I wonder what ideas could come up, but important for me is that it supports QMK firmware and maybe bluetooth.
I currently use a very heavy bella RGB ISO keyboard with brass and allumium casing for PC usage and would definetly ditch the chromebooks keyboard. Not sure if soldering my own Keyboard would be a good idea because I love using hotswapable keys.
I want some ideas and recommendations, maybe I will transform it into a cyberdeck?
(The chromebook doesnt run ChromeOS but Debian 12)
40% low profile keyboard?
Nuphy seems to be a well liked low profile keyboard manufacturer. They have several models out now so there’s likely something that fits your needs. Not sure if they have ISO layouts though. If that’s not an issue, you can always go full minimalism with a Corner or something similar.
I was also looking for a small and lightweight mechanical travel keyboard and just decided to go with the prebuilt Planck EZ from ZSA. The reason being the case. I wanted a case for some protection because it’s a travel board but it had to be light. The EZ’s case has a top side that doubles as the plate, so it doesn’t add that much weight. My EZ weighs 297g including switches and keycaps and you can barely go smaller than that.
Damn, its actually something I was looking for but couldn’t find anything.
Thanks a lot! Now I just need to wait till I have the money for it.
I had a search notification set up on Ebay and snagged a used one for 120€ including switches and keycaps (though I changed those). Since it was in my country, I didn’t have to pay any additional import tax either, just some shipping. Previous owner said that the 40% was too small for them after all so they had to give it away. Maybe have a look out for those ;)
Hm, smart idea, I always forget ebay exists. I somehow am sometimes scared that the pre-owner did some disgusting things to the product.
I saw a Valve Index post about an Ebay purchase and he only later noticed that there are roaches inside the headset everywhere. Same with ants for an Oculus quest. But keyboards… especially Open Source ones? I guess no stupid disgusting guy is competent to purchase such a thing.
I bought it from Ebay Kleinanzeigen to be precise, which I think is more like facebook marketplace? There, people prefer to pick up their items in person if possible and you usually talk to the seller beforehand. I’ve had good experiences buying both my keyboards like this. The community is rather wholesome and since there are a lot of people out there who are switching boards like clothes, the second-hand market is quite active, too.