Smartfish Ergonomic Keyboard and Mouse: The Real Deal?

[Jason Dunn]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://www.getsmartfish.com/v1/index.asp' target='_blank'>http://www.getsmartfish.com/v1/index.asp</a><br /><br /></div><p><object width="600" height="360" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/rOIxD0rN44I&amp;feature=player_embedded&amp;ap=%26fmt=18" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"><param name="src" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/rOIxD0rN44I&amp;feature=player_embedded&amp;ap=%26fmt=18" /></object></p><p>I'd never heard of <a href="http://www.getsmartfish.com/v1/index.asp" target="_blank">Smartfish</a> before an emailed press release from them landed in my Inbox, but after watching the videos of their keyboard and mouse, I have to admit I'm highly intrigued. As someone who suffers from several problems in my wrists/hands/arms/shoulders/neck, I'm always intrigued by products that claim to help address these issues. Many of them I dismiss outright because they're flawed in one way or another - but these products look like they might be the real deal. I'll have to track them down at CES to check the products out in person...</p><p><object width="600" height="360" data="http://www.youtube.com/v/xlMg_KxXBAI&amp;ap=%26fmt=18" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"><param name="src" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/xlMg_KxXBAI&amp;ap=%26fmt=18" /></object></p>

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Interesting, but not sure about the mouse; I think it's because I use mice differently as well. The videos show a palming movement, but I use my fingers in general, and don't move more than an inch or two in any direction. My mouse is set to 1600 dpi for moving across 3760 pixels of horizontal workspace.

As for the keyboard, I love the split layout. I wonder what key switches these use? Also, why is the layout of the black one different from the silver one?

[sundown]

I'm glad someone is still working on ergonomic keyboards and mice. I miss the Logitech Trackman Marble FX and still use a trackball because traditional mice, while easy to use, kill my wrist. I'm also using an old MS Natural keyboard because the new ones don't work as well for me. And that's the key, in my experience. While in some way we fit into a universal body design, not all ergonomic innovations benefit all people. I watched the video and it seems to me like this is going to be a niche product and expensive. If it works, I may not mind paying the price but if it's truly niche, I probably won't be able to play with it at Staples or Best Buy. I'm not dropping a bag of money if I can't touch and feel and try it first. I'm guessing a lot of people are like me. So it better to be easy to find locally and reasonably priced or REALLY expensive or I have a feeling they're not going to be successful.

Kudos to anyone looking to bring to market a better design, though.