Demo of the Amazing Qwerkywriter S Typewriter inspired by the mechanical typewriter - USB/Bluetooth keyboard

QwerkyWriter S Typewriter Podcasting Notes

 

Product name: QwerkyWriter S Typewriter

 

Manufacturer: Qwerky Toys

 

Website: http://www.qwerkywriter.com

 

Email: support@qwerkytoys.com

 

The Qwerkywriter S Typewriter was inspired by the old fashion manual mechanical typewriters with the first version (the Qwerkywriter) being available in 2015.

 

The QwerkyWriter S Typewriter was available in 2018.

 

Overall Physical Description

The Qwerkywriter S Typewriter is 33CM wide. 18CM depth.  Front hight (on which sits all of the keyboard keys)) 2.5cm at the front sloping up by 3 degrees so that the back row of keys is higher than the front row of keys.  

There is a good gap between the actual keys and the raised back section of the keyboard.

the raised back section (4CM) contains the paper/rest/stand for a phone or tablet), Return Lever on left, paper roller with the paper feed knobs at each end, and 3 spaced paper guards.

 

All key hight from the chassis approximately 1cm giving good travel and excellent mechanical feedback.

All keys are well spaced from each other and between rows.

 

5 rubber round feet, one at each bottom corner, and 1 in the middle at the bottom front edge.

 

When you first touch the Qwerkywriter S Typewriter, you immediately get the feel of all of the high raised well spaced keys, the Return Lever , and the paper feed roller with the chunky paper feed knobs.

 

Main Features

The chassis of the keyboard is mat black powdered coated scratch resistant aluminium - giving a high quality and solid feel.

The top of the keyboard on which the actual keys sit, is moulded from the front edge to the back edge of the actual keyboard area.  The top of the unit where the keys sit extends slightly beyond the left and right edges of the chassis, giving good physical definition.

 

Integrated tablet stand at back top edge - fits most smart phone and tablets such as the iPad or Surface pro as long as they are less than 1.55CMS thick.

The integrated stand extends the full width at the top back of the keyboard with a raised section in the middle, in the old days, this would have supported the paper.

 

Cast metal programmable Return Lever top left hand side - defaults to the Enter key or up to 16 characters or shortcut commands such as cut, copy or paste.

The Return Lever is connected  to the chassis on the left just behind the paper roller which has the paper feed knobs at each end.

Return Lever feels like a dog leg as it comes out, bends slightly to the left, and then straitens out.

The Return Lever extends from just behind the paper roller and ends up to the left of the top 2 rows of the keyboard. i.e. just to the left of the Escape key on the top row which also contains the Function keys from F11 to F12 etc, and the Accent key on the next row down from the top which also contains the numbers from 1 to 0 etc.

Press the FN key + Return Lever to enter macro programming, enter up to 15 characters, short-cut key or press Enter key to set back to default Enter key function.  FN + Return Lever again to end macro programming.

The Return Lever itself, feels very very high gloss and smooth to the touch, compared to the mat finish on the chassis.

To the right of the Return Lever is the small USB Bluetooth toggle button.

This button is on the chassis just behind the paper roller which has the page feed knobs at each end.

There are small LED indicators to the right of the UsB Bluetooth toggle button, and just to the left of the right paper feed knob.  These LED indicators feel like small tactile markers.

 

Dual scroll knob encoders (the paper feed knobs)

These knobs feel like old fashion typewriter paper feed knobs which have horizontal tractor  wheel style treads with an indent in the middle.

The Right knob is set to Vertical Windows Scroll and the left knob is set to volume.

For the volume knob, turning the knob away from you if sitting in front of the keyboard, turns the volume up, and turning it back towards you, turns the volume down.

The function of the knobs can be reversed via FN+W: i.e. volume now on right and vertical window scroll on left.

Knobs click when rotated like old manual Typewriter paper feed knobs, again, giving good solid mechanical feedback.

In iOS 13, Vertical Window Scroll with the right page feed knob (default) can be enabled via the Accessibility option (Assistive Touch - see manual).

 

Main Keyboard keys.  Typewriter inspired Keycaps - 2 piece keycaps have great stability, response, and automotive grade electroplating.  Cherry MX “clicky” switches.

Main keys are round with a full finger tip indent.

Flat rectangular Backspace key, Left/Right Shift keys, Caps Lock, and Enter key.  Long flat Space Bar.

Tab key is round and indented like the main keys.

Tactile marker on F and J at front of keys.

The Tab key and the Backspace key are red, whilst all other keys are black with white characters with the silver electroplating around each key.

Other FN key functions include:

FN+F1 - volume down

FN+F2 - volume up

FN+F3 - previous track

FN+F4 - play/pause

FN+F5 - next track

FN+F12 - Home button on iOS

Keyboard sleep settings:

FN+8 - set keyboard sleep timer to 10 minutes

FN+9 - set keyboard sleep timer to 20 minutes

FN+10 - set keyboard sleep timer to 30 minutes

FN+11 - disable keyboard sleep timer (not recommended)

Notes - keyboard still honours multimedia function key settings on Windows, Mac, and iOS.

The FN+F12 for the Home button in iOS, not only does the Home button function, but does twice for the App Switcher, and if you have VoiceOver setup as an accessibility shortcut, pressing FN+F12 (Home button) 3 times will toggle VoiceOver on or off from the keyboard.

If you hold down FN+F12, this will also invoke Siri on iOS.

The Qwerkywriter S Typewriter also supports NKRO via FN+Page Down or FN+Page Up for older computers.  NKRO allows the keyboard to not miss any keys that are typed, especially for fast typists.

 

Bluetooth connectivity - connects up to 3 Bluetooth devices.

Bluetooth Connect rectangular  pairing button at rear to the right of the USB port if facing front of the keyboard.

To pair a device in slot 1 for example - press FN+1, press Bluetooth Connect button for pairing, and connect with devices Bluetooth settings.

FN + 1, 2 or 3 to pair and access the 3 devices when connected.

FN key is to the right of the Space bar.

 

Micro USB port - to both charge and connect to a computer.

At the rear To the left of the Bluetooth connect button if facing the front of the keyboard.

The accompanying UsB cable can only be inserted in the correct orientation in to the USB port with the two connectors on the UsB connector facing up.

If keyboard is UsB connected to a computer or UsB power, the battery is disconnected and the keyboard can be USB or Bluetooth Connected.

If not connected to a computer or power, keyboard must be on for the battery to engage via the power rocker switch located at the back right hand side of the keyboard just below and back of the right 

Page feed knob.

Note - if the rocker is flicked forward the keyboard is on and if flicked back the keyboard is off.

If not on power, keyboard needs to be on for Bluetooth connection.

The internal battery is at the bottom rear edge of the keyboard, 2-3 hours to fully charge, and lasts for 2-3 weeks of regular use. The battery can be changed if required.

If connected to USB power, it is safe to leave the keyboard connected as this will not affect the battery.

 

The wait of the keyboard is 1.36 kilograms - rather than feeling heavy when sitting down and typing on your lap, gives a feeling of solidness, and stability.

 

When connected to a Windows computer

The keys to the right of F12 from left to right are Pause, Print Screen, and Forward Delete.

Remember the Tab key is not rectangular as found on a standard computer keyboard, but is round like most of the keys on the keyboard.

The Backslash key is above the Enter key and below the Backspace key.

The 3 keys to the left of the Space Bar from left to right are Control, Alt, and Windows.

The two keys to the right of the Space Bar from left to right are the FN key, and Right Alt.

There is no upside down capital T cursor cross with space on either side of the Up Arrow key.  However, to the Left of the Up Arrow is the Right Shift Key, and to the right of the Up Arrow key is the End Key.

Going from the bottom right side of the keyboard up Right Arrow, End, PageDown, PageUp, Home, and Forward Delete key.

The rectangular BackSpace key is immediately to the left of the Home key.

Note - there is no Insert key on this keyboard.

 

When connected to Mac OS or iOS

The keys to the right of F12 from left to right are F13, F15, and Forward Delete key.

Remember the Tab key is not rectangular as found on a standard computer keyboard, but is round like most of the keys on the keyboard.

The Backslash key is above the Enter key and below the Backspace key.

the 3 keys to the left of the Space Bar from left to right are Control, Option, and Command.

The two keys to the right of the Space Bar from left to right are the FN key, and Right Option.

There is no upside down capital T cursor cross with space on either side of the Up Arrow key.  However, to the Left of the Up Arrow is the Right Shift Key, and to the right of the Up Arrow key is the End Key.

Going from the bottom right side of the keyboard up Right Arrow, End, PageDown, PageUp, Home, and Forward Delete key.

The rectangular BackSpace key is immediately to the left of the Home key.

Note - there is no Insert key on this keyboard.

 

Accessories

A carry bag, dust cover, replacement keycaps, replacement battery or UsB cable  can be purchased through  Qwerky` Toys.

 

Screen Reader Performance

Both Narrator and Non Visual Desktop Access (NVDA) on Windows worked as expected using the Caps Lock key as the main command key for both screen readers.

 

VoiceOver on iOS and Mac OS worked as expected.  Sometimes on a 3rd party connected keyboard, the Control and Option keys (which are the main command keys for VoiceOver) can be a key apart or on either side of the Space Bar.  However, VoiceOver can also use the Caps Lock key as its main command key as well.

Note - both VoiceOver on iOS or Mac OS use the Control+Option keys as the main VoiceOver keyboard shortcut as well as the Caps Lock key.

 

Final Thoughts

After typing on the Qwerkywriter S Typewriter, going back to my usual laptop or Bluetooth keyboard, just feels wrong, and squashy.

This will be my keyboard to use on my UsB connected Surface Pro and my Bluetooth connected iPhone, iPad Pro, and MacBook Pro.

It really does remind me of typing on my IBM PS2 keyboard in the mid 1990’s.

When checking with Qwerky Toys as to how well the Qwerkywriter S travels in a computer bag without the keys popping off, they said that the keyboard is fairly rugged and should be fine when being carried around in a computer bag.

 

David Woodbridge January 2020