Type K - Tented Ergo keyboard (10/08/2023 - GB STARTING ON AUGUST 20TH)

Type K

tented ergo keyboard





I've been wanting to have an Alice style keyboard for a while now but I wanted to change the layout to suit some of my typing habits and the idea of a tented version appealed to me.
The layout has been reworked from scratch but is still heavily influenced by the original Alice and I've incorporated a lot of design elements from the 7V.



0. CONTENTS

• DETAILS
• STATUS
• VENDORS & PRICING
• PHOTOS
• DESIGN CHANGELOG
• FAQ

1. DETAILS

• Case Angle: 4.5°
• Tenting Angle: 7.0°
• Materials: Aluminium Top, Dark-dyed Polycarbonate Bottom and Stainless-steel Weight
• Mounting method: Grommet mount
• Plate: 1.5mm aluminium full and half plates, polycarbonate full plate options.
• Colours: Black, Silver, Beige
  
• LEDS: Indicator LED bound to Caps Lock & Function layers. LED modules for feature lighting
• PCB: Designed by Gondolindrum with USB-C daughterboard - configurable with QMK/VIA
• Layout options:
  
  
  
  

2. STATUS

(10/08/2023) - Group Buy will commence on 20th August 2023 and will be open for 2 weeks.

More info below and on the Group Buy Information Page

Link to the build stream by Taehatypes.

Zenkioteque has made an in depth video about the design and layout of the Type K. You can find it here.

Build streams by Lulzthax, and Xinxinwong should be happening soon.


Markerchun has taken some fantastic photos. You can find the rest of them here.




3. VENDORS & PRICING

Group Buy will commence on 20th August 2023 and will be sold through the following vendors:

NA: Novelkeys
KR: Geon Works
EU: Oblotzky Industries
OCE: Daily Clack
ASIA & Rest of the world: TypePlus

Base unit + Poly Wristrest - $750 USD
Base unit + Wood Wristrest Upgrade - $765 USD (+$15)
Base unit + CF Wristrest Upgrade - $795 USD(+$45)
Base unit + Poly Wristrest +Polished Weight Upgrade - $790 USD (+$40)
Base unit + Wood Wristrest Upgrade + Polished Weight Upgrade - $805 USD(+$55)
Base unit + CF Wristrest Upgrade + Polished Weight Upgrade - $835 USD (+$85)

Poly Wristrest add-on - $95 USD
Wood Wristrest add-on - $110 USD
Poly base + CF Wristrest add-on - $140 USD
CF Shell alone - $60 USD
Solderable PCB (w/ DB, JST cable and FPC cable) - $60 USD
Hotswap PCB (w/ DB, JST cable and FPC cable) - $65 USD
LED Module - $40 USD

For information about what is included, head to the Group Buy Information Page.


4. PHOTOS

Videos of the lighting effect:
Video 1
Video 2

V7 Prototype with forged carbon fibre wrist-rest
GMK Stealth (with the Blackout Alphas Kit) & GMK Evil Dolch for the red accents. RAMA Wave Seq 2 in Black for the Esc key, Thermal R4 cap on the extra B.





V6 Prototype in beige powder coat. Walnut wrist-rest
GMK Sloth with Serika II spacebars



Light-coloured wristrest with V3 Prototype
CRP 2551HAD


V4 Prototype
Raw aluminium. In Geon's office.

V3 Prototype
CRP 2551HAD




V2 Prototype


V1 Prototype




5. DESIGN CHANGELOG

V1 Prototype

• Layout based mostly on the TGR Alice layout
• Bottom row with dual 3U spacebar
• Right shift reduced down to 2.25U to reduce the width of the right half so that it can be symmetrical and work better with tenting.
• Case angle set to 7 degrees
• Tenting angle set to 5 degrees

V2 Prototype

• Bend angle between Q and W (and O/P columns) reduced from 12 degrees down to 10
• Underglow LEDs moved to daughterboard
• Case angle reduced to 5.5 degrees
• Tenting angle increased to 7 degrees
• Custom wrist-rest added

V3 Protoype

• Case angle reduced to 4.5 degrees
• Mounting point positions adjusted
• Wrist-rest height increased

V4 Protoype

• LEDs moved from daughterboard to separate LED PCB modules
• Redesign of case to accommodate new LED design
• Changed from top mount to gasket mount
• Internal weights added
• Quality of life changes to the PCB

V5 Protoype

• Changes to mounting point positions
• PCB clearance adjustments
• Rubber feet design and position
• Internal weights removed
• PCB modifications
• Accent piece added to bottom
• Reduced screw sizes
• Poron gaskets replaced by moulded silicone gaskets

V6 Protoype

• Changes to mounting point positions
• Accent piece removed
• PCB modifications
• Firmware updates
• Cable specification changed
• Update to silicone grommets

V7 Protoype

• PCB modifications
• Firmware updates
• Cable specification changed
• Additional wristrest options

6. FAQ

• Did you know that there is a keyboard already called the K-Type?
  Yes, but I wanted to name this keyboard the Type K because the front bezel and the LED design was inspired by KITT from the Knight Rider television series and Type has associations with both cars such as the Honda Integra and keyboards.
  
  
• How many units will there be?
  It will be an unlimited group buy.
  
  
• Do you have a discord?
  No I don't but my friend, Epsilon Keyboards has created a channel on their server for discussion on the Type K here
  
  
• Do you have a sound-test?
  You might be able to catch the typing sound in one of the meet-up streams but I generally don't do sound tests. If this ever gets built by somebody and they happen to make a sound test, I will add a link to it then.