Advantage360 Linear Quiet

I need to use splits to avoid pain, and the "well" format of the Kinesis almost got me when I was shopping for one a few years ago, but the fixed position of each hand made me go with the super adjustable Ergodox Ez. Still have and love that one, but now that I have a second office I looked again, and was pleasantly suprised that Kinesis offers one with two pieces in the same fashion. I went with wired because I don't like dealing with charging, and my setup is very fixed (with an equally Wired Kensington trackball); the software that comes with it is pure garbage, but if you want to do small layout adjustments, you can do them by programming the keyboard directly; and you can also mount the keyboard as a volume, which exposes all the config files. With that, I did a Claude-assisted migration of my (very) custom Ergodox Ez layout, which made me instantly productive. Had to use labels on a few keys because my layout includes keys that aren't covered by the extra keycaps or anything else, but one could also order custom keycaps or even a set of blank keys. The wireless version allows updating the firmware in full (like the Ergodox), but the only thing that I made me wish that is that ONE of the keys (the one that activates functions like reprogramming the layout or mounting the config files), but I worked around that and am super happy with the purchase - it's a steep price, but if you can afford or get your employer or healthcare provider to pay for it, you totally should.

I have had the Kinesis Advantage360 for about a week now and am finding it a little easier to adapt to than expected. However, this review probably would be 4.5 stars if possible. There are two problems with the keyboard: The linear keyswitches supplied with it are too soft for me. When moving a finger from the home keys, I often wind up typing extra letters without knowing that I have pressed another key. I wish Kinesis offered a wider variety of keyswitches. I probably would go with silent browns if they were available and definitely would prefer a slightly stiffer linear keyswitch. The other issue seems unavoidable: It takes a lot of area to lay keys out this way. You need large hands or the fingers of a pianist to reach all the keys. I often find myself taking my hand off the keyboard to reach something with my pinkies and then have to find the home keys again. This is easier than it might be because, thanks to a suggestion in another review, I replaced the home keypads with the keycaps for my old Kinesis Freestyle Pro. They are much easier to recognize by touch than the keys the Advantage360 comes with. In all, I am quite satisfied with this keyboard and expect it to improve my typing efficiency before the month is over. It probably would go faster if not for the keyswitches.

Saved my wrists. Once you get used to it, the strain on your wrists and forearms disappear. A bit pricy but worth it if you type a lot. Would be five stars but it bugs out sometimes, needing to be unplugged and replugged in (macros stop working)

Cant even explain how good this is. No more pain at all. It took away my arm and wrist pain. Combine this keyboard with the Logitech MX vertical mouth. AMAZING keyboard. Just get ready for a learning curve and you will need to learn blind typing to get the most out of this keyboard in regards to the ergonomic part of it. If you are willing to put in the work it is worth the investment.

5 stars for the actual keyboard. 3 stars for the SmartSet App (used to manage key layouts and macros). Overall 4 stars for the total package. The keyboard is fantastic and has pretty much eliminated the wrist pain I used to get from long coding sessions. The three tenting angles help to be able to dial in the most comfortable position (ranging from a flat palm to more of handshake position). I also appreciate being able to separate the pods, which helps maintain better posture because the chest/shoulders remain open. The build quality is solid. I work on macOS and have found the SmartSet app to be frustrating to navigate and buggy (e.g. pressing a key before dismissing an in app tool tip causes it to crash). Once you figure out the nuances of the software and how to work around some of these issues, it's fine. The app experience may be better on Windows. Overall, I really like the keyboard and I don't think I could back to a traditional setup.