Split keyboards
A split keyboard is one keyboard in two halves, each with its own cable or wireless link, so you place them where your hands already are instead of putting your hands where the keyboard is. We build two of them to order in Perth, Western Australia.
why split it
- > shouldersTwo halves sit as far apart as you put them, so your hands can line up with your shoulders instead of being pushed together by the width of the board.
- > wristsEach half can be angled independently, so you can type with your forearms straight rather than turned outward to meet a fixed slab.
- > thumbsThe thumb clusters put modifiers and layers under your strongest digit, instead of stretching a little finger to a corner key.
- > the deskNothing in the middle. A trackpad, a notebook or a mug goes between the halves rather than beside them.
Those are the mechanics, not a medical claim. Whether a different posture helps you is between you and someone qualified to say.
don't buy one if
- You need to be at full speed tomorrow. Expect a week or two before typing feels normal again, and longer on the 42-key Corne.
- You share the machine. Anyone else sitting down at it will be slower on a layered layout than on a normal keyboard.
- You live in a numpad. Heavy numeric entry is the one job a full-size board genuinely does better.
- You want it for gaming first. These are typing keyboards; plenty of games assume a key layout that a 42-key split does not have.
corne or lily58
Corne
42 keys, no number row
You want the smallest board you can still work on, and you are happy to reach numbers and symbols through a layer. Every key stays under a finger without moving your hand.
from $250
Lily58
58 keys, full number row
You want the split geometry without relearning where numbers live. The number row stays where your hands already expect it, which makes the first week much easier.
from $290
| Feature | Corne | Lily58 |
|---|---|---|
| Keys | 42 | 58 |
| Number row | On a layer | Yes |
| Thumb keys | 3 a side | 4 a side |
| Per-key RGB | Optional | Not offered |
| OLED, hot-swap, QMK | Yes | Yes |
what makes ours different
> built to order in Perth
Nobody drop-ships these. The case is 3D printed here; the board is flashed, assembled and tested here, and it is packed here. The PCB comes machine-assembled — the Corne's partly, with the rest soldered here.
> your colours, not a colourway
Case, accent and keycaps are chosen per order in the configurator and printed to match, rather than picked from three stocked combinations.
> open source, all the way down
Corne and Lily58 are upstream open-hardware designs, running QMK firmware with Vial. You can remap any key in a browser, and you are not locked to our software to do it.
> hot-swap sockets
Switches pull out and push in with no soldering, so the feel of the board is a decision you can change later.
Photos of the bench they come off are on the about page, and bulk orders for teams are on the business page.
questions
- How long before I can type properly again?
- A week or two for most people to get back to normal speed, longer on the Corne because the number row moves to a layer. Comfort tends to arrive before speed does.
- Can I change the layout?
- Yes. Both boards run QMK with Vial, so you can remap any key from a browser with nothing to install, as many times as you like.
- Do I need to solder anything?
- No. It arrives assembled, flashed and tested, with hot-swap sockets so switches can be changed by hand later.
- How long does an order take?
- One to five business days on the bench, then Australia Post. Most Western Australian addresses land inside a week.
- What if it turns out not to be for me?
- Faults are always covered, and your Australian Consumer Law guarantees apply and cannot be excluded. Boards built to your colours sit outside the change-of-mind window, which is why this page is blunt about who should not buy one.
Anything else, the contact page reaches a person, not a queue.