After months of waiting, I have just received the keyboard! In fact, I am typing this review on the new keyboard. I will surely edit this review once I have played with it a bit more, but right now, I am indulging my unrestrained joy over receiving a long-awaited product.
The keyboard is tiny. It is about as wide as the iPhone 7 Plus, and only three columns of keys taller. The construction seems very solid. The anodised aluminium case is of a high quality, but the four rubber feet on the underside to stabilise the keyboard seem flimsy. I cannot help feeling that they will wear off before long.
Whether or not this keyboard can be used for programming is a matter of personal taste. I, for one, have been using the TypeMatrix 2030 for over two years now, so I was able to adjust to the basic alphabet keys of the Planck in no time. (I find my typing speed to be quite a bit faster on ortholinear keyboards than on staggered ones.) On the Planck, I am going to need a few more days to fully memorise all the layers and combinations to get the various brackets, numbers, and other mathematical symbols. Once that has been done, I don't think it will be difficult to use the Planck as my main programming keyboard.
One problem is that, out of the box, almost all of the non alphabet keys are mislabeled. Were it not for the default map that was included in the package, I would not have been able to use the keyboard at all. I have been informed by e-email that we will be provided with new firmware that will allow us to re-programme the keyboard. Once I have been able to do that, I will post an updated review.
The keyboard is tiny. It is about as wide as the iPhone 7 Plus, and only three columns of keys taller. The construction seems very solid. The anodised aluminium case is of a high quality, but the four rubber feet on the underside to stabilise the keyboard seem flimsy. I cannot help feeling that they will wear off before long.
Whether or not this keyboard can be used for programming is a matter of personal taste. I, for one, have been using the TypeMatrix 2030 for over two years now, so I was able to adjust to the basic alphabet keys of the Planck in no time. (I find my typing speed to be quite a bit faster on ortholinear keyboards than on staggered ones.) On the Planck, I am going to need a few more days to fully memorise all the layers and combinations to get the various brackets, numbers, and other mathematical symbols. Once that has been done, I don't think it will be difficult to use the Planck as my main programming keyboard.
One problem is that, out of the box, almost all of the non alphabet keys are mislabeled. Were it not for the default map that was included in the package, I would not have been able to use the keyboard at all. I have been informed by e-email that we will be provided with new firmware that will allow us to re-programme the keyboard. Once I have been able to do that, I will post an updated review.