Test the keymat!
- Thread starter EvilDragon
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gpsqueeek
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Toulouse?! Means we'll get to try it out at the THSF ? I hope so !
Sumpfmonster
Still Fresh
Toulouse?! Means we'll get to try it out at the THSF ? I hope so !
Could be possible... Mix'Art Myrys doesn't seem to be far away from @el joker. Maybe you can arrange a meeting with him...
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el joker
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gpsqueeek
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Will you be there Thursday too? I'll give a flash conference about the internet cube and libre money (I don't know at what time though). Friday I'll be at the boardgames convention, and the weekend is still unclear, depends on some friends of mine, too.
I hope I'll see you there for a chat and a beer around the prototype ;-)
el joker
Very Active Member
@gpsqueeek i ll go normaly saturday and sunday.
gpsqueeek
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OK we'll see if we manage to meet or not during the weekend then. It won't make me cancel my pre-order anyway
el joker
Very Active Member
ok @gpsqueeek so me as you i think i wait the pyra yes i hope we ll see i m so serious
yes i hope we ll see i m so serious
el joker
Very Active Member
me received today ! soon photos etc test with team pyra near me !
el joker
Very Active Member
Hi the team
the keymat it s very great ! the keymat was tested with @gpsqueeek and the team too!
photos here
good day to all
the keymat it s very great ! the keymat was tested with @gpsqueeek and the team too!
photos here
good day to all
ible
professional vim user
ok, who's next? @ClockworkCoder?
el joker
Very Active Member
@ible package is going to @ClockworkCoder
ClockworkCoder
Chaotic Neutral
Yep, not got it yet, but will be sure to update everyone as soon as I can.
ClockworkCoder
Chaotic Neutral
I received it this morning, so here are some initial thoughts:
tl;dr - it's fantastic!
It really does feel like a quality keypad. At first I was a little surprised by how much travel there is in the keys, but the more I tried it, the more it felt right. There is a nice positive "click", and assuming that translates to accurate key-presses (as I believe it will), I'm certain it's a winner. As is the case for all smaller keypads, it will take a while to get used to the arrangement; particularly the space button, but one can certainly quickly adjust to a new keyboard, especially if you're using it regularly. They keys themselves are well spaced, and I feel that I can quite easily press each of them individually. The only uncertain press was 'b' as reaching over it felt like I might be pressing other buttons at the same time. However, this isn't possible to check without actual input, and it's something that would be easy to adjust to anyway.
I also like that you could use the shoulder buttons as modifiers - would make using emacs (if I could ever get used to those commands) much easier. I didn't feel that the shoulder buttons sat naturally under my fingers, as my fingertips sit slightly farther back towards the middle of the device, but again, it's something that I could adjust to. In addition to adjusting, the case being sent around isn't the final version (apparently it's got different parts from different versions of cases too), and the shoulder buttons don't actually click, so it might actually work perfectly naturally.
The d-pad being demonstrated, again, isn't the final version, and indeed felt mushy. However, one of the earlier versions of the keypads (keymat?) felt really good, so I'm confident that the final version of this will be perfect.
As for aesthetics, the keypad does look gorgeous! So much, in fact, that in my opinion, the transparent case is shown up, and doesn't quite match the sleekness of the keypad.
My original images were apparently too large to upload here, so I resized them...
First up is a close-up of the gamepad buttons. Likely it's because the pad has been manhandled quite a bit, but there is some visible wear on the Y button, and is beginning to tear.
Just a close-up of the new version without the key caps:
Start, select and Pyra buttons:
The case and full keymat. I do feel that an opaque case would do the keypad more justice:
Close-up of an older version:
The older revisions. When I tested the d-pad here, it did feel really quite responsive, and would be perfectly acceptable as-is. As mentioned, the one in the case isn't correct, and indeed, it feels it.
Size comparison against a 3DS XL; less wide, same depth, but taller. I do like the shoulder button placement on the DS
Just a different angle:
And another:
And finally with it next to my current 'ultra-portable'
Alongside the worst keypad I have (which was marginally improved with the printed keypad)
And just a final one for those who think I simply don't like transparent cases:
Hopefully there'll be another update in the next couple of days, before I send it on again.
tl;dr - it's fantastic!
It really does feel like a quality keypad. At first I was a little surprised by how much travel there is in the keys, but the more I tried it, the more it felt right. There is a nice positive "click", and assuming that translates to accurate key-presses (as I believe it will), I'm certain it's a winner. As is the case for all smaller keypads, it will take a while to get used to the arrangement; particularly the space button, but one can certainly quickly adjust to a new keyboard, especially if you're using it regularly. They keys themselves are well spaced, and I feel that I can quite easily press each of them individually. The only uncertain press was 'b' as reaching over it felt like I might be pressing other buttons at the same time. However, this isn't possible to check without actual input, and it's something that would be easy to adjust to anyway.
I also like that you could use the shoulder buttons as modifiers - would make using emacs (if I could ever get used to those commands) much easier. I didn't feel that the shoulder buttons sat naturally under my fingers, as my fingertips sit slightly farther back towards the middle of the device, but again, it's something that I could adjust to. In addition to adjusting, the case being sent around isn't the final version (apparently it's got different parts from different versions of cases too), and the shoulder buttons don't actually click, so it might actually work perfectly naturally.
The d-pad being demonstrated, again, isn't the final version, and indeed felt mushy. However, one of the earlier versions of the keypads (keymat?) felt really good, so I'm confident that the final version of this will be perfect.
As for aesthetics, the keypad does look gorgeous! So much, in fact, that in my opinion, the transparent case is shown up, and doesn't quite match the sleekness of the keypad.
My original images were apparently too large to upload here, so I resized them...
First up is a close-up of the gamepad buttons. Likely it's because the pad has been manhandled quite a bit, but there is some visible wear on the Y button, and is beginning to tear.
Just a close-up of the new version without the key caps:
Start, select and Pyra buttons:
The case and full keymat. I do feel that an opaque case would do the keypad more justice:
Close-up of an older version:
The older revisions. When I tested the d-pad here, it did feel really quite responsive, and would be perfectly acceptable as-is. As mentioned, the one in the case isn't correct, and indeed, it feels it.
Size comparison against a 3DS XL; less wide, same depth, but taller. I do like the shoulder button placement on the DS
Just a different angle:
And another:
And finally with it next to my current 'ultra-portable'
Alongside the worst keypad I have (which was marginally improved with the printed keypad)
And just a final one for those who think I simply don't like transparent cases:
Hopefully there'll be another update in the next couple of days, before I send it on again.
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Pyramancer
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@ClockworkCoder Thanks for the post. That was pretty comprehensive for "initial thoughts".
OT: What is the keyboard in the clear case in your last photo? And what does the blank key to the left of the Enter key do? Is it just a spacer key to make it impossible to reach the Enter key?! [Sometimes I think that successful operation of a UK keyboard must require right-pinky-detachment surgery.]
OT: What is the keyboard in the clear case in your last photo? And what does the blank key to the left of the Enter key do? Is it just a spacer key to make it impossible to reach the Enter key?! [Sometimes I think that successful operation of a UK keyboard must require right-pinky-detachment surgery.]
ClockworkCoder
Chaotic Neutral
Hmm.. that's a good bit of trivia, and certainly off-topic, but it's an Amiga 1200, and the blank key was apparently just there to be compatible with European layouts, but has no useful function (in the UK) to my knowledge.
levi
Still fresh, damnit!
So first of all, a story in pictorial form:
Pyra keyboard prototype meets my slightly broken Pandora:
They decide to go for a coffee (in a coffee shop that won't be mentioned here; at least it wasn't S***bucks though)
Pyra action shot:
Pyra at Manchester Airport (kind of)
My impressions:
All round, pretty impressive. The keys have less travel than my Pandora, but are softer to press while being similarly as positive - this will probably help with desk-based finger-typing, while unimpeding handheld thumb-typing. The shoulder buttons seem to be located well; I seemed to be able to find them all thanks to their texture, and seemed able to press all or any of them at the same time (although they were immobile on this sample, so that's more about my fingers fitting cleanly and not covering other buttons at the same time). The hinge seemed stiffer, but it remains to be seen how well it holds with an LCD and display PCB in there.
The bad news was that the hinge still didn't seem to fit flush on the left and right when closed. It was closer than my Pandora, and I gather mine is one of the better of those for this issue. That may need watching to see how it looks with all the parts included. And there was some concern about the Y button - it's so close to the edge of the keymat that its collapsing support ring intersects the edge and is cropped, and on the uncapped recent edition sample mat has positively torn around that ring at the top. On the cased keymat that featured in the photos above, it was possible to press Y in a way that caused it to lock down, and while pretty much any further touch brought it back up, that wouldn't be ideal. That keymat though has some electrical tape around the ABXY buttons, because they were made slightly too small for the case, which won't be the case in production or even prototype units most likely, so this may not be the case on those.
tl;dr on those watch points:
- Hinge seemed somewhat uneven when closed. Evidence of this on completed prototypes requested.
- Y button stickiness; test on final cases/keymats. Check installed keymats after some use to check they don't tear inside the case.
And finally, a big thank-you to @ClockworkCoder for bringing the prototype bits and for the coffee!
Pyra keyboard prototype meets my slightly broken Pandora:
They decide to go for a coffee (in a coffee shop that won't be mentioned here; at least it wasn't S***bucks though)
Pyra action shot:
Pyra at Manchester Airport (kind of)
My impressions:
All round, pretty impressive. The keys have less travel than my Pandora, but are softer to press while being similarly as positive - this will probably help with desk-based finger-typing, while unimpeding handheld thumb-typing. The shoulder buttons seem to be located well; I seemed to be able to find them all thanks to their texture, and seemed able to press all or any of them at the same time (although they were immobile on this sample, so that's more about my fingers fitting cleanly and not covering other buttons at the same time). The hinge seemed stiffer, but it remains to be seen how well it holds with an LCD and display PCB in there.
The bad news was that the hinge still didn't seem to fit flush on the left and right when closed. It was closer than my Pandora, and I gather mine is one of the better of those for this issue. That may need watching to see how it looks with all the parts included. And there was some concern about the Y button - it's so close to the edge of the keymat that its collapsing support ring intersects the edge and is cropped, and on the uncapped recent edition sample mat has positively torn around that ring at the top. On the cased keymat that featured in the photos above, it was possible to press Y in a way that caused it to lock down, and while pretty much any further touch brought it back up, that wouldn't be ideal. That keymat though has some electrical tape around the ABXY buttons, because they were made slightly too small for the case, which won't be the case in production or even prototype units most likely, so this may not be the case on those.
tl;dr on those watch points:
- Hinge seemed somewhat uneven when closed. Evidence of this on completed prototypes requested.
- Y button stickiness; test on final cases/keymats. Check installed keymats after some use to check they don't tear inside the case.
And finally, a big thank-you to @ClockworkCoder for bringing the prototype bits and for the coffee!
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ClockworkCoder
Chaotic Neutral
Regarding the hinge, @levi, this comment from @EvilDragon _may_ be pertinent:
"The case is a mixture of various case revisions - so not everything will fit there (i.e. volume wheel, ports, etc.) That's also the reasons the shoulder buttons don't click. So no worries about that as well."
"The case is a mixture of various case revisions - so not everything will fit there (i.e. volume wheel, ports, etc.) That's also the reasons the shoulder buttons don't click. So no worries about that as well."
levi
Still fresh, damnit!
That's true, but I don't recall any public hinge part revisions beyond the old oval shaped hinge idea. As you say, I hope it's just something peculiar about this prototype, but I thought I'd note it so that it could be checked for in future release candidates.
rygD
Nihilistic Mystic
Slightly concerned about the Y button, as button mashing sometimes occurs during gaming. Will have to wait and see if this is an issue with later/production keymats.
I am wondering if there is any wear to the paint caused by pushing keys, and maybe even caused by gluing the caps on. Maybe someone near the end of the tour will check it out with a flashlight, or ED can stick it in a functional unit when it gets home and he can turn the backlight on.
I kinda want to check it out myself now because of this great feedback. Thanks for the pics and words, everyone.
I am wondering if there is any wear to the paint caused by pushing keys, and maybe even caused by gluing the caps on. Maybe someone near the end of the tour will check it out with a flashlight, or ED can stick it in a functional unit when it gets home and he can turn the backlight on.
I kinda want to check it out myself now because of this great feedback. Thanks for the pics and words, everyone.
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