3 ms·

FYI, there's a somewhat related topic at https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37630804 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37630804 concerning the difficulties

FYI, there's a somewhat related topic at https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37630804 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37630804 concerning the difficulties of editing text on a mobile under the heading Text editing on mobile: the invisible problem. As is my usual wont, I had a long rave about such matters but one of the points I raised that may interest those here was the lack of Bluetooth keyboards, especially the more portable types with good mechanical switches. After posting, I thought I'd better do a updated search to see if the market had improved and I've just discovered a complete range of keyboards of which I was unaware, namely NuPhy https://nuphy.com/ https://nuphy.com/ (perhaps I'm a member of the mushroom club and the last to know). Anyway, it seems the market has improved significantly in the last year or so since I last looked. There's good range of KBs with combo Bluetooth 5.0 + wireless + USB-C cable + hot-swappable keys/key types. Some reviews seem favorable but I'd be interested to hear experiences from others who've actually used them.

someplaceguy 3y ago
Keychron also has many keyboards with Bluetooth + USB-C cable -- the ones with "Pro" in the name, I think. I am personally a fan of the "Q" or "Q Pro" series (because of the knob), but there are other lines. I think all of them have hot-swappable keys and many of them even have hot-swappable mechanical switches, I think. In most of their keyboards, all the keys (and key combinations) are fully configurable at the hardware level as well. I can vouch for the quality of the ones I have (Q3), but mine don't have Bluetooth so I don't know how well that works.
- hilbert42 3y ago
  Ah, thanks for that. Just had a quick look at the site, seems I've much reading to do.
  - someplaceguy 3y ago
    Oh, based on your previous comment, I should also say that the one I have is really heavy, which is not great for carrying around everywhere. Apart from that I really like it.
    - hilbert42 3y ago
      Right, noted. But I've multiple uses. I'm sick of the junk KBs I have now so I need to replace them, so it's all useful info. And for my PCs I want heavy KBs (I used to own one of the heavy IBM XT/AT ones and loved it). The Bluetooth/Android aspect is only a subset matter that arose here as a result of the other HN story re horrible text entry on phones. Thanks again.
HighNunChicken 3y ago
I bought into NuPhy with their original release, the NUTYPE F1, and had a terrible experience with them—both the product and customer service was defective. The keyboard I received had many quality issues, and others online reported the same. When contacting support, they required many back and forth emails, asking for more photos and videos each time. After weeks of this, I got this from support, “Sorry for the inconvenience. Follow the return process, customers need to return the products to us firstly and pay for the return freight. We'll give you refund when we got your return goods after checked,there's really with quality problem.” This is after sending both photos/videos of the obvious defects and quality issues… and return shipping would be back to Hong Kong. In the end, I just took this as a learning experience to never back a “kickstarter” product again. Some additional insight: -preordered keyboard: 8/2020 -received keyboard: 11/2020 -20% discount offer on new purchases: 11/2020 -keycap update and new product promoted: 12/2020 In summary, I waited 3 months to get charged an extra 20% for an inferior product that got discontinued a month later. I cannot recommend NuPhy.
- hilbert42 3y ago
  Thanks. Very useful knowledge. Seems a risky proposition at this stage (and I'd prefer to buy from a local retailer who had them in stock so there'd be no mucking about if I had to return it). All that glitters is not gold! :-(

someplaceguy 3y ago

Keychron also has many keyboards with Bluetooth + USB-C cable -- the ones with "Pro" in the name, I think. I am personally a fan of the "Q" or "Q Pro" series (because of the knob), but there are other lines. I think all of them have hot-swappable keys and many of them even have hot-swappable mechanical switches, I think. In most of their keyboards, all the keys (and key combinations) are fully configurable at the hardware level as well. I can vouch for the quality of the ones I have (Q3), but mine don't have Bluetooth so I don't know how well that works.

hilbert42 3y ago
Ah, thanks for that. Just had a quick look at the site, seems I've much reading to do.
- someplaceguy 3y ago
  Oh, based on your previous comment, I should also say that the one I have is really heavy, which is not great for carrying around everywhere. Apart from that I really like it.
  - hilbert42 3y ago
    Right, noted. But I've multiple uses. I'm sick of the junk KBs I have now so I need to replace them, so it's all useful info. And for my PCs I want heavy KBs (I used to own one of the heavy IBM XT/AT ones and loved it). The Bluetooth/Android aspect is only a subset matter that arose here as a result of the other HN story re horrible text entry on phones. Thanks again.

HighNunChicken 3y ago

I bought into NuPhy with their original release, the NUTYPE F1, and had a terrible experience with them—both the product and customer service was defective. The keyboard I received had many quality issues, and others online reported the same. When contacting support, they required many back and forth emails, asking for more photos and videos each time. After weeks of this, I got this from support, “Sorry for the inconvenience. Follow the return process, customers need to return the products to us firstly and pay for the return freight. We'll give you refund when we got your return goods after checked,there's really with quality problem.” This is after sending both photos/videos of the obvious defects and quality issues… and return shipping would be back to Hong Kong. In the end, I just took this as a learning experience to never back a “kickstarter” product again. Some additional insight: -preordered keyboard: 8/2020 -received keyboard: 11/2020 -20% discount offer on new purchases: 11/2020 -keycap update and new product promoted: 12/2020 In summary, I waited 3 months to get charged an extra 20% for an inferior product that got discontinued a month later. I cannot recommend NuPhy.

hilbert42 3y ago
Thanks. Very useful knowledge. Seems a risky proposition at this stage (and I'd prefer to buy from a local retailer who had them in stock so there'd be no mucking about if I had to return it). All that glitters is not gold! :-(