"Raise" Your Game
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There are few times in your career where you're given the opportunity to work with a company/product that you truly believe in. For me, that company is Dygma and their radical redesign on the traditional keyboard called “The Raise.”
Clean White Raise
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A Little Background
The first “keyboard” was first developed in the 1970s, but the version we know today was released in 1986 by IBM. As you can see by the picture below, the keyboard design has barely changed over the course of 30 years.
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So if it's not broke don’t fix…….Nope, actually the design is broke, and it does need a drastic change. I’ve linked a handful of studies showing how wrist extension and ulnar deviation can lead to wrist and hand injuries.
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If you still believe that injuries from typing/gaming are a joke I’ve compiled three articles ...from this year… from one sport (Let that sink in!), that show just how detrimental improper mechanics/hardware can be.
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The next argument is usually, “Well I don’t play as much as those guys so these injuries won’t affect me.” Well, next time you're in your office, take a look around for someone that has been there 5+ years. Ask them if they have wrist pain from typing all day.
*Argument Won
What Causes These Issues
There are two main components to wrist pain while typing or gaming on a traditional keyboard throughout the day.
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Ulnar deviation
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Ulnar deviation (UD) at the wrist is a medical term for the movement of the hand out towards the pinky side of the hand. UD is a healthy and everyday movement of the hand, but if the position is held for extended periods with repetitive motions, we begin to see effects on the structures of the carpal tunnel.
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As the carpal tunnel becomes compromised the first structure to feel the effect is the median nerve. As the nerve becomes “squished” from the surrounding structures, it will begin to send that message to your brain in the form of “pins and needles” or “tingling.”
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How Raise Fixes Ulnar Deviation
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Raise has the ability to split, which allows the keyboard to conform to your angles and not the other way around. The ability of the Raise to split will enable you to keep your wrist in a more neutral position, as we just learned from above, this will decrease the wear and tear on the median nerve.
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Wrist extension
Keyboard promoting terrible wrist extension
Notice the slope is significantly less and more gradual with the palm pads
Raise’s design allows the wrist to be in a neutral position, which minimizes the narrowing of the tunnel while also limiting the tension on the flexor side of the wrist.
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Bonus Benefits of The Raise
Better Proximity with Raise
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Decreasing the gap between the keyboard and mouse allows for better control of both pieces of hardware while limiting the strain on your shoulder and elbow.
All keys are configurable enabling you to create up to 10 layers and toggle between them. Your most used keys and functions are accessible at all times.
Allowing for even more adjustability and reducing unnecessary hand/wrist movements.
Raise has 8 thumb keys, you can program your most used keys in the thumb keys, and you can even configure them to be macro keys.
Palm pads allow for the upper extremity weight to place on the palms rather than at the wrist which leads to compression of the Median N. The pads are also made of a more frim material to give support/structure rather than a “cushy feel” that would lead to little support.
The Raise can/should be used by laptop users as well. Laptops are terrible for ergonomics because the trade-off here is either proper typing placement or proper viewing height. By getting a simple laptop stand and Raise you will eliminate both of these issues.
The Raise opens up your posture from the typical hunched over position caused by traditional keyboards.
A small profile which is great for a smaller desk setup
It’s portable so you can use it both at work and at home for gaming. If you use for work, then it’s a tax write off #winning
It looks freaking awesome!
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I commonly preach that adjustability is the key when it comes to desk/gaming ergonomics. We are all different; therefore, hardware that lacks adjustability will inevitably lead to problems down the road. You may not be experiencing pain while gaming or typing today, but poor design and ergonomics catches up with us all.
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Just ask the athletes above!
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Production
As I write this article, The Raise is out with product testers, who are giving daily feedback to the team. The goal of the testers is to put The Raise through the wringer in hopes of catching any bugs or issues before the mass production happens later this year.
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I’m looking forward to working with the Dygma team in the upcoming months and I can’t wait to bring this much-needed product to my fellow gamers.
Thank you for reading and be on the lookout for this game-changer of a keyboard!