Performance

I’m sure after reading about all of the Truly Ergonomic 207’s features and taking in the unique design through the photos you are very curious about how it performed. Before I jump into its performance I wanted to point out something that I noticed on their website when checking out the 1 year warranty and 60 day return policy. Check out this quote that is in reference to the 60 day return policy.

“Please be aware that you must use your Truly Ergonomic Keyboard for at least 30 days to request a Return.- Love takes time -”

This is most certainly the case with this keyboard. Typically I can pick up a keyboard and adjust to the slight differences in just a few minutes. Because this was such a unique design I had to spend a considerable amount of time with it before I started to feel comfortable. In fact I basically had a few days that I planned on not being very productive when it comes to writing due to this adjustment period. As a writer the last thing I wanted to do was to sit down and try to put words down and struggle with them over and over again. I decided that I should spend more time editing photos and playing a few video games while chatting with people and doing other fairly light typing activity’s. I spent a few days doing this before starting to work my way back into heavy typing but even then I ran into big problems for about a week. One of the most frustrating parts was later in the week as I started to get adjusted I spent a little time on my laptop, going back to a normal keyboard layout was a mess as was going back to the Truly Ergonomic 207.

During my adjustment period I did run into an issue with the keyboard double entering some of the keys while typing. They suggested that we unplug the keyboard and run through all of the problem keys 100+ times to help break them in. This fixed out issue completely and lowered my stress level considerably. If you end up with a Truly Ergonomic that does this, give this a try before going through the additional trouble of an RMA.

Once past our issues and finally adjusted to the unique layout I was finally able to truly put the keyboard to the test. While writing a few long reviews including this one I was finally able to get a feel for the differences between the Truly Ergonomic. Specifically the way my hands rest on the keyboard seemed to cause less fatigue after hours of writing. Here is a diagram that came from their website that shows what I am talking about.

image 7

The interesting placement up the middle of the keyboard and the rearranged shift and control keys was the biggest adjustment for me, even after getting used to the keyboard. There are still times where I will hit to far over and bump enter when trying to hit a space but the biggest issue comes from shift and ctrl. I still can’t seem to go an hour without hitting ctrl when trying to capitalize a letter. This is especially frustrated when you end up pressing key binds like in Gmail when you press ctrl-I and it italicizes what you are writing. The worst came up while writing this specific review where I accidentally exited out and at the same time hit the button that corresponded with do not save on the exit menu.  But don’t worry there are two solutions to this. I can just keep waiting and learn it eventually or I can load the firmware listed on their website that will flip the ctrl and shift keys for you. After you do that you can just swap out the key caps and you are all set.

Even though the Truly Ergonomic 207 doesn’t have a number pad, they did slip in a number pad into the regular keyboard. I spoke about it in the photos and features section but I wanted to comment on its usability. This was very similar to what we saw from Cooler Master with their Quickfire TX and just like with that keyboard I found it hard to remember to put it to use. The times that I did remember it worked perfectly but it will take a long time to fully adjust to remembering to turn the number lock back on for the number pad when I am used to keeping it on all of the time. The same could be said with all of the media and special function keys up top. Going out of my way to hit a function key is a sure fire way to make me forget to use something, but I do understand that this was the only way to fit these keys onto an otherwise small keyboard. Here is a diagram of all of the special keys to give you an idea of what you can do with the keyboard if you try, they certainly did pack it full of special keys.

image 8

We all know LanOC is packed full of gamers as well and I’m sure you are curious how well this worked in game. In most cases I really didn’t notice a difference because the actual letter layout is still QWERTY, but in games that use tab, ctrl, and whatnot it did take some adjusting and in some cases just rebinding. This was just because games were made with a standard keyboard layout in mind. But the ergonomic design of the keyboard did lend itself well to long gaming sessions where just like when writing I did notice less strain on my hands and wrists. TrulyErgonomic recommended to us to consider using a ESDF layout that moved the enter, backspace, and teb keys closer to your hand as well.

image 5

The small keyboard design did help a lot to bring my mouse closer to my keyboard. Normally I would be spread out all over my table when gaming but the compact design cut that down slightly. This is also very helpful for people who don’t have a lot of room to work with on their desk or for LANs as well where you may be limited to a 3 foot wide area.

 

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garfi3ld's Avatar
garfi3ld replied the topic: #30905 20 May 2013 21:53
Today we take a look at a unique ergonomic mechanical keyboard design
Satansoul's Avatar
Satansoul replied the topic: #30906 20 May 2013 22:34
funny looking keyboard
Leonresevil2's Avatar
Leonresevil2 replied the topic: #30916 21 May 2013 02:05
"unless you are somehow skinnier than your keyboard." Uh oh.

Looks interesting, would be interested in a DVORAK or different layout that is more ergonomic to go all the way. Not sure about the Ctrl and Alt positions, would probably mess me up in League for awhile.
Lersar's Avatar
Lersar replied the topic: #30920 21 May 2013 02:20

Leonresevil2 wrote: "unless you are somehow skinnier than your keyboard." Uh oh.

I lol'd.
garfi3ld's Avatar
garfi3ld replied the topic: #30922 21 May 2013 02:28
I ordered him a sandwich :D
Deb0's Avatar
Deb0 replied the topic: #30937 21 May 2013 06:40
I would get angry at the key layout and smash it against a wall. Just sayin'.

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