If I'm very lucky I may have first fully working prototype (but not the final version) in about 2 months. So far only the case is being done and electronics is only in schemes and on a breadboard. The matrix is hand wired too, the rest will have PCB. These are the top two parts from the right side. They need to be glued together and also the bottom part needs to be printed. Then the full right case would be done.
Show Image
If you’re doing this with an arbitrary 3d-printed case and hand wiring it, you might as well copy the Maltron instead of the Kinesis Advantage. The Kinesis has an inferior design which is mainly necessary because they’re using a curved PCB, which at scale is substantially cheaper than the Maltron’s hand wiring.
In particular, I’m convinced the orientation of many (even most) keys on the Kinesis is quite suboptimal, based on the most natural movements human fingers make. If you take a look at the Maltron, the finger switches are at different heights vertically, but they are mostly oriented in approximately the same direction. Whereas in the Kinesis Advantage, the switches all sort of point inward toward the center of each hand. The result of this is that to press keys on the kinesis, you need to press outward as well as downward, which typically requires force from your whole hand, rather than from the main joint at the base of the finger which is the main joint used to depress any keyboard key.
edit: I think the Maltron number and function rows have a bit of the same problem, and would actually be better if they were positioned about the same as now but with their orientation adjusted to be more similar to that of the other keys. But of course it’s worth testing a few designs directly against each other. You might find that you still like the way the Kinesis keys are laid out, even when your technology allows you more flexibility than theirs does.
Also, I think both Kinesis Advantage and Maltron could use a bit of stagger between columns.
[If you can, I recommend finding someone with a Maltron and borrowing it for a few days, or at least trying to type on it for a few minutes. It’ll be more obvious in person.]
Also, I recommend thinking carefully about what position and orientation is most comfortable for your thumb keys. I don’t think you have that optimally figured out either.
(The Maltron isn’t perfect, IMO, but it’s pretty good.)