Product Design

This Keyboard Tells You How to Fix It

Everywhere we look, we find things designed for the dump. More proprietary fasteners. More unreplaceable displays. More parts soldered to the logic board. But once in a while, we come across a product that’s made to be fixed.

The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard is barely more than a concept yet, but it’s a concept we can get behind. (Correction: We’ve been told by the team that they have working prototypes!) It’s held together with Phillips screws and flathead-loosened tabs. It’s got disassembly instructions embossed onto components and even printed on the circuit board. It’s modular and records data about when each key switch has reached the end of its lifespan, so users can replace just the most-used keys.

The Ultimate Hacking Keyboard
Image from the Ultimate Hacking Keyboard

And then, of course, there’s the “ultimate hacking” part: it is detachable into two parts for better ergonomics, includes a “mod” key for function key access without leaving the home row, and comes with both key maps for every major operating system and switches for every tactile preference.

Above all, it’s proof positive that even compact, performance-designed, single-purpose gadgets can be designed for repair, from the ground up—complete with repair documentation.