Do mechanical keyboards really need arrow keys?

Angry Miao replaces bulky arrow buttons with a 2×0.5-inch capacitive touchpad.

Which keys are absolutely essential to a keyboard? Many will tell you the entire numpad is, while others demand macro keys. I personally insist on a volume knob for my home office setup. And as someone who has tested 60 percent keyboards, which have no numpad or arrow keys, I'd add that for productivity and my sanity, arrow keys are also mandatory.

Arrow-less keyboards have their market, but for the vast majority, no arrows on a keyboard is a deal-breaker. A mechanical keyboard Angry Miao announced today asks us to consider an alternative, though. Instead of arrow keys or relying on a key combo for arrow input (like most 60 percent keyboard users do), it has a capacitive touch panel on the front edge for inputting arrow and other functions with your thumbs.

Is Angry Miao on to something here?

It’s not about the keyboard

*Angry Miao's AM Compact Touch saves space by replacing arrow keys with a thumb-controlled touchpad.*

*Angry Miao/Indiegogo*

Before we dive into this intriguing touchpad, let's get something out of the way: You probably don't want to buy the Angry Miao AM Compact Touch wireless keyboard. For one, the peripheral is still in the crowdfunding stage (Indiegogo launches on February 2, according to The Verge). Angry Miao is a known company among mechanical keyboard enthusiasts with several high-end limited product releases in recent years and successful crowdfunding campaigns. Other mechanical keyboard companies, like Keychron, tend to start products through crowdfunding, and some publications, including The Verge and TechCrunch, have tested AM Compact Touch samples. But investing money in any crowdfunding campaign comes with risks.

Beyond that, the AM Compact Touch has a niche layout with no arrow keys, numpad, or function row. Those still interested will also face a steep price, reportedly $398 to $615.

Still, I couldn't help being fascinated by the AM Compact Touch because it challenges how we normally navigate a keyboard. It also bestows function to a part of the keyboard that's virtually never used.

Do I find arrow keys necessary on a keyboard because they're imperative for daily computing or because that's what I'm used to? Now's as good a time as ever to consider if keyboards need a shake-up.

Are touchpads the next arrows?

The Compact Touch uses a capacitive touch panel that relies on a custom PCB and software the company says it spent three months optimizing. The touchpad is positioned to be accessible by two thumbs and is supposed to support four-way swipes and is approximately 2×0.5 inches, according to The Verge.

The panels add further control with support for long-pressing in four directions, Angry Miao claims. This enables actions like slide left and long-press for rewind, or swipe up and long-press to turn up the volume.

Below is a video demoing the feature. Angry Miao published the video, though, so keep that in mind when considering its apparent ease of usability.

Angry Miao's new layout: Touch panel hands-on.

Thinking about applying this concept to other keyboards, the touchpad's location seems wise, since it looks like it would be within reach of both thumbs, save for times when you're using a numpad (if the keyboard has one). Angry Miao says this means you can use the touchpad without moving your wrist, and less physical movement can be helpful for ergonomics.

A touchpad that's a successful arrow replacement could make 60 percent keyboards more appealing, especially for travel and freeing up desk space. The design could even provide "arrow" access with the left hand, which you don't get with a traditional keyboard layout.

But there's one thing painfully missing from touch panel input that mechanical keyboard users adore: tactility. Mechanical keyboard loyalists like input with some oomph behind it, whether that oomph is tactile travel, a discernible bump, and/or a proud clicking noise. Using a flat touch panel in lieu of addictive tactile keys seems counterintuitive.

Mechanical keyboards with high price tags also are wise to be as versatile as possible, and the touch panel on the Compact Touch seems limited when it comes to tasks like repetitive line-by-line scrolling and advanced movements, like steering a car in a game.

Early hands-on reviews suggest the Compact Touch's touchpad is decently, but not absolutely, reliable. TechCrunch reported that it largely worked as expected and was "easy enough to go back a few letters" when writing, but that for other tasks, it's "a guessing game whether you’ll be able to time things right to stop the cursor where you need to." The reviewer ultimately ended up programming arrow input into a secondary layer on the keyboard, suggesting they didn't want to use the touchpad long-term.

TechCrunch's article also pointed out that the location of the touch panel makes it harder to use a wrist rest.

The Verge said there were "many occasions" when the reviewer's cursor went up when they intended for it to go left and down when they wanted it to move to the right. They also said swipe and holding was "easy to overshoot," noting that "since Windows and Mac operating systems are not built for this," this is something you'd have to deal with sometimes.

The final product may arrive more polished. But these early touchpad experiences suggest it's reasonable to expect inherent frustration in the immediate term and greater obstacles than just personal adjustment in the long term.

Often imitated, never duplicated

Early reviews suggest that Angry Miao's specific take on the touch panel has room for improvement. Dealing with potentially wonky OS support is a no-go for impatient people like me, but, as with foldable PCs, that doesn't automatically mean we shouldn't explore the idea further. Greater interest could eventually yield greater support.

However, a touch panel's inferior tactility compared to keys is hard to move past. So many things in modern tech, like button-less smartphones and tablets, demand you swipe. Mechanical keyboard people love the feeling of a great keypress, and a flat touchpad just can't duplicate that.

Angry Miao isn't the only one with a keyboard using imperfect capacitive touch. When I tested Asus' ROG Falchion NX (which has a capacitive touch panel running up the left side for things like volume control) for our best wireless mechanical keyboards roundup, it was frustrating to do something simple like setting the exact volume level I wanted.

Of course, there are other types of keyboards besides mechanical ones, and some, like the Logitech K400 Plus with a touchpad where the numpad typically is and Lenovo's ThinkPad Keyboard with a red nub, have their own arrow alternatives. But those keyboards also include arrows still, broadening appeal.

Logitech's K400 Plus keyboard.

Logitech

With support for long-presses, a keyboard touchpad could also provide a broader range of input than standard arrow keys. The touchpad could perform double duty, like serving as a volume knob. That frees up room for other keys, like macro or media ones or even standard keys like function rows, while still conserving space.

And for those who already don't require arrow keys on their keyboards—yes, 60 percent keyboards exist for someone—most claim that using a key combination instead somehow becomes second nature eventually. Personally, a keyboard with an assumedly perfectly reliable touchpad and no arrow keys would appeal to me more than a keyboard that solely relies on a key combo for arrows. And with the space savings, there's potential for an extremely portable travel keyboard.

For portability and maximizing desk space, a capacitive touch panel is an interesting challenger to arrow keys. If fine-tuned to work smoothly with every swipe and long-press, it could enable unique keyboard designs and give the 60 percent design a broader appeal.

But for those who prefer more traditional forms of input (like mechanical switches) over newer ones (like touchscreens and voice command) and who don't have the patience for frequent key combinations, dedicated arrow keys will continue being a critical, preferred part of daily computing for the foreseeable future.

Ars Technica may earn compensation for sales from links on this post through affiliate programs.

Do mechanical keyboards really need arrow keys?

Mutton
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Mutton 281

Posted January 27, 2023

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Interesting idea, but no way would I give up my arrow keys for that. I dislike touch pads in general though; never did get on with them. I could probably live without my function keys unless I'm doing technical work*, but never my arrow keys. Working on a 60% keyboard would just drive me nuts.

My daily driver here in my living room is a Filco Tenkeyless Majestouch-II with brown Cherry switches, and those in my workroom are standard size Filcos with either blue or brown switches. I have a soft spot for IBM's space saver keyboards, and have a few M4-1 types still around with the red 'mouse' nipple in the middle. I converted one to USB. I much prefer that to a touchpad, and it's more compact. Those were my portable keyboards for years, travelling around working on servers and networks. One was a permanent fixture in my work bag. Not brilliant for typing (they are buckling rubber, not the older and wonderful IBM buckling spring) but better than nothing.

That red nipple could replace the cursor keys for me on a portable keyboard. If something like that was incorprated into a 60%... that might be a different matter if I needed a travel companion. It has some mechanical feedback and is obvious in operation. And bonus... toggle its function from a simple cursor control stick to full mouse! Add a couple of buttons in the front of the casing, where the touchpad is on the one in the OP, and away you go.

Another keyboard I regularly travelled with, for 'emergencies', was one I got from a Samsung Q1 when those were the latest thing. I worked with a company who supplied them (I did hardware mods on them for government work), and we would get loads of keyboards returned with damaged leads. I used to nab them from the bin and replace the lead. Those too have a little cursor pad and a mouse nipple arrangement. And they are tiny, almost pocket size but of course horrible to actually type on and last about a year before the buttons fail. Hence only carrying one when I didn't expect to need a keyboard, but just in case.

So, yeah... nipples rule.

*My workstation has a Filco in the middle, a Switpoint Z1 mouse on the right programmed to do all sorts of things with its pressure-sensitive buttons and gyroscope, and a 3DConnexions Spacemouse under my left hand for 3D CAD type stuff. Also a small, 6x4 keys keyboard intended for retail use, with great mechanical keys and transparent key caps that I have printed legends under. That's programmed to work with a ATNSoft Key Manager for loads more macro functions. Can you imagine me trying to cope on a 60%? 🤣

Karlston
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Do mechanical keyboards really need arrow keys?

Angry Miao replaces bulky arrow buttons with a 2×0.5-inch capacitive touchpad.

It’s not about the keyboard

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