Software

With all functionality hardware based, there are no first-party software drivers for the Truly Ergonomic CLEAVE. As such, I have chosen to combine this section with the performance section below. Note that the company mentions external software can be used, but does not specify which ones. A representative then clarified that the custom layout mode would allow the use of AutoHotKey (Windows) or Karabiner (macOS). A cursory search also reveals the USB microcontroller used in the CLEAVE has been tested as compatible with OpenRGB if you wish to use it for LED control, but I can't speak for it myself.

Performance

The Truly Ergonomic CLEAVE supports NKRO out of the box, which tested successfully using Aqua's test. No key chatter was detected on all the keys using Switch Hitter. The image above also shows most of the programmed base layer on the keyboard is as far as dedicated keys go. As with most keyboards these days, there is no right Windows key, it has been substituted by an Fn key here.


The Aqua Test result seen before is from me covering the left side of the CLEAVE with one hand and so it makes sense that we see keys such as ASDF covered here. But then you notice Backspace and most of the Ins-Pg Dn cluster covered too which means they are closer to these other keys than on a typical keyboard. Indeed, page three shows how the key layout is arranged on the CLEAVE but the infographic above helps better illustrate the nature of the base layer here which can be.. puzzling.. to many. I mentioned before how commonly used modifiers have been moved down to the middle of the keyboard to be used with your thumbs, and that's also why there are two space bar keys here for your thumbs to essentially rest over. The two sections here are also symmetrical, so we have arrow keys on the right and then an equivalent set on the left now occupied by Home, End, Pg Up, and Pg Dn. Delete is at the top, next to Fn and a dedicated Caps Lock key, and there is no Ins key by default—it is present on the Fn layer—despite there being a secondary Del above the left space bar key. Indeed, Caps Lock is replaced by a second L. Ctrl despite it being still there two keys below. I understand that many prefer to have Caps Lock and Ctrl be swapped for more efficient typing that relies on Shift being used instead, but I don't understand why the default L.Ctrl is also left as-is.

Thankfully this can be changed to get your caps lock back but the lower L.Ctrl remains as such to essentially not give you the optimal scenario. I found those three keys below the Fn key row to not be easy to reach with my medium-sized hands either and this leads me to the main issue I have with the CLEAVE—there is no user customizable key mapping here beyond what Truly Ergonomic has already incorporated. When it comes to ergonomic keyboards I want to have full control over my key layouts with multiple layers too, and this is where the CLEAVE falls short relative to the competition. I will give the company fair dues in saying there is still a lot you can customize, including having multiple OS support and even changing the six longer keys in the middle to different modifiers. There is also macro recording on offer but it's more finicky than I'd like in that you really, really have to type slowly to get the various keystrokes to register and be recorded. Even so, given the dedicated keys for Cut, Copy, Paste, and Undo, it's obvious this is a keyboard meant for productivity over pure gaming, even though there's really nothing stopping you from gaming on this if you go with the linear switches.


The CLEAVE comes with white LEDs and backlit-compatible keycaps so we do have pre-programmed lighting effects and customizable profiles on board. By default the keyboard lights up in a static white, which is probably how most of us would leave it, and then you can cycle through a few different dynamic and reactive typing effects of which some are seen above. The LEDs aren't the brightest here and the floating keycaps makes the body light up around the sides too. The various profiles mostly dictate which set of keys light up but it's still funny there is more control here than over key mapping. You can also turn the LEDs off completely or go through the ten brightness steps available.


I've covered the ergonomic design of the CLEAVE on page three already, as well as before in several other ergonomic keyboard reviews. Suffice to say that Truly Ergonomic gets the basics executed quite well in preventing both radial and ulnar deviation of your wrists, by having the keys angled as depicted. The ortholinear columns, as opposed to the usual staggered set, also allows for your fingers to easily move up/down/left/right to minimize flexion and extension. Finally, the integrated palm rest provides natural support without needing your hands to curl up or even undergo pronation. One thing that I would have liked to see is a consistent keycap profile whereby you instead have some keys above/below its neighbors. It can help with touch typing I suppose, in easily identifying which keys are where, but it still a jarring typing experience the first few times. Indeed, I took my time with this keyboard to ensure I type on it exclusively at work over the course of a month and it took me the better part of two work weeks before I got to my natural rhythm with the more standard keyboard layout. The lack of full key mapping didn't help me progress as quickly as I'd like, and the uneven profile didn't help my case either. I also would have liked to see the thumb clusters be separate to allow for tenting but that's not really possible with a single-piece keyboard such as the CLEAVE.


My sample of the Truly Ergonomic CLEAVE came with the Outemu Optical Blue switches, which are based off the Outemu Blue mechanical switch that in turn were based off the Cherry MX Blue. Between these two transitions, we have a somewhat unique feedback mechanism as covered on page four that makes for crisp tactile and clicky feedback owing to the use of a two-piece click bar mechanism. The optical actuation otherwise doesn't require any moving parts touching each other thanks to the stem simply interrupting the light signal, for prompt actuation that can be near-instantaneous and certainly quicker than the equivalent mechanical switch. Indeed, I thought these were fairly smooth, given you only perceive the stem touching the housing and then the bump hitting the click bars, but some lubing on the sides of the housing columns would have been nice. These switches are otherwise no different from the Cherry MX Blue in functionality being a full-size switch actuation at ~1.9 mm and having a total travel distance of ~3.8 mm (as opposed to the usual 4.0 mm) with a rated actuation force of 50 gf.


As always, the sound of a keyboard is based on more than just the switch type. So when comparing sound clips, consider the keyboard as a whole. In this case, I have provided above an example sound clip of me typing on the Truly Ergonomic keyboard sample at ~95 WPM as it comes out of the box with the Outemu Optical Blue switches. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with tactile and clicky switches. I did bottom out constantly here, but really there is a single sound signature, coming from the switches alone. No reverberations or pinging off the frame courtesy the thick foam between it and the PCB, as well as the relatively thin plastic case beneath. The sound signature is of the clicky feedback thus, and it ends up sounding better than it feels to type on the thin ABS keycaps and the mediocre stabilizers relative to the rest of the keyboard's build quality.