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August 20, 2025

Issue #196 - Keyboard Builders' Digest

Keyboard Builders' Digest // Issue #196

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Check out this week's editorial with awesome projects, tips, ideas, discount codes, etc!


Hey y'all,

A few notable keyboard-related projects I thought were worth highlighting this time around:

  • Here are your current community-favorite mechanical switches, with July's top picks. Based on real sales data provided by our awesome contributing vendors and manufacturers. Yushakobo (Japan) just contacted me, so we'll have another exotic list from next month on. ;)

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  • Review: My thoughts about the MX tilting kits by 3dkeycap -- a Kickstarter campaign running at the moment. Turn your flat keyboard into a more ergo keywell one. This one is the best of the tilter iterations yet, constantly evolving.

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  • Keyboard review: The Syntech Chronos 68 is a cute little 65% HE board in an aluminum case. Packed with Hall-effect features mainly for gamers.

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  • Hot topic: A friendly reminder from Snimtas about the risks of using wireless keyboards with built-in lithium batteries plugged in constantly. Readers loved this piece, check it out if you haven't already.

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  • An ultra low-profile monoblock split keyboard using PG1316S switches: Wingman by vuoz.
  • The Chonkofly19 is a unibody split keyboard by Orange Dog, inspired by the Chocofly.
  • A low-profile split keyboard by TheEternalComrade: Prince54 with phone cable.
  • An open-source split by HephaestusHex: the wireless HexBoard.
  • The unibody version of Matt Petiteau's original design: Smallcat Uni.
  • MrBacon released a nice low-pro wireless ortho keyboard: the Fingerguns.
  • The Dactyl Orca, designed by MexPayne, is a Dactyl derivative featuring a levered thumb button.

As always: much more news and resources in my weekly editorial write-up, switch database, MK meetup calendar and keyboard shop database - with 600+ keyboard vendors!


Save some money

There are 180 keyboard shops accepting the KBDNEWS coupon code and offering you various discounts now. New additions: Redragon, AmPi Studio, RGBKB. (And here are all the keyboard stores in the database.)


Weekly keyboard art

Awesome keyboard art image

New handmade lacquered ceramic keycaps by Cerakey.


This issue’s supporters

splitkb.com, Upgrade Keyboards, Aiksplace, @keebio, Cyboard, Jacob Mikesell, KEEBD, Timo, littlemer-the-second, @kaleid1990, TALPKEYBOARD, Brendan P., ghsear.ch, u/motfalcon, Bob Cotton, FFKeebs, @therick0996, Christian Mladenov, Schnoor Typography, Daniel Nikolov, u/eighty58five, Caleb Rand, James McCleese, HLPlanet, Ben M, BeaverKeys, zzeneg, Anatolii Smolianinov, Spencer Dabell, Penk Chen, Stefan S., Clacky, Alex Miller, Matthias Goffette, Trey Causey, Hana Lee, Dylan Ingham, Cloyce, Gordon Diggs, Mario S., Duncan B., HubertTheMad, Hating TheFruit, Shnobble, Jesse L., Andres Sakk, Davidjohn Gerena, nutylabs, Ikasaya, drudru, Technofrikus, s_p_l_o_d_e, Delek Turner, KeebRight, Dickiedyce, 0xcircuitbreaker, Filip S., TurkeyBoards.

(You are awesome! Thanks everyone!)


Still with me?…

Check out my write-up over at kbd.news!

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