editors/IDEs just feel clunky now, though it does seem they are slowly getting better.
It's not even that editing is faster or more efficient, but it's just more comfortable. I don't need to move my hands as much to reach for the arrow keys or, heaven forbid, the mouse.

Using a smaller, possibly split, keyboard like that seems to solve a similar issue. Would using one still make my experience better with vim? Probably.
I don't think it's really worth it, though. Using an editor that is designed to make editing efficient and comfortable seems to already solve the bulk of the problem - and I would argue better than just using better hardware alone.

[ibrahimdelice]

I can ONLY agree with you. I've been using Dygma raise split keyboard for months now with reason of having experiencing wrist pain for over a year. It was so intense at some point that I had to take a break from my pc which meant taking few sick days at work. It did really hurt me as a programmer that I could not continue my work bc of a f'king keyboard.

I saved my self, and my body by purchasing a split keyboard. I have NEVER experienced wrist pain since! And that means saying goodbye to normal keyboards.

Great video!

[IIoWoII]

Combine this keyboard with vim shortcuts(vim/vim emu/emacs-evil-mode) and you'll improve your workflow even more. Many of the issues you talk about with your regular keyboard are already solved with vim.

Like replace word would be c-i-w (change in word)

[ZaDoRzX]

Your video delivery and presentation is hilarious. Definitely sold on the idea of the split keyboard.

[mosjeff]

I'm so glad I finally found a video about a split keyboard from somebody who actually has deep experience with them (not somebody who tried it out for 7/14/30 days). Thanks so much!

[lo-phi-music]

A keyboard review has no business being this hilarious 😂Love it! I'd love a comparison video between the different split keyboards! I have an ergodox, but I've been wondering about how it compares to a few of the others you mentioned using

[aidan]

Thank you so much for making this video! I am learning to be a game dev in unreal engine and when I saw this video I got intrigued and clicked on it. This video eventually lead me to getting the Ergodox-ez and it changed everything. Thanks for making this!

[michaellancaster]

love how mug location minus 7cm is the third topic here. a man of taste clearly

[zaibod]

this is an amazing video! so glad it got recommended to me after ~2hrs of split keyboard binge-watching

[athanasiospetsas]

Man, I came here after watching a ton of split keyboards video and I can't stop laughing from the editing and everything! This is amazing, thanks! Hahahaha! Very enjoyable! :)

[capellidipaja]

Brother thank you for the video 😎 so relatable and love your humor

[kein]

3:25 I really like the section about being fast when editing mistakes with the split keyboard. That is one of the reason I really enjoy using vim because I don't need to move my hands to the end Key or arrow keys for that matter.

I don't own a split keyboard yet, but I am looking into buying one!

[beansnrice]

As a PC gamer, I'm often using wasd and don't go to much further right than 5tgb. I also like to have my left and right hands close together when I play but the usual solution I have for that is to have my keyboard in my lap with my mouse hand directly above my wasd hand. A split keyboard would simply give me more options there. Your other arguments, including the drink one, lol, are all compelling.