"Why You Shouldn't Buy An Ergonomic Keyboard"???

[jamadagni]

Has anyone here seen this video on YouTube or the website? Of course this is not mine and in fact I seriously am thinking of getting either an ErgoDox (or maybe the Axios if it comes out soon).

[davkol]

That's beating a dead horse. (Not saying that the individual in that video shouldn't be beaten. ~_^)

The content of that video is a straw man (suggest an awkward posture that basically no-one uses, and then prove how it's wrong). It might be relevant on some of the early flat fixed-split layouts (e.g., Chicony KB-7903), but not much else.

[eternalmetal]

I think the point of the woman in the first video was trying to say that keeping your hands wider apart will cause you to have tension that draws from more proximal parts of the arm to the upper body.  She neglects the idea of wrist strain and fatigue, which is the reason why most RSI sufferers move to ergonomic keyboards.  Workstation ergonomics (desk, chair, etc) is just as important as the type of keyboard you use, so im not sure that I would take that video seriously.

[jerue]

That's beating a dead horse.

My thoughts exactly.

I'm no ergonomics expert, but the "ergonomic" keyboard used in that video is pretty shoddy compared to the Ergodox/etc. I'd have more pain using that Microsoft contraption than a standard keyboard for sure.

[davkol]

The curved staggered layout is actually pretty good, because it reduces ulnar deviation quite a bit. I really like the 65% to 75% layout too.

But that's the point. The ordinary layout forces noticeable ulnar deviation, unless you develop some funky workaround typing technique. The halves can be separated in parallel, connected but angled (up to 30 degrees per half) or something inbetween in order to fix that wrist posture. Keyboards with a fixed too big angle are scarce if they exist at all, contrary to what the video tries to claim.

[nothing4me]

Yea I agree. I have a bad habit with regular QWERTY keyboards. For me, my resting positions are F and K and I constantly move my fingers into another area where my other finger can reach. I manage to type extremely fast. Trying to learn F and J on an Ergodox is really hard for me right now.