Reddit reviews Microsoft Natural Keyboard Pro

Hey Reddit - I know this isn't a mechanical keyboard, but there seemed to be at least some interest in the Sculpt keyboard and I just got my hands on one so I figured I'd throw together a quick review.

Overview

If you aren't familiar with the keyboard in question, I'm reviewing the Microsoft Sculpt, the successor to the Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 and Natural Keyboard Pro. This is more or less Microsoft's flagship keyboard in the ergonomics line, featuring a bi-sectional layout with an actual split between the two sets of keys, unlike their curve line which is more like a traditional keyboard, just wavy.

I was first introduced to this type of keyboard back in 1995 when the original Natural Pro came out. I was working at Microsoft at the time and our management wanted everyone to switch over. Using that experience as a template, if you've never used a split keyboard before and you do a fair amount of typing, it'll probably take about a week to two weeks to get used to the layout (assuming you're already a touch typer). If you only type sparingly, probably closer to a month.

The Sculpt keyboard currently only comes in a set with a mouse and the keyboard cannot be purchased separately at this time. The keyboard is wireless, connecting via a small USB dongle. The dongle connects all three desktop components - the mouse, keyboard, and 10-key numpad. The set MSRP's for $129.95 in the US.

Details

The keyboard has chiclet style key caps with scissor switches on top of rubber domes. The key caps are pad printed.

The layout of the keyboard is similar to the old Microsoft Natural Elite keyboards, with the squashed six-key configuration. Delete, Home, End, Insert, PgUp, and PgDn are in a double-row set of keys to the right of the main key set. There is no spacing between the primary keys and the six keys. The arrow keys are left in the normal two row configuration, but the left arrow is set directly underneath the right shift key and shares the row with the bottom Ctrl key.

The numpad is a separate unit entirely - configured in a full-sized 10-key layout. The numpad has a few extra keys mimicking an old-fashioned calculator input. It has an app button which is mapped to calc.exe by default, as well as a backspace and clear button. For whatever reason, there is also a calc.exe button on the main keyboard.

There are no lights on the keyboard. When you hit any of the lock keys, there is no physical indication. However there is a software popup in Windows itself - a tiny window that comes up over your systray for two seconds that tells you NUMLOCK ON, or NUMLOCK OFF.

There are no separate media keys, instead they are bundled with the half-height function keys as alt-actions. In order to use the alt-action functionality, you must toggle a physical switch in the upper right-hand corner. If you leave your toggle to "white", the F1 key acts as the normal HELP button. Click to "blue" and it is now the Play/Pause media button. Want to pause your music and refresh your webpage? Click to blue to make F1 pause, click to white to have F5 refresh. It's a little weird.

The keyboard has a small amount of padding on the wrist rest area - if you've used the Natural 4000, it's about the same, maybe a tiny bit thinner. The rest is wrapped in a pleather'ish material.

The keyboard also comes with a riser which lifts the front of the keyboard (the side towards the user) up about an inch higher. The installation of the riser is actually sort of slick - they used embedded magnets and the whole thing just snaps into place. In fact, they do the same thing for the battery covers for the keyboard and mouse (not the numpad though - that has a screw).

Impressions

I was not a fan of the Natural 4000 because the keys felt too sluggish and heavy (the 4000 was just rubber dome). The flat, chiclet style keycaps as well as the scissor switch makes the Sculpt feel much more springy and I much prefer the action on this new keyboard. It's obviously not a replacement for my MX Blues, but it's actually not bad.

The layout is a bit annoying. I'm not sure why Microsoft decided to squish the six key configuration as they did. Seems if they were going to rip the ten key off, they would have left the six key alone. I've been a touch typer for years and it's irritating to have to hunt and peck to figure out where my Home key went to. Leaving the arrow config normal was a good call - I don't think anyone liked the diamond layout on the Elites.

Assuming you use the Sculpt mouse, the entire set uses five batteries. 2 AA's for the mouse, 2 AAA's for the keyboard, and a CR2430 for the numpad. That seems a bit excessive to me, although I think I read somewhere that Microsoft expects the batteries to last for over a year (can't find any solid sources on battery life).

Conclusion

I like the Sculpt keyboard better than the Natural 4000, but probably not enough to replace my Rosewill 9100 with MX Blues full time. However, I do find the natural styles more comfortable to type on for extended periods of time. So if you don't want to or can't shell out the money for something like a Kinesis or an Ergodox kit, the Sculpt is not a bad piece of hardware.

Is it worth picking up this $130 MSRP package for the mouse and keyboard when you can just get the Natural Keyboard 4000 right now for under $40? That's honestly a hard call - I really like the action on the Sculpt better than the 4000, but the new Sculpt mouse sucks (IMO) when compared to the old Natural Laser Mouse 6000 - plus for around the same price, you could pick up the Natural 4000 and a Evoluent VerticalMouse (assuming you wanted an ergo-mouse too).

One big gripe - everything is black gloss. Fingerprints and smudges everywhere. Who thought this was a good idea?

I have one of those! It's older than me. Here's some on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B00002JXFH/ref=dp_olp_0?ie=UTF8&condition=all