The Microsoft Surface Studio desktop computer has garnered praise aplenty for its wow-factor tilting 28″ display design, a stunning transformative computer that will undoubtedly prove to be popular with artists and designers alike. The upcoming desktop system ships with a new set of matching gray peripherals – keyboard and mouse, with an optional rotary dial for wireless input duty. But those suffering from chronic wrist and hand pain will want something more ergonomic than a flat-laying keyboard. Cue in the Surface Ergonomic Keyboard.
Powered by 2 AAA batteries, the Surface Ergonomic Keyboard is a refinement of the company’s popular Sculpt Ergonomic Keyboard, softening the Sculpt’s manta ray industrial design into something more soft, sensuous, and luxurious, while retaining the angled-in design to help mitigate pain related to repetitive use. Besides the removal of the center exclamation cutout, the Surface Ergonomic Keyboard’s double-cushioned palm rest is covered in a pleasing two-tone grey mélange Alcantara, a stain-resistant material composed of 68% polyester and 32% polyurethane that mimics the feel of suede, and normally found in automotive and plane interiors.
Ergonomic keyboards by the nature of their split keyboard layout can be divisive aesthetically, but Microsoft has done an excellent job of negating the inherent weird factor of split keyboards by redirecting emphasis toward its texture to complement the accessory’s gentle wave form factor.
Where the Sculpt is curved like the hard carapace of an arachnid, the combination of the Surface’s muted grey finish with the Alcantara palm rest presents a softer and more welcome tactile promise. As a whole, the keyboard looks like a gently formed piece of luxurious fabric instead of a hard piece of plastic (an effect also attributed to the use of the magnesium alloy for the body, same as found with the Surface tablets).
At $129.99, the Surface Ergonomic Keyboard is one of the more expensive computer accessories in its category, but everything about this device is premium in look, feel, and feature, warranting its higher price tag. And because it uses Bluetooth, the keyboard can be used for both Windows and macOS machines, making this model ideal for anyone suffering from hurting wrists – and ugly keyboards – regardless of operating system.