Technology

A while back, I tried out a SlickMK, a split keyboard with an Ergodox layout. It took me a while to get use to its ortholinear layout. My frustration made me wonder if I had made the right choice. However, after getting a bit more comfortable with it, I moved it to my work computer. I eventually returned to the same typing speed I was use to on traditional, staggered layout keyboards. Recently, I decided to switch over my personal workstation to a split keyboard as well. I replaced my Royal Kludge 84 with a W-Ergo. It took a little while to arrive, but so far it’s proven to be a reliable and fun keyboard.

KeyClick Inc

I ordered my keyboard from a company called KeyClicks Inc out of Canada. After about a week with no shipping information, I attempted to check the status of my order. Their site requires an e-mail address and an order number. I checked my e-mail, and I never got an order confirmation from them. I repeatedly tried to contact their customer support through the website’s chat bot. Their store also had an Etsy page, and I attempted to message that account as well. I eventually got an e-mail from “Rudy,” who asked for my order number (after I had already explained I had never received one). I never heard back from Rudy, but the W-Ergo did arrive a few days later. I submitted my order on March 12th, and it arrived on March 27th; about two weeks.

KeyClicks has a public reputation for terrible communication and slow shipping speeds¹. Their keyboards also appear to be rebranded IFKB keyboards²³, so the IFKB might be the better option if you want to know when the keyboard is actually shipped and going to arrive.

Keycaps

At first I was looking at DSA and XDA profile keycaps. Both of these profiles have identical heights and low profiles for every key. These profiles make it easy to mix and match keycaps for non-standard layouts. Otherwise, you have to take care to match row sizes and key type.

For as popular as the Ergodox layout is, I had trouble finding good sculpted kits for it using an OEM or SA profile. I ended up using the SA DreamEater set from UK Keycaps⁴. It was on clearance and they had kits specific to the Ergodox layout.

Switches

I’ve never really explored key switch options. I’ve typically selected the clicky option when buying keyboards. For the SliceMK, I went with the safe option of Cherry MX Blues. For this build, I decided to get a switch tester. The following is the Keychron 100 Switch Max.

I’ve never used a switch tester before. I was never sure if just trying an individual switch would be a good test, as the typing experience involves all your fingers across multiple keys. However, I felt like the Keychron tester helped me make good comparisons. The Gateron Baby Kangaroo had a really unique feel that I liked, but it only came in tactile (not clicky) variants. It was a runner up to eventually buying a set of Kailh Box White V2 from a vendor on eBay⁵:

Software

One of the complains I have about the SliceMK is that the layout configuration is done through a web application, which fires off a github action in order to build new firmware. You can look at the action to reverse engineer how to build the keyboard firmware yourself, but there’s no documentation for doing so. If the web configuration application or tooling ever goes away, end-users are left having to reverse engineer the build process, in order to update their keyboard layout.

The W-Ergo is fully supported with Vial, a graphical keyboard configuration tool. Vial can be used to test and configure the keyboards that use its fork of the QMK firmware, with a standalone desktop application. I only needed to add a few well documented udev rules⁶ in order to use Vial to detect and configure my keyboard in Linux.

I reused most of the layout I have on the SliceMK; a layout I spent weeks iterating over. The Vial configuration experience was amazingly straightforward and simple.

Soldering

With the SliceMK, I had to replace several of the hot swap key switch sockets, which had stopped making good connections with the switches. After I had installed all the key switches in the W-Ergo, one refused to work in the Vial testing interface.

I still had spare hot swap key switch sockets I had ordered for the previous repairs. With the garbage customer support I had gotten from KeyClicks, I took it upon myself to open up the keyboard and replace the bad socket.

After some minor soldering work, the keyboard worked perfectly.

Totals

The full cost of this keyboard was ~$300, (or ~$350 if you include the wrist rests). It’s ~$100 cheaper than my SliceMK build, and the software for configuring it is better.

With the SliceMK, I get two or three disconnects from one of the two keyboard halves every day. They usually reconnect after a few seconds, so it’s just a minor annoyance. The W-Ergo has no such issues. This could just be a firmware issue with the SliceMK or different radio interference conditions in each room, but it’s a thing to note.

Overall, I’m satisfied with the W-Ergo as a split keyboard. Except for the key switch socket I repaired, I haven’t had any other major issues with it. The software works well, and the case is well designed. I was able to get this kit fully setup on the day I received it. I realize I’m on my own for customer support, but the board seems easy to work on. Hopefully it will be solid for years to come.