Microsoft Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 (UK)

As a programmer, I type many hours every day and for a long time have been looking for ways to ease the stress my hands endure. At the moment, the available selection of ergonomic keyboards is very dire, but since buying this keyboard I can thankfully say this is not a problem.

Not all keyboards are created equal when it comes to ergonomics. One of the worst things about normal keyboards is their flatness. This keyboard and its predecessors have a raised middle which allows your hands to maintain a more natural angle. The gradient is slight but because human fingers are different lengths, it adds to the angle that your hands naturally form with the keyboard.

The left and right groups of alphanumeric keys are split and rotated slightly outwards. Here too the angle should not be too much because, as we have fingers of varying lengths, our hands do form a natural angle already. My experience of 3 models of Microsoft Natural keyboards has led me to believe that this angle is plenty and a greater angle would probably be too much. If you keep your keyboard relatively close, this angle will definitely improve things.

This keyboard has reverse tilt but you can remove the attachment and it does still have legs at the back. Having the attachment is nice because you can decide which tilt is right for you. If your desk is very low, reverse tilt might be suitable. I use my keyboard on my lap and for me, the best is without the attachment or legs. Many people talk about the ergo-benefit of reverse tilt, but I think it is contingent on your situation. Choose whatever feels right for you.

Hunt-and-peck typists will find this keyboard difficult to use. Trained QWERTY typists might also struggle initially. Many QWERTY typists use their index finger for 'B' and this habit might be difficult to shake. Also, the change of angle may mean that it feels awkward for a short while. This is a phenomenon typical of changing to a split keyboard, but I do think the change is worth attempting.

Ok, let's talk specifics. I have used both the MS Natural Multimedia and the MS Natural Elite before using this keyboard. The inverted-T arrows are back. The arrows on the Elite are scrunched together making cursor control more difficult. I am glad for the return to the conventional layout; the only loss is that the keyboard is wider for it. Having a wider keyboard has a penalty because the mouse is further away. My suggestion: learn the shortcuts in the programs you use so you don't need to use the mouse as much.

This keyboard has special keys but I don't tend to use them much, so I won't comment on them. One item I do use is the zoom-slider, but by default it is almost entirely useless. You can't configure it with the software at all. I have changed it to a 'scroller', you can achieve this by editing 'commands.xml' in the IntelliType folder. I'll not describe the process here but I found instructions online, so look if you are interested. I find using it to scroll much easier than moving to the mouse to use the mouse wheel or using the arrows.

Ok, apart from looking really nice and having the soft wrist-rest which I wish every keyboard would have because it is awesome, the keys are very quiet. The touch is very soft indeed. If you like soft-touch keyboards, you will love this keyboard. Unfortunately, the selection of clicky ergonomic keyboards is practically nonexistent. You don't really have a choice in the matter. Personally, I love clicky keyboards. Oh well.

So overall, I think this keyboard is great and a definite improvement over the two models I have mentioned. The main problem it has is shared with every keyboard in existence, which is that the keys are staggered, a heritage from the days of typewriters. But for what it does, it does it exceedingly well and I would absolutely recommend it.

First out the box you will be suprised how big the keyboard is as its raised base is attached. This mostly due to height as in X & Y terms, it is maybe a cm in each way bigger than a bog standard keyboard any wrist rest (note for tray keyboard bays approx 75mm heigh)
The keyboard is SOoooo comfy you will not believe! The ergonomic design reeally does make sense. Even if you think* (like me) you have never suffered from RSI you WILL still notice LESS pain and stiffness from the wrists. The leather like wrist pad is also EXCELLENT in itself being nice and soft and not slippery,
With the base on tilting the keyboard away from you, really does improve you posture leading you to sit in with straighter spine. Calculator, Inbox, Web, Zoom -(web pages) buttons all work perfectly with Firefox and Outlook. Inbox button can be specified to a specific address.

My only niggle is the outline of all the key markings clearly visible like a decal that hasn't dried.

Other why's its faultless

I've been a long time user of Microsoft's 'Natural' range of keyboards after developing painful RSI in my hands a few years ago.

Seeing as offspring number two had adorned my Natural Multimedia Keyboard with a black marker pen, I decided to treat myself at Christmas and buy a brand new Natural keyboard. Hey, I'm a software developer - I'm easily pleased!

Anyway, this model is a huge step up from the Natural Multimedia I was used to; for a start the appalling double sized Delete button has gone. The Function Lock which was off by default on the Natural Multimedia is now on - I found this a major annoyance on my previous unit.

At first, the reverse slope of the keyboard was offputting, but now I'm a total convert. The leatherette wrist supports are comfortable and help to reinforce using the reverse slope configuration.

If you so wish, you can remove the plastic support at the front of the keyboard and use the feet to raise the back as in a standard configuration but I would recommend that you at least try the backward slope for a couple of days first.

I've been a software developer now for over 20 years and I can honestly say that this is the most comfortable keyboard I have ever used. Normally it's quite hard to get excited about something so mundane as a keyboard, but once you try one you'll understand.