Kinesis Advantage360 Professional Split Mechanical Keyboard

Product Information

I thought it was a gimmick, but you can combine it with Keyboard layers, and it provides a nice feedback loop when you switch layers. I was excited for the 360 supporting ZMK but I've sworn off bluetooth where it can be avoided, so I'm probably going to just keep my plain-old Advantage until it dies and see if they're "fixed" the 360 line. Concave keywells are scooped into a bowl shaped to reduce hand and finger extension and to relax muscles. Of all the new computing hardware that was announced in 2016, I was most excited to get my hands on two upgrades: the new MacBook Pro with a Touch Bar, and Google’s take on a Wifi mesh network.

Especially now that they have more than two layers, would love it if they backported that to the Advantage 2.Maybe it’s the engineer in me that’s laid dormant all these years that I’ve transitioned into management, but I find the world of split keyboards and the experiments into ergonomics and comfort and functionality 7 fascinating.

This bit of historical context is essential to understand the lineage of the Advantage360, evolving from the Kinesis Advantage2 keyboard that they only released a few years back. The gestalt is a bit more like your take on engineering complexity, and whether additional degrees of freedom are optimizing or confusing. It’s very subtle but I do think it helps to distinguish those keys, especially as most people tend to stick their utility and meta keys on the outer edges. If I hold the key down, it puts they keyboard into a layout where I can more easily access the symbols used commonly in programming. Professional Model features Shine-Through ABS keycaps: The Pro model features white backlighting so to support working in a low-light environment these keycaps are used so the legends illuminate.

The thumb cluster is very similar to the Advantage 2 and Ergodox, if you have used either of those two. The keys are arranged in vertical columns (rather than staggered) to better reflect the natural motion of fingers when typing. But what I like at least about that one is, it’s overall build and construction, which doesn’t have that cheap DiY plastic look and looks more industial.

If you often switch between devices, you will find the wireless software gets muddled fairly frequently. It’s been about five weeks since I opened the Kinesis Advantage360 Ergo Keyboard to review for the site, and I have to say it’s been one of the more unique experiences I’ve ever had reviewing a piece of tech.There is a button underneath you need to press to change the setting, and it's effortless to change the keyboard's height instantly. With time, you get customized to the Advantage360, but I think it's a step back from the Advantage2.