Dygma Raise is an ergonomic keyboard designed to increase gamers' performance, health and comfort.
If you would like to pre-order a Dygma Raise, you can do so through our website.
If you have have any questions or feedback, you can send us an email at [email protected].
Hey there everyone!
It was a great success and we are thankful to everyone who supported our project!
Although the campaigning part of our project is over, we will continue to keep you all updated on our developments.
silver or black
Cherry MX Blue, Cherry MX Brown, Cherry Mx Red, Kailh Speed Gold, Kailh Speed Bronze, Kailh Speed Copper, Kailh Speed Silver
English US (ANSI layout), English UK (ISO layout), French (ISO layout), German (ISO layout), Spanish (ISO layout), Nordic (ISO layout), Japanese (ISO layout), or blank keycaps (ANSI or ISO layout).
We need this information, along with your shipping details, and if you ordered Add-Ons or have a balance with us, we would also need your payment information, in order for us to proceed with your order.
Lockdown date for the surveys will be in August 15, 2018. The estimated date when we charge your credit cards for the Add-Ons will be right after the lockdown date.
If you have any follow-ups or questions, you may always leave us a comment or send us a message through any of our social media accounts.
Thanks again!
Dygma Team
Hey guys! How’s everyone doing?
This is what's new with us.
The Golden Prototype is the prototype that should look and work as the final product. It should have the same finishing, the same functionalities, and it should have the same dimensions.
This is the prototype you use to validate a product, -its I.D. (industrial design). Once approved, you can then have the tooling made.
The tooling is a big investment so we need to make sure that the product we build is exactly what we want.
We need to make a Golden Prototype to check the I.D. That means we need to make sure that all the pieces in the assembly fit properly with one another.
We need to see that all the dimensions are correct from an ergonomic point of view. We also need to check that all the drafts fit with the plastic injection, and then check the stamping for the aluminium pieces.
We will also be able to test the assembly line. This will allow us to distinguish the areas we can improve.
We also need to validate the aesthetics, especially with the final finishing that we have chosen with the right anodizing.
We are going to send the 3D files to the different manufacturers to make the Golden Prototype. Each manufacturer will make the Golden Prototype of the piece that they are assigned to manufacture.
However, there will be some pieces that won’t go through the Golden Prototype as some (pieces) do not have the prototyping techniques that resemble the ones we will use in manufacturing later on. In those cases, the pieces will be done by prototyping specialists. They won't be manufactured the same way, but they will work and look like the ones in the final product.
As you may now, Raise is composed of so many pieces. Just to name a few:
· Double injection plastic base
· Stamped anodized aluminium top panel
· CNC stainless steel joint pieces
· Palm pads
· Cables
· PBT keycaps
· ABS keycaps
· Mold for the special keycaps
· PCBs
· Mylar stickers for the base
· (new) Huble with all its components
So, this is our current situation.
When we have more updates of the Golden Prototype, we’ll share them with all of you!
Matt talks about the manufacturing process and how having a test jig can allow us to test all the functionalities of the circuit board early on in the process.
The test jig is important so we can spot errors in the PCB before sending it to the final assembly line.
We added extra holes in the PCB around the switches in order to have more compatibility with different types of replaceable switches, and not just the Kailh and Cherry ones.
The Raise keyboard needs the switches and the LEDs in exactly the right place. If we want to slightly modify the position, we often have to lay out all the components again.
To save time, Matt has written a Python program to automate the component layout in the Kicad PCB design software.
Thank you!
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Reminder: You will soon be receiving the survey that will ask for your Raise color, switches, and keycap language! If you want to learn more about the different mechanical switches that we offer, head over to Mechanical Switches. The keycap languages that we offer are:
· EN US (ANSI layout)
· EN UK (ISO layout)
· German (ISO layout)
· French (ISO layout)
· Spanish (ISO layout)
· Nordic (ISO layout)
· Japanese (ISO layout)
Lockdown date for the surveys will be in August 15, 2018. The estimated date when we charge your credit cards for the Add-Ons will be right after the lockdown date.
Last month, Manel our Product Manager went on his third trip to the Pearl River Delta. Shenzhen, China.
His first trip was in July 2017, where he went with Matt and Luis to do the preliminary visits to the factories.
The second trip was in January of this year, where this time Manel went alone to meet with viable manufacturing partners.
As the delivery date of the Raise keyboard quickly approaches, it was essential that Manel visited the factories to ensure that everything was going as planned.
He met with our partners and personally oversaw the developments of the different components of the Raise:
· Cables
· Palm pads
· Keycaps
· Packaging
As we are creating custom cables for the Raise, there are a few aspects that we wanted to make sure the factories got right. The cable will be braided and will have an aluminium enclosure for the connector. There will also be a strong plastic case protecting the cable and the enclosure.
The cable samples that they showed us were close to what we envisioned. But there are still a few things that need iteration.
We’ve been thinking of having our logo in the cables but we’re still unsure about this. We’ve asked our manufacturers to send us some samples.
Sample 1 and Sample 2 of the logos
This logos are still not how we want them to look. The size and location are correct but the separation between the 3 elements of the logo is too small.
We’re still working with the manufacturers to get another iteration.
The enclosure of the cable is aluminium and we are offering them in silver and black.
The first sample that we received had a shiny finishing. But we spoke with the manufacturers and told them that we would like it to have a matte finishing, which you can see on the image on the right.
Cable with shiny finishing vs Cable with matte finishing
We want the consistency of the matte to also be seen in the braided cables.
Shown in the image above is the matte finish that we are looking for. But the color isn't what we want. The cable color will be light grey, similar to the previous one but without the shiny effect.
All details needed to be thoroughly checked. The construction of the metal and plastic casing wasn’t as good as we expected.
So we have asked them to improve this build. It is important for us that a detail as small as this has to be perfect.
Before
After
We had 2 options for the anti-slip material (the bottom part) of the palm pads: PU (Polyurethane) and rubber
PU vs rubber
Initially, we wanted to use rubber. The advantage is that it looks more elegant. The disadvantage is that we can’t have it with curved edges because this would require it to be sewn, and we don’t want anything to be sewn. Having sewn edges can give extra pressure in the palms and might cause a bit of discomfort.
What we want is a simple curved edge as shown in the image below.
Curved edge
So we decided to use PU for the bottom part of the palm pads. In between the bottom and the top material will be silicone.
PU material at the bottom
The top material will be a cloth fabric. There will be 2 versions: Black Matte for the black Raise and Pantone Cool Grey 1 for the silver Raise.
Black Matte and Pantone Cool Grey 1
The thickness of the palm pads will be a total of 6-millimeter: 1.5mm of the anti-clip PU material and the rest would be the silicone. The cloth fabric will be a very thin layer.
Below you can see a sketch of the dimensions of the palm pads.
The questions we had regarding a logo were if we needed one, and if so, what would the color be, and where would it be placed?
Our idea for the logo is to have it slightly darker than the fabric color so it will look more subtle. In the black matte cloth, the logo will be black. In the Cool Grey 1 cloth, the logo will be Cool Grey 2.
We decided to add text alongside the logo. These were the examples that were sent to us.
We’ve decided to go with the darkest version at the top. We made a prototype of the palm pads to make sure that we’ve pick the best looking solution.
Prototype palm pad logo
Before the trip to Shenzhen, we were sent samples of different keycap sets from various factories. We inspected them and decided which ones we liked.
In the image above, we decided to go with the keycap on the left.
Manel visited the factory of the manufacturer that we favoured. He assessed the keycaps and learned that the white keycaps are very delicate. They are more difficult to make thus are more expensive.
At present, we haven’t reached the minimum order quantity for the white keycaps. This means that we will be paying more for them to be made. And since the white keycaps are more costly than the black, we are hoping that we reach the minimum order quantity soon.
So if you guys want to make an additional order on the white keycaps, be our guest!
When Manel checked the ABS keycap samples, he saw that there was a problem with the surface quality of the paint and quickly brought it up with the manufacturers. It was an easy fix. Although the PBT keycaps are clearly of higher quality, the quality of the ABS keycaps were good enough as well.
The Raise is offered in seven different keycap languages.
The US English and UK English keycaps will be made of PBT.
But the rest of the keycaps, German, French, Spanish, Nordic, Japanese, and Blank keys, will be made of ABS. With only a few orders of the other languages, we weren’t able to reach the minimum order quantity for them to be PBT. We also weren’t able to reach the minimum order quantity for the double injection ABS. So, these ABS keycaps will have to be be laser etched.
We did a few updates on our concepts for the packaging. You can check them here. We were initially thinking of sending the keyboard with separate boxes for the switches and keycaps, and the user assembles the keyboard himself.
This was an interesting concept that we might push in the future. But as for our pre-orders, the Raise keyboard will come assembled.
We are also going to make an extra PET case for the extra keycaps. They will be in a different envelope.
Thanks for reading guys! If you have any feedback or questions, don't be shy to leave a comment or send us a message. :)
With all the information that we’ve received from our backers, and with all the information we have gathered from our research & development,
Watch the video below to get the full details.
In our previous update, we asked you to answer a short survey for you to choose your preference with design of the Huble. These were the results:
· I prefer removing the hub and having a thinner cable. - 45%
· I prefer keeping the hub with the thick cable. - 35%
· Both options are fine. - 20%
To gives you guys context, originally we wanted a hub with a thin cable. But we realised that it couldn’t be done without it being 100% reliable.
If we decide to use a thicker cable to accommodate the hub, the cable will tower over the Huble. And since the Huble is a very small piece, chances are it will get flipped around easily especially with a thick stiff cable.
It’s ok for other bigger gaming keyboards to have thick cables, but for the Raise, the user-experience would be much better if the cables were streamlined with the Huble and the keyboard.
We also believe that the new Huble is more aesthetically integrated with the cables. It is better for the general industrial design of the product.
Just two weeks ago, Manel went to Shenzhen, China to go over the developments of the Raise keyboard with our manufacturers. (We will post another update on Manel's trip next week!) They evaluated the hub-less Huble and concluded that the manufacturing process will be slightly similar to that of the original Huble but simpler. Thus, it will also reduce some potential risks.
Having a hub in the Huble with a thin cable couldn’t guarantee 100% reliability, but having a thick cable to accommodate the hub compromises the user-experience, comfort, and high-quality that we are aiming.
As a company, we believe that removing the hub is the most well founded solution. Since there will no longer be a hub, we had the idea of changing the Huble’s name to the Neuron.
The Neuron will be more aesthetically integrated with Raise and its cables. Its design reduces complexities in manufacturing; it is more reliable. And it gives a higher quality of the user-experience.
We understand that this decision might be a deal-breaker for some of you, so we are willing to compensate for this in any way possible. ?
A BIG BIG thank you to everyone who has helped us in this process. We know that it has been a constant back-and-forth of updates and surveys and comments. But your feedback has been paramount in our decision.
We truly hope that you will love our product as much as we do. ❤️
You will soon be receiving the survey that will ask for your Raise color, switches, and keycap language! If you want to learn more about the mechanical switches that we offer, head over to our website. The keycap languages that we offer are:
· EN US
· EN UK
· German
· French
· Spanish
· Nordic
· Japanese
If you have any queries, don’t hesitate to message us in any of our social media accounts:
Instagram, Twitter, Youtube, Facebook, or via email.
Big love,
?
Dygma Team