I know I need a numpad, but there are so many ways to go about that. You can have a full sized board (or 1800/96%) that’s has the numpad built in. The advantages here are that they are one unit so the design is cohesive and you don’t need to worry about other batteries or pairing through BT, etc. The disadvantage is that you severely limit yourself in options, not the most wide array to pick from. On the other side of things, you have the option of a separate numpad. The pros and cons are pretty much just the opposite of an integrated numpad.
What are everyone’s thoughts on what is the best setup with the use of a numpad.
My opinion is that for the 10-key to really have value, it needs to be close to the keyboard. Ideally, integrated into the keyboard. I’ve found that reaching for a 10-key that’s not right at hand is less than ideal and rather uncomfortable.
That said, I’ve found I have three compelling reasons for why I stick with 10-keyless.
Aesthetics – Removing the 10-key really declutters the workspace.
Ergonomics – By not having such a wide keyboard, you can actually get your mouse and keyboard closer together which is said to be more ergonomic. I’ve heard the ideal distance is so that your arms can be at their side when using the mouse and keyboard. ( Office ergonomics: Your how-to guide - Mayo Clinic)
Frequency of Use – If I keyed in numbers more frequently, I don’t think I could live without one, but as it stands I can get by with the numrow of a keyboard. I do think I’m faster with numbers on the 10-key though.
I suppose a fourth would be that you really don’t find too many aftermarket Full-sized boards and I do like a fancy custom.
What’s my current setup?
Home – Realforce TKL, and Realforce 23U (10-key). The arrangement is, from left-to-right, Keyboard > Mouse > 10-key. The reach to the 10-key is less than ideal.
Work – Leopold 980C (which has an integrated 10-key).
Separate numpad can be placed to the left to leave some room for the mouse. 75% + left handed numpad is a good combo IMHO. If you want a single unit there are some southpaw keyboards, really if you are on excel all day long otherwise the convenience of a split numpad is hard to beat, also it can be used for gaming.
I’m firmly on team numpad, for one-hand data entry, frequent calculator-app use, and generally being a weirdo who prefers to type any number larger than 3 digits on a numpad. However, I currently run an oddball setup with a wide desk with dual monitors feeding completely separate computers. I typically like compact 1800-like layouts, and at the moment I have one of them on my work PC, with a TKL-like for the home PC, with my overly large numpad hanging around. I run wired so pairing and batteries are not an issue.
I have actually found that with the separate numpad, I have taken to shoving it up under the monitor during the workday so I can give the work-side setup the space it needs. After 5pm, home PC gets pride of place and I often have the numpad to the right of my mouse. I get to keep the mouse where it lives when the numpad isn’t there at all, and the ergonomics of reaching to the right are no worse than going left.
Sometimes I’ve put it on the left-hand side, and TBF it looks nicer there, especially with the slight chonk of a design I came up with, but southpaw is just not quite connecting for me. I get all the arguments, and I even made a southpaw board, but it’s all wrong for my combined setup, and I’m not sure it works much better for me even when I’m only running one, partly because of muscle memory, and partly because I’m fond of the pointlessly decadent Spacemouse I use for CAD stuff.
Still, to sum up, if I had to use exactly one layout forever, it’d be an 1800/96% variant. Barely wider than a TKL, but also barely any reduction in key-count versus a full-size.
