[IC] 60% Bluetooth PCB and 60% alu case (updated on April 9)

[TriangleLab]

Update on April 9: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=92723.msg2590828#msg2590828


About us

TriangleLab:

Tiangle lab is a group composed of several mechanical keyboard enthusiasts with different backgrounds. The custom MK market is saturated with similar boards with different layouts and cases. Triangle lab is mainly interested in developing new features of machnical keyboards.

senter (or /u/runninghack) is a programmer based in Washington D.C., USA. He's known as a member in Foxlab.

Triangle is a professional designer based in Hangzhou, China. Many of KBDfans' keysets were designed by Triangle. He's also an experienced PCB designer.

Mickey Team:    

Mickey team is composed of two embedded engineers in China who mainly work on BLE devices. They were fascinated by mechanical keyboards and developed their own Bluetooth mechanical keyboard PCB, the MICKEY (Made In China Keyboard).

About the PCB

MICKEY is a 60% Bluetooth machanical keyboard PCB. It works under Bluetooth 4.0 mode. The controller of the PCB is Nordic nRF51822, which makes the PCB very stable and power efficient.







Features:

• Long battery life. With two AAA batteries, the PCB can work for more than 3 months under default settings.
• Programmable with an online configurator.
• Multiple layouts are supported. Check out the layout schematic below.
• Compatible with cheap plasic cases (e.g. https://kbdfans.cn/collections/case/products/60-plastic-case ) with a little modification.
• Compatible with our aluminum case.

What's not supported:

• Backlight / LEDs
• USB mode / Wired mode
• TMK / QMK
• Compatibility of many other 60% cases. The AAA batteries behind the PCB need larger space than normal 60% cases.

Layouts (updated):



Old design:

More

About the case

This case was designed for MICKEY bluetooth PCB. Following are photos of our first prototype.

















The case is still under designing. Please feel free to leave your suggestions.

Price estimations (updated Nov 27.)

I have a rough estimation for the pricing now.

• Presoldered PCB: $50 without shipping
• Aluminum case (without brass weight): $90 or less without shipping

These are rough estimations so they can be changed. The firmware and PCB is still being improved. We're ordering some equipment for analyzing on-air packets and something else. The server for generating firmware also need to be upgraded. I prefer to start a small and quick GB first in December.

For CONUS buyers, 20 or 30 PCBs can be shipped directly from me. I'll cover the international shipping because I'll have packages shipping from China anyway. Not sure if 20 PCBs will be sold out though.

For other buyers and buyers for aluminum cases, packages will be shipped from China.

Edit:

New case design:

[Konjungamo]

Looks pretty promising! I'll just post a few questions I have:

• Is the PCB finalized already? Any chance of using a LiPo or button cell to power this thing instead of batteries?
• Is it compatible with the 5°-case from KBDfans?
• What is the USB port on the PCB for if there is no hardwired mode?
• Is the PCB compatible with Alps switches or is it MX-style switches only?
• Any pricing estimate?
• Shipping timeframe? Group buy or constant supply (to Vendors)?
• Shipped from China or from the US?

The case looks pretty good, not very exciting or uniqe but still very nice

[TriangleLab]

Looks pretty promising! I'll just post a few questions I have:

• Is the PCB finalized already? Any chance of using a LiPo or button cell to power this thing instead of batteries?
• Is it compatible with the 5°-case from KBDfans?
• What is the USB port on the PCB for if there is no hardwired mode?
• Is the PCB compatible with Alps switches or is it MX-style switches only?
• Any pricing estimate?
• Shipping timeframe? Group buy or constant supply (to Vendors)?
• Shipped from China or from the US?

The case looks pretty good, not very exciting or uniqe but still very nice

1. It's finalized and has been tested for a while. LiPo is not suitable for suck low current devices, not to mention the self-discharge problem. Button cell won't provide long enough battery life. The choice of batteries has been considered seriously so we're not going to change it.

2.  Not compatible

3. It's just for debuging and flashing firmwares. It can be removed.

4. MX-style switches only

5. No estimations yet but I'm sure it won't be high for either the PCB or the case.

6. It's not decided yet.

7. The PCB will be manufactured in China but I'll consider to ship them from the US.

We didn't intend to make an exciting or unique 60% case. This case was designed for this PCB for our own needs. I posted it here to see if anyone need it or not.

[Konjungamo]

1. Fair enough, absolutely understandable with a Bluetooth-only PCB

2.

5. 6. Fair enough, keep us updated!

7. I'd be fine with shipping from China but I am biased since that's usually easier for people from Europe

Totally not meant as an insult, it's a clean and minimal case. If this post gains enough traction I'm sure there will be enough interest

[Ricinco]

Looks pretty neat, a couple of the layout choices are a bit weird imo. The bottom row supports a 3u space but not something like 2.25u/1.25u/2.75u split space? And the fact that it completely lacks support for stepped caps lock is kinda odd too.

[frostbyte-gaming]

Looks pretty neat, a couple of the layout choices are a bit weird imo. The bottom row supports a 3u space but not something like 2.25u/1.25u/2.75u split space? And the fact that it completely lacks support for stepped caps lock is kinda odd too.

Looking at the pcb it seems to support stepped caps lock I think they just forgot to add it to their layout diagram.

[TalkingTree]

Are you releasing the firmware's source by any chance?

[Trousers]

Not knowing anything about designing or manufacturing PCB's, it feels weird that there isn't the option for wired operation. Oh well.

Is there an on/off switch? Is it automatic, is it in a function layer?

Anyway, looks very intriguing. At the moment, there doesn't appear to be any bluetooth 60%'s with ISO support (apart from Minila and it's unusual layout).

[madn3ss795]

I don't see any mounting holes near the bottom edge of the PCB. This would mean a lot of flex on the bottom row.

[TalkingTree]

it feels weird that there isn't the option for wired operation.

Nordic nRF51822 doesn't support USB.

[amnesia0287]

Looks pretty promising! I'll just post a few questions I have:

• Is the PCB finalized already? Any chance of using a LiPo or button cell to power this thing instead of batteries?
• Is it compatible with the 5°-case from KBDfans?
• What is the USB port on the PCB for if there is no hardwired mode?
• Is the PCB compatible with Alps switches or is it MX-style switches only?
• Any pricing estimate?
• Shipping timeframe? Group buy or constant supply (to Vendors)?
• Shipped from China or from the US?

The case looks pretty good, not very exciting or uniqe but still very nice

1. It's finalized and has been tested for a while. LiPo is not suitable for suck low current devices, not to mention the self-discharge problem. Button cell won't provide long enough battery life. The choice of batteries has been considered seriously so we're not going to change it.

I’m gonna go ahead and call bull**** on this specific claim. AnnePro uses LiPo and it can go months and months without charging. They also use LiPo in kindles now, and those have battery life if like 3+ months.

[regionfree]

Looks pretty promising! I'll just post a few questions I have:

• Is the PCB finalized already? Any chance of using a LiPo or button cell to power this thing instead of batteries?
• Is it compatible with the 5°-case from KBDfans?
• What is the USB port on the PCB for if there is no hardwired mode?
• Is the PCB compatible with Alps switches or is it MX-style switches only?
• Any pricing estimate?
• Shipping timeframe? Group buy or constant supply (to Vendors)?
• Shipped from China or from the US?

The case looks pretty good, not very exciting or uniqe but still very nice

1. It's finalized and has been tested for a while. LiPo is not suitable for suck low current devices, not to mention the self-discharge problem. Button cell won't provide long enough battery life. The choice of batteries has been considered seriously so we're not going to change it.

I’m gonna go ahead and call bull**** on this specific claim. AnnePro uses LiPo and it can go months and months without charging. They also use LiPo in kindles now, and those have battery life if like 3+ months.

Haven’t had luck getting an anne pro over a month yet on a single charge. Stock. Also replaceable batteries are more convenient. You literally don’t need a cable for your board.

[TriangleLab]

Looks pretty promising! I'll just post a few questions I have:

• Is the PCB finalized already? Any chance of using a LiPo or button cell to power this thing instead of batteries?
• Is it compatible with the 5°-case from KBDfans?
• What is the USB port on the PCB for if there is no hardwired mode?
• Is the PCB compatible with Alps switches or is it MX-style switches only?
• Any pricing estimate?
• Shipping timeframe? Group buy or constant supply (to Vendors)?
• Shipped from China or from the US?

The case looks pretty good, not very exciting or uniqe but still very nice

1. It's finalized and has been tested for a while. LiPo is not suitable for suck low current devices, not to mention the self-discharge problem. Button cell won't provide long enough battery life. The choice of batteries has been considered seriously so we're not going to change it.

I’m gonna go ahead and call bull**** on this specific claim. AnnePro uses LiPo and it can go months and months without charging. They also use LiPo in kindles now, and those have battery life if like 3+ months.

LiPo sure can provide long battery life as along as you use a larger one. The more detailed reasons are:

1. Using LiPo means adding power management chips. Power management chips consume power. Our PCB is very power efficient so we don't hope the power management chip consume even too much power compared with the nrf51822 chip.

2. The low current of our PCB is not suitable for LiPo because the self-discharge problem will be serious. Imagine the battery may consume 300 mAh and self-discharged 100 mAh.

3. The self-discharge on low current devices will also cause degradation of the LiPo

4. Since two AAA battery can already last for months, we think it's not necessary to use LiPo and power management chips to add the complexity.

We've been discussed with Mickey Team for many times regarding the battery problem. They're very professional embedded engineers and they've worked on BLE devices for many years. We value their expertise. I'm not saying Anne Pro or Kindle are not professional. They may have their reasons. I'm gonna call bull**** easily before I understand everything completely.

[TriangleLab]

Are you releasing the firmware's source by any chance?

We're considering to refactor the key binding part with forth language and release only this part. You can think it as we're gonna keep the "tmk_core" closed-source.

[pomk]

Is this compatible with cherry switches? They have a minimum voltage rating of 2 Volts and with just two AAA batteries the low voltage is going to be 1.8 Volts minus whatever the diode takes away (0.5 - 0.2 Volts). It might be useful to do some tests in the low end of the designed Voltage range.

[TriangleLab]

Is this compatible with cherry switches? They have a minimum voltage rating of 2 Volts and with just two AAA batteries the low voltage is going to be 1.8 Volts minus whatever the diode takes away (0.5 - 0.2 Volts). It might be useful to do some tests in the low end of the designed Voltage range.

Hi pomk. It's only compatible with cherry switches. The PCB actually has been tested for one year so far by a small group of people. The firmware has been updated several times to fix bugs. Some one have reported missing keys when battery is low but that was after 4-6 months normal usage. I forgot to mention only AAA alkaline battery will work, not rechargeable batteries because of the voltage difference.

I was interested in your projects. Your discussions with several other buddies in the wireless GH60 thread were very helpful!

[DALExSNAIL]

Sounds interesting, will be in for a. Pcb if nothing else if it's decently priced ☺

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

[online]

THAT'S MY IDEA!!  Did you saw my photo on QQ.
I'm typing this with it right now. really love this keyboard!!
Like the look of your case, may get another one if your case is getting made.

[amnesia0287]

LiPo sure can provide long battery life as along as you use a larger one. The more detailed reasons are:

1. Using LiPo means adding power management chips. Power management chips consume power. Our PCB is very power efficient so we don't hope the power management chip consume even too much power compared with the nrf51822 chip.

2. The low current of our PCB is not suitable for LiPo because the self-discharge problem will be serious. Imagine the battery may consume 300 mAh and self-discharged 100 mAh.

3. The self-discharge on low current devices will also cause degradation of the LiPo

4. Since two AAA battery can already last for months, we think it's not necessary to use LiPo and power management chips to add the complexity.

We've been discussed with Mickey Team for many times regarding the battery problem. They're very professional embedded engineers and they've worked on BLE devices for many years. We value their expertise. I'm not saying Anne Pro or Kindle are not professional. They may have their reasons. I'm gonna call bull**** easily before I understand everything completely.

The Self-Discharge rate of LiPo is ~5% a MONTH (Bear in mind that's ~1 YEAR to get to 50% battery while idle). That's WAY WAY better than the ~25% rate of NiCd and NiMh. Power efficiency is great, but maximizing power efficiency without cause and to the detriment of other function is NOT a good thing. Is there any scenario where anyone NEEDS 6 months of battery life for their keyboard and would have no access to charge even just once or twice in that window? Are you designing keyboards for use by the military? Consumers value convenience. Being able to charge your keyboard with your computer rather than having to hunt down AAA batteries you may or may not own is a tremendous value add. It's not as if keyboards are ever used in scenarios where there would be not available device to power them.

I would pay MORE MONEY for a keyboard with a battery integrated. Yes, AAA works, and there are likely many design reasons why it is a good choice. But the best engineered product is not always the best product and the best product is not always the best selling product.

I'm not arguing that your design is less efficient. I 100% believe you that it is more efficient, but you are well past the point of diminishing returns. You are making meaningless gains that don't actually make for a better product, just a better spec sheet.

You can call bull**** all you want on my claims about the kindle, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a lipo battery on a device smaller than a keyboard with a 2 month idle battery time.

Want a better example? My Logitech MX Master 2 IS a BLE device and has a 500mAh LiPo and the battery again lasts about 2 months.


To be clear, I really want a nice Bluetooth keyboard, just not nearly enough to want to mess with AAA batteries. I finally got rid of my last few devices that needed AA/AAA batteries and so I don't even stock them anymore at home. Everything seems to have a micro usb charge port these days. I hope eventually someone will make something similar without the hassle of traditional alkaline batteries.

[TriangleLab]

LiPo sure can provide long battery life as along as you use a larger one. The more detailed reasons are:

1. Using LiPo means adding power management chips. Power management chips consume power. Our PCB is very power efficient so we don't hope the power management chip consume even too much power compared with the nrf51822 chip.

2. The low current of our PCB is not suitable for LiPo because the self-discharge problem will be serious. Imagine the battery may consume 300 mAh and self-discharged 100 mAh.

3. The self-discharge on low current devices will also cause degradation of the LiPo

4. Since two AAA battery can already last for months, we think it's not necessary to use LiPo and power management chips to add the complexity.

We've been discussed with Mickey Team for many times regarding the battery problem. They're very professional embedded engineers and they've worked on BLE devices for many years. We value their expertise. I'm not saying Anne Pro or Kindle are not professional. They may have their reasons. I'm gonna call bull**** easily before I understand everything completely.

The Self-Discharge rate of LiPo is ~5% a MONTH (Bear in mind that's ~1 YEAR to get to 50% battery while idle). That's WAY WAY better than the ~25% rate of NiCd and NiMh. Power efficiency is great, but maximizing power efficiency without cause and to the detriment of other function is NOT a good thing. Is there any scenario where anyone NEEDS 6 months of battery life for their keyboard and would have no access to charge even just once or twice in that window? Are you designing keyboards for use by the military? Consumers value convenience. Being able to charge your keyboard with your computer rather than having to hunt down AAA batteries you may or may not own is a tremendous value add. It's not as if keyboards are ever used in scenarios where there would be not available device to power them.

I would pay MORE MONEY for a keyboard with a battery integrated. Yes, AAA works, and there are likely many design reasons why it is a good choice. But the best engineered product is not always the best product and the best product is not always the best selling product.

I'm not arguing that your design is less efficient. I 100% believe you that it is more efficient, but you are well past the point of diminishing returns. You are making meaningless gains that don't actually make for a better product, just a better spec sheet.

You can call bull**** all you want on my claims about the kindle, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a lipo battery on a device smaller than a keyboard with a 2 month idle battery time.

Want a better example? My Logitech MX Master 2 IS a BLE device and has a 500mAh LiPo and the battery again lasts about 2 months.


To be clear, I really want a nice Bluetooth keyboard, just not nearly enough to want to mess with AAA batteries. I finally got rid of my last few devices that needed AA/AAA batteries and so I don't even stock them anymore at home. Everything seems to have a micro usb charge port these days. I hope eventually someone will make something similar without the hassle of traditional alkaline batteries.

1) I don't think using LiPo are so much better than using AAA alkaline batteries, as the two AAA alkaline batteries can last half a year.

2) We don't want to use LiPo considering the possible troubles and the benefits.

3) We're not trying to make perfect keyboards.

 

[online]

LiPo sure can provide long battery life as along as you use a larger one. The more detailed reasons are:

1. Using LiPo means adding power management chips. Power management chips consume power. Our PCB is very power efficient so we don't hope the power management chip consume even too much power compared with the nrf51822 chip.

2. The low current of our PCB is not suitable for LiPo because the self-discharge problem will be serious. Imagine the battery may consume 300 mAh and self-discharged 100 mAh.

3. The self-discharge on low current devices will also cause degradation of the LiPo

4. Since two AAA battery can already last for months, we think it's not necessary to use LiPo and power management chips to add the complexity.

We've been discussed with Mickey Team for many times regarding the battery problem. They're very professional embedded engineers and they've worked on BLE devices for many years. We value their expertise. I'm not saying Anne Pro or Kindle are not professional. They may have their reasons. I'm gonna call bull**** easily before I understand everything completely.

The Self-Discharge rate of LiPo is ~5% a MONTH (Bear in mind that's ~1 YEAR to get to 50% battery while idle). That's WAY WAY better than the ~25% rate of NiCd and NiMh. Power efficiency is great, but maximizing power efficiency without cause and to the detriment of other function is NOT a good thing. Is there any scenario where anyone NEEDS 6 months of battery life for their keyboard and would have no access to charge even just once or twice in that window? Are you designing keyboards for use by the military? Consumers value convenience. Being able to charge your keyboard with your computer rather than having to hunt down AAA batteries you may or may not own is a tremendous value add. It's not as if keyboards are ever used in scenarios where there would be not available device to power them.

I would pay MORE MONEY for a keyboard with a battery integrated. Yes, AAA works, and there are likely many design reasons why it is a good choice. But the best engineered product is not always the best product and the best product is not always the best selling product.

I'm not arguing that your design is less efficient. I 100% believe you that it is more efficient, but you are well past the point of diminishing returns. You are making meaningless gains that don't actually make for a better product, just a better spec sheet.

You can call bull**** all you want on my claims about the kindle, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a lipo battery on a device smaller than a keyboard with a 2 month idle battery time.

Want a better example? My Logitech MX Master 2 IS a BLE device and has a 500mAh LiPo and the battery again lasts about 2 months.


To be clear, I really want a nice Bluetooth keyboard, just not nearly enough to want to mess with AAA batteries. I finally got rid of my last few devices that needed AA/AAA batteries and so I don't even stock them anymore at home. Everything seems to have a micro usb charge port these days. I hope eventually someone will make something similar without the hassle of traditional alkaline batteries.

I don't know about battery tech specs and etc... but speaking as an end user, I much prefer AA/AAA battery for input devices.
Clean desk setup is the main reason for me to go wireless/bluetooth, I don't want to have a cable around my desk just to charge the keyboard, even once a few month. I'd rather have a AA/AAA battery charger hidden in the corner of my room and have the batteries ready to be used. Also, finding the right rechargeable battery replacement is not as easy as AA/AAA if it goes bad.

I was tempted to upgrade to MX Master 2, but decided to stay with my power hungry G700 because of above reason.
Same goes to MX Ergo vs M570.

[TriangleLab]

I don't want to see a debate here for AAA vs LiPo.

Please don't talk about LiPo anymore. WE ARE NOT GONNA CHANGE TO LIPO.

If you don't like AAA batteries, this PCB is not for you.

[DALExSNAIL]

I don't want to see a debate here for AAA vs LiPo.

Please don't talk about LiPo anymore. WE ARE NOT GONNA CHANGE TO LIPO.

If you don't like AAA batteries, this PCB is not for you.

I like this approach

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk

[amnesia0287]

LiPo sure can provide long battery life as along as you use a larger one. The more detailed reasons are:

1. Using LiPo means adding power management chips. Power management chips consume power. Our PCB is very power efficient so we don't hope the power management chip consume even too much power compared with the nrf51822 chip.

2. The low current of our PCB is not suitable for LiPo because the self-discharge problem will be serious. Imagine the battery may consume 300 mAh and self-discharged 100 mAh.

3. The self-discharge on low current devices will also cause degradation of the LiPo

4. Since two AAA battery can already last for months, we think it's not necessary to use LiPo and power management chips to add the complexity.

We've been discussed with Mickey Team for many times regarding the battery problem. They're very professional embedded engineers and they've worked on BLE devices for many years. We value their expertise. I'm not saying Anne Pro or Kindle are not professional. They may have their reasons. I'm gonna call bull**** easily before I understand everything completely.

The Self-Discharge rate of LiPo is ~5% a MONTH (Bear in mind that's ~1 YEAR to get to 50% battery while idle). That's WAY WAY better than the ~25% rate of NiCd and NiMh. Power efficiency is great, but maximizing power efficiency without cause and to the detriment of other function is NOT a good thing. Is there any scenario where anyone NEEDS 6 months of battery life for their keyboard and would have no access to charge even just once or twice in that window? Are you designing keyboards for use by the military? Consumers value convenience. Being able to charge your keyboard with your computer rather than having to hunt down AAA batteries you may or may not own is a tremendous value add. It's not as if keyboards are ever used in scenarios where there would be not available device to power them.

I would pay MORE MONEY for a keyboard with a battery integrated. Yes, AAA works, and there are likely many design reasons why it is a good choice. But the best engineered product is not always the best product and the best product is not always the best selling product.

I'm not arguing that your design is less efficient. I 100% believe you that it is more efficient, but you are well past the point of diminishing returns. You are making meaningless gains that don't actually make for a better product, just a better spec sheet.

You can call bull**** all you want on my claims about the kindle, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a lipo battery on a device smaller than a keyboard with a 2 month idle battery time.

Want a better example? My Logitech MX Master 2 IS a BLE device and has a 500mAh LiPo and the battery again lasts about 2 months.


To be clear, I really want a nice Bluetooth keyboard, just not nearly enough to want to mess with AAA batteries. I finally got rid of my last few devices that needed AA/AAA batteries and so I don't even stock them anymore at home. Everything seems to have a micro usb charge port these days. I hope eventually someone will make something similar without the hassle of traditional alkaline batteries.

I don't know about battery tech specs and etc... but speaking as an end user, I much prefer AA/AAA battery for input devices.
Clean desk setup is the main reason for me to go wireless/bluetooth, I don't want to have a cable around my desk just to charge the keyboard, even once a few month. I'd rather have a AA/AAA battery charger hidden in the corner of my room and have the batteries ready to be used. Also, finding the right rechargeable battery replacement is not as easy as AA/AAA if it goes bad.

I was tempted to upgrade to MX Master 2, but decided to stay with my power hungry G700 because of above reason.
Same goes to MX Ergo vs M570.

I guess you didn’t read the whole thread. Rechargeable AA/AAA are not supported.

[pomk]

Is this compatible with cherry switches? They have a minimum voltage rating of 2 Volts and with just two AAA batteries the low voltage is going to be 1.8 Volts minus whatever the diode takes away (0.5 - 0.2 Volts). It might be useful to do some tests in the low end of the designed Voltage range.

Hi pomk. It's only compatible with cherry switches. The PCB actually has been tested for one year so far by a small group of people. The firmware has been updated several times to fix bugs. Some one have reported missing keys when battery is low but that was after 4-6 months normal usage. I forgot to mention only AAA alkaline battery will work, not rechargeable batteries because of the voltage difference.

I was interested in your projects. Your discussions with several other buddies in the wireless GH60 thread were very helpful!

That 4 months is about the same as for me when I noticed chatter. I chose to go with a three battery plus low µC regulator in order to circumvent the problem completely. One option that I should have in hindsight taken would be to use a LiFePo battery, they require no additional regulator as the charge voltage for them is below 3.7 Volts.

How have you decided to approach firmware and/or layout updates? I noticed that you have connected the data lines from the USB connector to the µC, so maybe you have made some vUSB implementation?

[TriangleLab]

Is this compatible with cherry switches? They have a minimum voltage rating of 2 Volts and with just two AAA batteries the low voltage is going to be 1.8 Volts minus whatever the diode takes away (0.5 - 0.2 Volts). It might be useful to do some tests in the low end of the designed Voltage range.

Hi pomk. It's only compatible with cherry switches. The PCB actually has been tested for one year so far by a small group of people. The firmware has been updated several times to fix bugs. Some one have reported missing keys when battery is low but that was after 4-6 months normal usage. I forgot to mention only AAA alkaline battery will work, not rechargeable batteries because of the voltage difference.

I was interested in your projects. Your discussions with several other buddies in the wireless GH60 thread were very helpful!

That 4 months is about the same as for me when I noticed chatter. I chose to go with a three battery plus low µC regulator in order to circumvent the problem completely. One option that I should have in hindsight taken would be to use a LiFePo battery, they require no additional regulator as the charge voltage for them is below 3.7 Volts.

How have you decided to approach firmware and/or layout updates? I noticed that you have connected the data lines from the USB connector to the µC, so maybe you have made some vUSB implementation?

The chatter should be caused by the diodes, not the Cherry switches, by our analysis. We're looking for other types of diodes but most of us are too busy currently.

The layout updating is implemented using the dfu tools from Nordic. We will generate a zip file from our own server and then upload the zip file to the nrf51822 MCU using nrf connect.

The USB connector is just for flashing the bootloader at first time. It can be removed by adding one row pads.

[ideus]

I don't want to see a debate here for AAA vs LiPo.

Please don't talk about LiPo anymore. WE ARE NOT GONNA CHANGE TO LIPO.

If you don't like AAA batteries, this PCB is not for you.

+1


Personally, I am not sure why I may need a wireless mechanical keyboard, as they are always hooked to my docking stations at home and at work and I never need to unplug them. While traveling I use the laptop keyboard which is not really that bad (Thinkpad). However, I respect the proposal as a novel approach for a blue-tooth mechanical keyboard, along with being programmable is a very welcome feature.

[DarKou]

Who!

Really nice project guys!

[senter]

+1

Personally, I am not sure why I may need a wireless mechanical keyboard, as they are always hooked to my docking stations at home and at work and I never need to unplug them. While traveling I use the laptop keyboard which is not really that bad (Thinkpad). However, I respect the proposal as a novel approach for a blue-tooth mechanical keyboard, along with being programmable is a very welcome feature.

Thanks.

The reason I like wireless mechanical keyboards is that I hope my desk extremely clean.  Here is a photo of my current desk setup.



I'm using a Filco Convertible 2 TKL keyboard with aluminum top case and a MX570 Trackball mouse. They're both wireless and they all have very long battery life. I feel refreshing when I work on such a clean desk. When I want to read a book or have some snacks, I just push the keyboard and mouse aside without worrying about the cables. A clean desk without cables grants freedom to me.

I don't know what other reasons why people like wireless keyboard,  but I've heard many have the same reason as mine.

[ideus]

+1

Personally, I am not sure why I may need a wireless mechanical keyboard, as they are always hooked to my docking stations at home and at work and I never need to unplug them. While traveling I use the laptop keyboard which is not really that bad (Thinkpad). However, I respect the proposal as a novel approach for a blue-tooth mechanical keyboard, along with being programmable is a very welcome feature.

Thanks.

The reason I like wireless mechanical keyboards is that I hope my desk extremely clean.  Here is a photo of my current desk setup.

Show Image

I'm using a Filco Convertible 2 TKL keyboard with aluminum top case and a MX570 Trackball mouse. They're both wireless and they all have very long battery life. I feel refreshing when I work on such a clean desk. When I want to read a book or have some snacks, I just push the keyboard and mouse aside without worrying about the cables. A clean desk without cables grants freedom to me.

I don't know what other reasons why people like wireless keyboard,  but I've heard many have the same reason as mine.

I have been using wireless mice since they became available, for the same reasons you pointed. Keyboards in the other hand, are always on a keyboard tray, therefore they do not get in my way to use the desktop real state. I understand your reasons well, and from that perspective opting for a well designed wireless board, like this, makes sense by all means.

[K.Mak]

+1

Personally, I am not sure why I may need a wireless mechanical keyboard, as they are always hooked to my docking stations at home and at work and I never need to unplug them. While traveling I use the laptop keyboard which is not really that bad (Thinkpad). However, I respect the proposal as a novel approach for a blue-tooth mechanical keyboard, along with being programmable is a very welcome feature.

Thanks.

The reason I like wireless mechanical keyboards is that I hope my desk extremely clean.  Here is a photo of my current desk setup.

Show Image

I'm using a Filco Convertible 2 TKL keyboard with aluminum top case and a MX570 Trackball mouse. They're both wireless and they all have very long battery life. I feel refreshing when I work on such a clean desk. When I want to read a book or have some snacks, I just push the keyboard and mouse aside without worrying about the cables. A clean desk without cables grants freedom to me.

I don't know what other reasons why people like wireless keyboard,  but I've heard many have the same reason as mine.

I'm liking your Filco approach, does the aluminum top just block off the USB port and just leave the battery area accessible?

[TriangleLab]

I'm liking your Filco approach, does the aluminum top just block off the USB port and just leave the battery area accessible?

It's just a top  case. The bottom case is still the plastic original one.

[redbanshee]

This looks awesome! My annie pro SUCKS, it feels like a child's toy and the BT range is like 5 feet, hopefully this one will have a longer BT range.

Do you know the bluetooth range by any chance?

Also is there some type of low power sleep mode? So it will save battery life overnight etc?

[TheMissingPiece]

Looks promising! Is the PCB finalized? If not, split spacebar support like on the DZ60 would make this an insta-buy for me: https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/1473/3902/files/1_03_abb48769-9486-44bd-a761-7cd39d7e1bda.jpg?v=1498974452

[pomk]

If you are still making changes to the PCB, I’d suggest flipping the switches to the normal orientation. Upside down switches interfere with gmk caps making the bottoming out mushy on home and shift rows.

[TriangleLab]

This looks awesome! My annie pro SUCKS, it feels like a child's toy and the BT range is like 5 feet, hopefully this one will have a longer BT range.

Do you know the bluetooth range by any chance?

Also is there some type of low power sleep mode? So it will save battery life overnight etc?

We've never measured the maximum range precisely because no one would use a keyboard more than 10 feet far away from the computer. Without the case, or with plastic case, it can work 30 feet away but there might be chatters at that distance. Basically I believe the working range won't be a problem for normal usage.

The very first version of firmware doesn't support sleep mode and can last 1.5-2 months. The latest version firmware change the PCB to slow broadcasting mode after 30 seconds without pressing keys, then stop broadcasting after another 30 seconds without pressing keys. Once you press any keys again, the PCB starts to work again.

[TriangleLab]

We're still making changes. The layout and orientation might be changed but not guaranteed.

Now we all have multiple interesting projects working on. A bluetooth dongle is also being developed. I prefer to launch a small and quick GB first.

[redbanshee]

This looks awesome! My annie pro SUCKS, it feels like a child's toy and the BT range is like 5 feet, hopefully this one will have a longer BT range.

Do you know the bluetooth range by any chance?

Also is there some type of low power sleep mode? So it will save battery life overnight etc?

We've never measured the maximum range precisely because no one would use a keyboard more than 10 feet far away from the computer. Without the case, or with plastic case, it can work 30 feet away but there might be chatters at that distance. Basically I believe the working range won't be a problem for normal usage.

The very first version of firmware doesn't support sleep mode and can last 1.5-2 months. The latest version firmware change the PCB to slow broadcasting mode after 30 seconds without pressing keys, then stop broadcasting after another 30 seconds without pressing keys. Once you press any keys again, the PCB starts to work again.

Yea, the reason I was asking about range is because I use these BT 60% boards as a home theater PC keyboard. It sits on my coffee table in front of my couch approx 7-8 feet away from the receiver dongle.

[TriangleLab]

This looks awesome! My annie pro SUCKS, it feels like a child's toy and the BT range is like 5 feet, hopefully this one will have a longer BT range.

Do you know the bluetooth range by any chance?

Also is there some type of low power sleep mode? So it will save battery life overnight etc?

We've never measured the maximum range precisely because no one would use a keyboard more than 10 feet far away from the computer. Without the case, or with plastic case, it can work 30 feet away but there might be chatters at that distance. Basically I believe the working range won't be a problem for normal usage.

The very first version of firmware doesn't support sleep mode and can last 1.5-2 months. The latest version firmware change the PCB to slow broadcasting mode after 30 seconds without pressing keys, then stop broadcasting after another 30 seconds without pressing keys. Once you press any keys again, the PCB starts to work again.

Yea, the reason I was asking about range is because I use these BT 60% boards as a home theater PC keyboard. It sits on my coffee table in front of my couch approx 7-8 feet away from the receiver dongle.

7-8 feet is not even a challenge. It will work well for sure.

[Zobeid Zuma]

No 2.25 / 1.25 / 2.75 split spacebar layout?  I am disappoint.   

[TriangleLab]

Update:

I have a rough estimation for the pricing now.

• Presoldered PCB: $50 without shipping
• Aluminum case (without brass weight): $90 or less without shipping

These are rough estimations so they can be changed. The firmware and PCB is still being improved. We're ordering some equipment for analyzing on-air packets and something else. The server for generating firmware also need to be upgraded. I prefer to start a small and quick GB first in December.

For CONUS buyers, 20 or 30 PCBs can be shipped directly from me. I'll cover the international shipping because I'll have packages shipping from China anyway. Not sure if 20 PCBs will be sold out though.

For other buyers and buyers for aluminum cases, packages will be shipped from China.

[kiwi99]

Update:

I have a rough estimation for the pricing now.

• Presoldered PCB: $50 without shipping
• Aluminum case (without brass weight): $90 or less without shipping

These are rough estimations so they can be changed. The firmware and PCB is still being improved. We're ordering some equipment for analyzing on-air packets and something else. The server for generating firmware also need to be upgraded. I prefer to start a small and quick GB first in December.

For CONUS buyers, 20 or 30 PCBs can be shipped directly from me. I'll cover the international shipping because I'll have packages shipping from China anyway. Not sure if 20 PCBs will be sold out though.

For other buyers and buyers for aluminum cases, packages will be shipped from China.

Very reasonable price, I am interested in this, only thing that would hold me back is the flipped switch orientation, If that was changed you have my business 100%

[ghostjuggernaut]

Definitely gonna keep an eye on this. Looks very promising and the price point is great.

[DALExSNAIL]

Update:

I have a rough estimation for the pricing now.

• Presoldered PCB: $50 without shipping
• Aluminum case (without brass weight): $90 or less without shipping

These are rough estimations so they can be changed. The firmware and PCB is still being improved. We're ordering some equipment for analyzing on-air packets and something else. The server for generating firmware also need to be upgraded. I prefer to start a small and quick GB first in December.

For CONUS buyers, 20 or 30 PCBs can be shipped directly from me. I'll cover the international shipping because I'll have packages shipping from China anyway. Not sure if 20 PCBs will be sold out though.

For other buyers and buyers for aluminum cases, packages will be shipped from China.

Oh wow, this is a great price, definitely in for a PCB and case

[zeltner]

I'd be interested in a PCB and case

[pixelpusher]

is there any chance that you might develop a plastic case down the road?  I just figure that many people who want a Bluetooth keyboard need to either travel with it or move it around more (say, as a device to use on the couch in front of the tv), and something lightweight would be nice.

[TriangleLab]

is there any chance that you might develop a plastic case down the road?  I just figure that many people who want a Bluetooth keyboard need to either travel with it or move it around more (say, as a device to use on the couch in front of the tv), and something lightweight would be nice.

We can design a plastic case, but we're not able to manufacture them. The moulds for plastic injection are very expensive. It's only doable if we can get a lot of orders. So actually the aluminum case is a kind of budget choice for a small scale GB.

Fortunately you can always use the normal cheap plastic case like this or sandwich case like this. I have all three types of case and like the aluminum case best. The aluminum case is not that heavy. The slots in the case actually was meant to reduce the weight, not for adding brass weights.

[pixelpusher]

is there any chance that you might develop a plastic case down the road?  I just figure that many people who want a Bluetooth keyboard need to either travel with it or move it around more (say, as a device to use on the couch in front of the tv), and something lightweight would be nice.

We can design a plastic case, but we're not able to manufacture them. The moulds for plastic injection are very expensive. It's only doable if we can get a lot of orders. So actually the aluminum case is a kind of budget choice for a small scale GB.

Fortunately you can always use the normal cheap plastic case like this or sandwich case like this. I have all three types of case and like the aluminum case best. The aluminum case is not that heavy. The slots in the case actually was meant to reduce the weight, not for adding brass weights.

Nice.  I see that you only had to cut out a small portion of the plastic case to get it to fit.  I guess since those are so cheap I might just be able to fashion a removable cutout on it to make it easy to change out the batteries.  good to know!

[Puddsy]

I imagine someone asked already, but will the bluetooth be able to work with an alu case?

I know some people have issues with their anne pros that they put in alu cases

[TriangleLab]

I imagine someone asked already, but will the bluetooth be able to work with an alu case?

I know some people have issues with their anne pros that they put in alu cases

It depends. If it's an all aluminum case and aluminum plate, it's likely the PCB won't work at all.

On our case you can see there's an large opening for the battery. It's designed for the bluetooth antenna as well. The Bluetooth antenna is only covered by an acrylic plate there.