Freestyle VIP3 Pro Premium Accessory Kit For Freestyle Pro - Black

This keyboard uses Cherry mechanical keys...marvelously responsive, not the spongy membrane crap that a lot of keyboards use now. I'm an extremely fast touch typist and this keyboard can keep up with me. It's the only keyboard I use (I have three of them).

I purchased this keyboard to replace a SAFETYPE vertical keyboard that had for almost 20 years. Since SAFETYPE wasn't available any longer, I chose this unit because it looked like I could achieve almost the same hand and finger geometry as my old SAFETYPE; i.e. two inclined halves standing almost on edge using the left space bar as a backspace key with a 10-key unit in-between keyboard halves. The KINESIS key re-mapping process is also quick and easy, allowing me to quickly re-create the SAFETYPE layout I was used to. Further, I opted for the 10-key add-on which houses a USB multiplexer to combine multiple desktop USB cables into a single feed for the tower PC under my desk. I also purchased the tenting lift kit since it most closely emulated the hand and finger geometry I was used to with the SAFETYPE. So, for me the transition to the KINESIS was seamless. I was set up and typing within 10 minutes. BTW: As a software developer, I was used to using a split vertical keyboard prior to this purchase for almost 20 years. It was my experience that, if you can proficiently use a flat keyboard WITHOUT LOOKING AT THE KEYS, then the learning curve for this keyboard will be short and worth the effort.

If you're going to go the length to get a split keyboard, you probably also want some ability to tilt or tent. This kit just provides tenting, and I wish it would also give me the ability to introduce a negative tilt. Given that it's only a few plastic pieces, it should be 20 bucks or less. This seems ripe for a 3rd party to step in and make something, but if there is one I haven't located it yet. Price gouging aside, it does an OK job holding the keyboard in place without any bounce or movement. There's still a lot of room to improve the product by adding an extra axis of movement and finer tilt management.

One of the causes of injury from typing is bending the wrist sideways. You should be moving your arm to reach keys on the side instead of your hand. This is clearly something that the so called designers of this product overlooked as the wrist rests are made out of the most grippy material known to man. It is literally worse than any other wrist rest I have and makes this keyboard less ergonomic than a non-ergonomic keyboard. There is also no front to back tilt, my hands feel like they are drooping over because I am used to having it.

As osteoarthritis and carpal tunnel increased my problems at the keyboard, I chose the Kinesis Freestyle Pro as my ergonomic solution. While the keyboard by itself can help, the VIP3 Pro Premium adds wrist and variable "tenting" support to allow me adjust my work station for any future changes that I may need. There is a slight learning curve with the keyboard, but the decreased pain should allow me to work even faster. If you have an ergonomic problem at the keyboard, I highly recommend the keyboard and VIP3 solution.