Jul 28, 2017
Ergonomic keyboards- those weird looking things that claim to alleviate issues related to keyboard induced wrist pain.
The ergonomic design often features:
A 'split' keyboard- this aligns your wrists at a more natural angle, and this in turn means you can press the keys far more lightly in order to type- the key positions are more 'natural'. The keys are simply split into two groups on opposite sides of the keyboard; left and right.
An elevated typing surface- like advertised, this allows you to rest your wrists on a comfortable, padded surface, again reducing fatigue.
The keys are positioned really weirdly- some ergonomic keyboards feature elongated keys on a slanted surface that compliments the rest of the design. Again, this helps to correctly align your wrists but also claims to make awkward key-combinations (such as control-alt-z) easier.
They claim to:
Reduce wrist fatigue with its ergonomic shape and design.
Reduce long term side effects of prolonged typing periods (over years, not hours!), such as carpal tunnel. This means-in theory- that you won't suffer from typing related pains or (in extreme cases) need an operation to alleviate these.
In summary, they mean to simply reduce general stress from reaching to keys and awkward wrist positioning.
I personally purchased a 'Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard 4000' from Oxfam- hence I got it a discount. I would recommend doing something like this as some ergonomic keyboards can be expensive. Furthermore, you won't have wasted to much money if you don't end up enjoying your keyboard in the long run.
Anyway, these were my first impressions. I actually really liked the comfort it provided to my hands while typing, it cushions your wrists and seems to take weight off them, This definitely provides superior comfort (one of the main features advertised) than simply resting your wrists on the table. However, what I didn't like was the positioning of the keys- and yes it sounds foolish but hear me out ! Inevitably, I had to adjust to the key positions, and I tried to do this for weeks on end, but it came to no avail. I simply was not able to get used to the weird positions on the keyboard, I was always hitting the wrong keys or even hitting the divider down the middle. To rephrase this, the keyboard just wasn't my cup of tea ! What's more, the keyboard macros (besides the volume keys) just didn't work, and there weren't any drivers for my computer to help configure them- this was my biggest let down.
For me, I just didn't really enjoy it- and that's not to say that my body was seething with hatred while I typed, but the keyboard slowed me down and I felt I was no longer able to be efficient while I typed. This, in the end, cost me valuable time in my studies and this is what frustrated me most about my experience with ergonomic keyboards.
BUT that's just my opinion- a lot of people who have developed complications in their wrists say that this really helped them, as well as avid typists.
Ergonomic keyboards, for me, just weren't that enjoyable- as outlined above. On top of this, I can't really relate to the anatomic side of things, I've been typing frequently for years now and I haven't developed any symptoms. However, people with complications often claim that these keyboards really relieve pain in the forearms.
Otherwise, I would recommend purchasing such a keyboard, as it didn't provide much enjoyment for me personally. You could perhaps benefit from this if you type very frequently- if you are a professional typist for example. Perhaps, in my opinion, these keyboards are overrated. I would suggest something simple, like an Apple keyboard (I often find keyboards with short key-travel to be enjoyable).
Anyway, that's just my opinion- please feel free to drop me an email- I could make a blog post: "Your Opinions- Ergonomic Keyboards"
Here is a further opinion on these keyboards: http://www.healthytyping.com/articles/why-you-should-not-use-ergonomic-keyboards/