KINESIS Freestyle2 Blue Wireless Ergonomic Keyboard for PC (9" Separation), Dark Gray

With the tenting accessory it's a great ergonomic keyboard. Native Mac layout and labels, with an additional forward delete key which is a plus for me. I also like the big Esc key after a couple days of adjusting muscle memory. Pressing FN switches between F1-F12 mode and special keys mode (volumes, play/pause etc.) with LED indicator which is also very nice. It does not have numeric key pad thus has smaller size, which is exactly what I want but might be a concern for some people. It connects easily with MacBook and can be used to wake up MacBook and input password. Also works with Windows but with Windows and ALT key in reverse positions. There're lots of ways to remap keys in Windows so if it's an issue it can be easily sovled. All in all, it has none of the different small issues I had with other wireless keyboards and I'm very happy about this. The best part is, it can switch between bluetooth connections with 3 different devices. I recently started using it with a MacBook and a Windows laptop connected with the same monitor. With 2 bluetooth mouses I can switch between two computers relatively easily. It works as well as a USB switch box and without wires the deal with. I used a few USB switch boxes before for keyboard and mouse, and they all had occational issues, but I have not had switching issue with this keyboard so far. It really satisfies all my needs and I feel lucky to find this one.

I already have used the older Freestyle 2 for years and love it. This keyboard has the same strengths -- and most of the same drawbacks. Strengths (apart from the obvious of the split keyboard and the wireless connectivity) include: - it is straightforward to pair this keyboard via Bluetooth (Linux and Windows both work; Linux can be a bit more troublesome) - the ability to switch "on the fly" from one Bluetooth pairing to another is a nice touch (really convenient if you work with two computers side-by-side) - the J and F keys have ridges (finding the correct hand position by touch becomes important given that the two halves of the keyboard can be spaced arbitrarily far apart) - nice LED indicators for 'Caps Lock', etc. - while the keys are not silent, they are not excessively loud either - the connector which can be used to hold/tether the two halves together is easily released using switches on each half - portability: the two halves can be conveniently packed into a backpack or bag Reasons I'd give it a 4.5 instead of a 5 if that were an option: from my perspectives, shortcomings include: 1. the absence of a physical insert key (only accessible using a Fn combination) 2. the size of the keys (the keys are approximately laptop-sized keys, not regular full-sized keys) 3. the keyboard itself is not backlit (I find this especially useful when working in relatively dark conditions) 4. the placement of the 6 key on the left half of the keyboard (this is fine if one uses the LH for 6 but I find myself stabbing into empty space with my right hand... while this can be relearned over time, it is hardly ideal...) 5. the wired USB connection is only for charging (if you're just trying to get something done, Bluetooth pairing can be a hassle -- e.g., this isn't the "go-to" keyboard if you want to plug into a headless server and quickly deal with something) Bottom line: overall, the wireless is well worth the minor price differential between this and the wired Freestyle 2-- well worth the additional money. If you want to take care of your hands and wrists, this keyboard should certainly be on your "short list" of those under consideration.

I really needed a keyboard that matched my shoulder width a lot better. I type a lot and I am tired of having a typist hump and rolled shoulders. The cable between the halves was not the longer one that they had offered at one time but it was marginally long enough. Brightness: There is no backlight Size: Honestly, I would be much happier if it was bigger because I could use a much bigger return key and a much much bigger shift key on the right side. The dedicated function keys on the right side will be the death of me! Connectivity: Bluetooth works just fine and the battery seems almost infinite. The keyboard works while connected to power so when the battery dies, I will still have a keyboard. Build quality: In terms of general build, this is a normal keyboard, it is not a gaming keyboard with red switches nor an IBM-PC keyboard of yore. However, I am happy with the feel and there is sufficient travel and sound to provide solid feedback. Keyboard functionality: Take away the normal sized return key and the micro shift on the right side and those MORONIC function keys on the right --a larger delete key wouldn't hurt either-- and the keyboard works so well that it has been more or less perfectly transparent. What I need is this keyboard with the large delete, enter, shift, and space (although the spacebars do feel great!) of the original MS "ergo" keyboard. I need a tool, nothing fancy, and, for damned sure, no right side function keys! Noise level: In terms of feedback, this is an excellent keyboard, however, it is quiet enough that I do not know why this is a question at all. WISH LIST: Longer Cable, Much Bigger Delete, Return, Right Side Shift, more room between the keys, more distinctive home row indicators.

A great idea for a keyboard that suffers from over design. The things that make this a useful product are a great key touch, bluetooth connectivity, and the ability to move the halves of the keyboard around and to elevate them for comfort. If the designers had stopped there everything would be fine. But, succumbing to the "if we can do it we should" philosophy that seems to be all the rage these days, the designers didn't. Instead they decided the the keyboard should talk to three different devices, and they added two columns of keys - 10 in total - down the left hand side of the keyboard, ostensibly useful with Microsoft Office.* This is a Mac KB. I'm using OS 11. Each time I go to use the computer and the monitor has turned off, it takes two to four taps on one of the keys *after the login screen has come up* before the keyboard is actually talking to the computer so I can type my password and unlock the screen. More frustrating is that the keyboard frequently loses its link to the computer and has to be "re-paired" - turn the KB off, turn it back on, press the pairing button, several times, and wait for it to link up again. I suspect that these problems have to do with the fact that the KB is looking for one of the three machines it can talk to, despite the fact that it's only paired with a single machine. The extra keys on the left side of the KB are not to be touched except when one is using MS Office (or whatever they were intended to assist). Doing so will occasionally cause the KB to un-pair. Please note that I have none of these problems with the standard Mac bluetooth KB. * They also stuck the ESC key way off in left field, but that's a personal peeve that probably only affects people like myself who do a lot of work in the terminal.

This keyboard is ergonomical, yes. The split shape, good key feels, nice. Bluetooth multiconnect? That's the reason I got it, so I could use it seamlessly with two different computers, switching with the press of a button, and that works too. Except. Use this keyboard for any length of time and it is going to slowly drive you crazy. Every once in a while - say once in a couple of hours - it will randomly pause while you are in the middle of typing, wait two seconds, and then whatever the last key you hit before it paused will repeat a bunch of times. Wait four or five more seconds and it reconnects and you're OK! The other thing it'll do is just randomly lose connection. No pop-up, no light, just suddenly and inxeplicably becomes unresponsive. The only cure for that one is to turn it off and back on again with the power switch on the back. These two annoyances start out as minor and weird, but over time, you will grow to really really hate the damn thing. It was a hundred bucks! This is undoubtedly some flaw in the bluetooth implementation, and if you read through all the poor reviews of this keyboard you'll find others have had the same issues. For YEARS. Obviously Kinesis is not interested in acknowledging or fixing it. I'm about to replace it. It still works exactly as well as it did when it was brand new, but I just can't take it any more.

I've been using this keyboard for over 5 months and love it. It feels better for my shoulders and overall posture when my arms are able to be farther apart instead of slanted inward, which they have to be even for most ergonomic keyboards. The Bluetooth works well overall -- I experience an occasional instance of it behaving like a key got stuck and typing a letter several times after a slight delay, but this is only occasional and hasn't been much of a problem for me. It's worth it to have one less cord to deal with, in my opinion. I think I've only charged this keyboard a couple of times in the 5+ months I've had it, and I use it daily for work. I turn the keyboard off overnight and when I'm stepping away from my computer for more than a few minutes. I purchased the accessory kit with the tenting accessory and wrist attachments. No regrets! Not a cheap keyboard when all was said and done, but a good keyboard is something worth investing in if you're doing a lot of typing. The only thing I can think of as a "negative" is that there's no number pad, so you're stuck using the numbers at the top of the keyboard instead of having the option to quickly type out numbers and calculations with one hand, unless you purchase the separate Bluetooth number pad, which I've opted not to do. But this keyboard was still a good purchase regardless.

Not for this Mac user,,,I was Very disappointed.. I have a nerve impingement in my neck, and a bad lower back that prevents me to be able to sit at a desk, thereforeI am a lap top user and have been doing so apparently setting myself for poor posture.. (I waited until my injury was completely healed before purchasing) After much research about how we are suppose to type ergonomically to prevent injuries I purchased a table to hold my laptop at eye level and a very large rectangular bamboo cutting board (12" X 23" I also purchased on Amazon) that fits perfectly on my lap that gives my arms a place to rest..ironically this keyboard takes up so much room I didn't have any place to rest my arms or have any room for my track pad (I am a Mac User) I DONT USE A MOUSE once you use a track pad you can't go back,,,to any kind of mouse At the advice of many ergonomic articles published every where; I ordered this keyboard to keep my arms apart and by their sides, its what they all say is the right way to type…they all say your suppose to hold your arms by your side.. which this does do that,,, however due to the height of the keys it is impossible to rest your arms thus you have to type with your arms floating in the air, thus your hands have no support as they have to hover over the keys,, within 15 minutes my hands were aching, my arms hurting, my neck was killing me, I tried it every way possible, tented, untented arms resting as much as they could, and I ordered the keyboard accessories for the wrist support,,,( IF YOU LIKE THIS KIND OF KEY BOARD, I DON'T SEE HOW YOU COULD USE THIS WITHOUT THE ACCESSORIES ) The icing on the cake was every time my computer would go into sleep mode I had to reconfigure the connection !!!! It could have been because I had another external keyboard configured to my lap top However:,, IT WASN'T ON !!! ? I sent it back the same day. I am glad I bought a mac external keyboard first so I had a point of comparison… for me being a lap top person I like the laptop low-profile keys this Kinesis keyboard the keys are like the old electronic type writers,, I looked at all the so called ergonomic keyboards in local retail stores and the higher keys on external keyboards all the same..so I guess it all depends on what your use to (WHICH I DON'T GET SINCE LAP TOPS HAVE NEVER HAD HIGH PROFILE KEYS LIKE THAT) they had a good idea splitting the keyboard,but that is the only redeeming quality this has, Being a mac user there are so many functions that are built into the mac system that the keyboard can do,,the Kinesis had a lot of Un-necessary redundant keys that macs do without the extra keys they had making the keyboard wider than necessary Nice idea but needs to go back to the drawing board,,,

My main reason for considering an ergonomic keyboard is that the top of my shoulders are literally knotted and painful from using computers for many hours a day. I have a number of keyboards, one of which is the Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 v1. While the MS 4000 helps a bit in opening up my shoulders compared to a regular keyboard, the key action is downright horrible (note that v1 is has stiffer key actions than later version of the MS 4000). I considered other one-piece ergonomic keyboards, but eventually decided that only a fully split keyboard will allow my shoulders to be laid back and not "rolled forward" as my chiropractor described it. After using it for a few days now, I can fully attest that the split position is truly better for me than a one-piece ergonomic keyboard. Other positives are the Kinesis Freestyle 2 Blue: (1) The key actions are really nice, with a fair bit of travel (not the laptop-like shallow travel), not noisy (though audible in a quiet room, it is quiet enough to use on a conference call on speaker phone without being distracting), and light enough so you don't feel like you have to "hammer" it like it does on the MS 4000. (2) The bluetooth connection is flawless: I have connected it successfully on first try to a linux system (Ubuntu 18.04), a Mac (even though this is a PC version; the key works fine too, with the "Windows" key automatically mapped to the Apple "Command" key), and of course a Windows machine. I had doubts about Bluetooth in general, but the implementation here is flawless, both in pairing and also in normal use. I never had a lag or missed letter issue, even after power savings mode had kicked in (it wakes up quickly). Another factor I considered is the size: it is small enough to toss into a computer bag to bring to a cafe or library, for the times when you want to spend a few hours pouring out your thoughts. A one-piece ergonomic keyboard would be awkward to bring outside the home or office, whereas this one can travel with me. Other users mentioned the row of keys on the left are not useful, or some keys are too far or not in expected places -- I don't have any issue with that. On the day that I received the keyboard, I paired it with my Linux machine and typed the first chapter of Carlo Rovelli's Seven Brief Lessons of Physics in one sitting, in order to get a feel for the keyboard. Result: no slow down except for a few times I tried to hit the "b" key with my right hand and hit the table instead. Otherwise, no real adjustment needed, and this is now my daily keyboard. Any downsides? No wrist support or padding included, but for me it is not an issue. I also have a pair of Smart Glove that for me tend to work better when I want something under my wrist. As I mentioned, my main issue is shoulder tightness and pain, so sufferers of wrist or carpel tunnel issues might consider the accessory kit essential. When I consider the cost of the keyboard to be equivalent to a couple of chiropractor visits, the cost is a very fair price. I can now prevent my shoulder issues rather than spend the money to get it "fixed". (Kinesis also makes a version with mechanical keys -- you can even choose the type of Cherry switches, and with programmable key mapping as well. So for those who are willing to spend the bucks, I would highly recommend taking a look at it.) A word of praise about the vendor: my keyboard was sold by askergoworks.com, and while the listing did not say it'll be shipped by Amazon Prime, the keyboard arrived in 2 days. Kudos to them for such a quick shipment.