KINESIS Freestyle Edge Split Mechanical Keyboard

tl;dr I love it very much, and it does have some quirks if you're a Mac user, but still my preferred solution so far for Mechanical + Split keyboard for Mac over the Matias Ergo Pro.I used a Matias Ergo Pro for two years before it severely bit the dust after warranty. I had repeated key issues with the Matias Ergo Pro multiple times, had to get it replaced once, and I not fond of its bulkiness, so I was looking for something new to replace it. I had the specific requirements of needing a split keyboard that works well with Macs, and after a brief tango with the Kinesis Freestyle2, I was depressed to realize that I am also a person who Desperately Needs the clickiest and clackiest of keyboards to feel like I'm not dying every time I type a letter, and since I type a lot all day for work, avoiding the deathfeelings is pretty clutch. And so, with all these specific needs, my options were limited from the start.Given that I live closer to the Arctic Circle than most people might by choice, I also experience darkness in abundance. The backlighting of this keyboard set it apart from my other option[s], and it seemed like an added bonus, for I would have to learn this subtly different keyboard layout in the depths of winter, when assisted keyboard vision can be necessary. The Kinesis Gaming Freestyle Edge checked all of my boxes in theory, and so I bit the bullet to see how it would roll out in practice. The outcome: I was pleased.For mac users, there *is* the annoyance of key alignment for the Command and Alt/Option keys with respect to the bottom row keys (ZXCV especially), as the placements are slightly shifted from the native Mac keyboard. The X on the MacBook Pro is completely above the Command key, but on the Freestyle Edge, the Z and X share equal space above what will typically be the Command key when you configure for Mac. Also, if you want to swap out those special keycaps to be Macish (as I have done with custom printed keys I found online), you can't easily get all the right keycaps for all the right places, as the *right* half of the keyboard has a non-standard Alt/Option key width compared to other mechanical keyboards out there. I couldn't find a keycap seller that would provide the correct size right Option key without ordering something completely custom. Fortunately for me, though, I never use right Option, so I left it as an extra right Control instead. What made this choice all the easier was the full programmability of the Freestyle Edge. All my worries had evaporated. What a beautiful day.I got the Cherry MX Blue key switches for maximum clack, and I love the feel. It was not a dramatic change from my experience of the Matias Ergo Pro key response, and if anything felt like an improvement. Having standard (Cherry MX) key switches also sets the Freestyle Edge apart from the Ergo Pro in that, hey, yo, it's not proprietary.The sequence of steps required to program the keyboard itself was moderately unintuitive as a first-time user, but once I wrapped my brain around the instructions, it was very easy to program and reprogram the keys. I do find that the Blue switches *can* be a bit abrasive on the ears when I am using my keyboard tray fully out from under my desk, but keeping it shielded by my desk's top does wonders for making the sound acceptable. I haven't tried rubber dampening rings, but I don't think they're necessary for me. My proximity to the Arctic Circle also means I'm not near anyone else while I work, so, no one's complaining.I do use the tenting accessory on my keyboard with a 15° pitch. The 10° pitch takes some fiddling to get it right, if you want to try that, too. I've found that the grip of the feet on this setup (keyboard + tent kit) does not hold the keyboard in place on my keyboard tray quite as firmly as the Matias Ergo Pro, but the Ergo Pro occupied twice as much vertical space and weighed twice as much and hurt my soul about 300 times as much, so having to reposition my keyboard halves from time-to-time is not the worst thing in the world. The tenting accessories leave a *little* bit to be desired when it comes to overall stability, but I've found the Edge tent kit, being slightly smaller, is a bit more stable than that for the Kinesis Freestyle2, so there's that.Also, it took me probably a month to realize I could toggle the backlighting with a single key. It's the one that looks like a sun. Godspeed.Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

This is a beautiful keyboard. The cherry keys are excellent and the design makes it easy to blow hair, dust and hand-jam out from under the keys. I bought the tenting kit and would recommend it. The tent kit is not absolutely necessary but it enhances the comfort of the split design. The split design definitely helped with shoulder tension and back issues for me. Programming the keyboard was implemented perfectly. It can act as a USB drive, and on that USB drive there is a program that you can use to program the keyboard. If you're doing something simple, you can also just hit a few buttons and program it manually. Once programmed the keyboard maintains that programming even if you plug it into another computer. The Corsair k95 keyboard that I have does not behave like this. It depends on a program running in the tray for any programmed macros to work. When you lock the computer, the programming reverts to the default and you lose any custom keys, which is annoying if you remap the ctrl, alt, and caps lock keys.This is a gaming keyboard so I can't blame Kinesis for what turned out to be a significant problem for me. The condensed design is a nightmare if you're coding. I thought I'd be able to learn the new placement of all the keys but I found once my hand left the home row, and it was floating around hoping to hit the delete, home, page up, or any of the arrow keys, I would be lucky to hit it half the time. Don't underestimate the necessity of space around the inverted-T arrow keys and the space around the Pg up/down, Home/End and Ins/Del on a normal keyboard. The split design exacerbates the issue unless you never, ever change the position or distance between the keyboad halves even a tiny bit. My muscle memory just never had a base to lock in on so I would fumble around looking for keys. The lack of a ten-key number pad was far less of a problem than having the arrow keys in the middle of a sea of other keys. Trying to find the home row afterwards was also pretty hit-or-miss so I would fumble around twice any time my finger came off the J key. It wound up being so frustrating I gave up and went back to the standard layout keyboard. If they ever come out with a full size split keyboard I'll give it a try, but this style sadly does not work for me. It really is a beautiful keyboard though. :'(