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Click for a larger image Click for a larger image Accessibility. Flexibility. Productivity. The Matias Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard for one-handed or two-handed typing.
 
 
"We are so thrilled because this piece of equipment will
open up so many doors for [our daughter] Eva in the future, something she will be able to use for the rest of her life."

MARK & LEILA FROEHLE
 

Ideal for One-Handedness, Hemiplegia, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and other hand-related injuries

Using the Half-QWERTY Keyboard with the left handThe innovative Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard from Matias is a standard desktop keyboard that allows those with limited or no use of one hand to continue typing with the other hand in an easy and natural manner.

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome and other typing-related injuries don't always occur in both hands. In cases where only one hand is affected, you can type with the other hand, while the injured one heals. Half-QWERTY's innovative "skill transfer" design makes the transition fast and easy.

Periodic rest breaks should be taken, so as not to risk injuring the uninjured hand.


Blindness

Used in conjunction with a Braille display, Half-QWERTY allows blind and visually impaired persons to read what they type as they are typing it, much as a seeing person would.



 
“...somehow your brain triggers the appropriate finger... Within 15 minutes, I could type 20 wpm...” MACWORLD
 

How fast can I learn it?

Half-QWERTY's superior typing performance, compared with Chord keyboardsIf you've never learned to type before, learning Half-QWERTY will take roughly the time it would take to learn standard two-handed touch-typing.

However, if you are a trained touch-typist, you can learn Half-QWERTY in a matter of minutes, with little or no retraining.

Published empirical research has shown that (on average) a touch-typist can learn Half-QWERTY in 1/3 the time it takes to learn a one-handed chord keyboard. Half-QWERTY's innovative "skill transfer" design makes this possible.


Half-QWERTY's speed potential, compared to hunt & peck typing and handwritingHow fast can I type?

With practice, Half-QWERTY typists can expect to reach speeds of between 61% and 91% of those achievable by two-handed typists. Typing speeds as high as 64 words per minute (wpm) have been recorded.



 
"...The first one-handed keyboard that doesn't
require learning a new way to type."
WIRED
 

How does it work?

Using the Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard with the right handThe Half-QWERTY typing technique is very similar to the standard two-handed touch-typing technique...

You place your hand where it would normally be if you were touch-typing - that takes care of that half of the keyboard.

To type the letters of the other half, you hold down the space bar with your thumb and do the same finger movement that you would normally do with the other hand. It's that easy!

Tapping the space bar still types a space.



HALF-QWERTY KEYBOARD LAYOUT

The relative finger movements used for one-handed typing are the same as those used for two-handed typing. So, if you're already a touch-typist, you already know them. You should be typing one-handed in a matter of minutes.


Use either hand - or both

Using the Half-QWERTY Keyboard with both handsThe Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard allows one-handed typing using either hand, or both, just like a standard keyboard.

The one-handed typing capability can be switched on or off by the user, as desired, using the "matias" key.


Sticky Keys

Sticky Keys is a feature that makes typing modifier-key sequences (e.g., capital letters) easier for one-handed typists, in that you no longer have to type the modifier (e.g.: Shift, Control, Alt) and the key being modified simultaneously. You can type them in succession.

Depressing and releasing a modifier key once makes it active for the next key typed. Pressing it twice locks it until it is unlocked by pressing the modifier again.


Can other people still use my keyboard?

Yes. The keyboard can still be used for two-handed typing. Half-QWERTY won't interfere.


 
"...I was blown away... almost no thought required
to adapt to typing on it... From the get go, my fingers
knew how to type..."
THE-GADGETEER.COM
 

The educated choice

Matias has proudly served the needs of the disability community for over 10 years. Its technology is the de facto standard for one-handed typing in the industry.

 
 

where can I get one?

buy now!

Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard
$595 USD


Currency converter link provides an estimate only

 

 



click to launch the one-handed tying demo

Click here to launch the
one-handed typing demo

(Flash plug-in required)

Or, download the one-handed typing Demo Software:
for Windows (1.7 MB)
for Mac OS X (3.0 MB)

 

 



2-port USB Hub

For quickly attaching USB peripherals, nothing beats the convenience of an in-keyboard USB hub. No more reaching through the tangle of wires behind your computer to plug in your mouse, digital camera, MP3 player, keychain hard drive, or other digital device.

Easy to read key legends

The surface of each key is clearly labelled with all of the characters and functions of both regular and one-handed typing modes, for easy reference.

International Layout Support

Non-US keyboards are a little different. They have an extra key in the lower left corner (right next to the Shift key). While the Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard doesn't have this extra key (it's a US layout), it will let you do this key by typing double-Shift-Z.

The keyboard can also remap to whatever layout is standard in your country, by simply choosing the desired layout from the appropriate control panel on your computer.

5 Year Warranty

The Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard comes with a 5 year warranty.


 

  section 508


Section 508 of the U.S. Rehabilitation Act requires that Federal agencies' electronic and information technology is accessible to people with disabilities.

The Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard is Section 508 compliant. A Voluntary Product Accessibility Statement is available for download.

Matias is the proud supplier of the Half-QWERTY Pro Keyboard to the U.S. Department of Treasury through the DESAC III contract, primed by Integration Technologies Group, Inc.

 
 
 


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