BulletTrain eXpress
Pro Platform Preview
Is Bigger Better?
The photo below showcases the very first physical prototype of the BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform PRO that is holding a full-width Touch ID Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad that I have been using for several days and it is a complete game-changer!!!! I mean I am REALLY Surprised with how much I LOVE this think and how genuinely useful and beneficial it has been to my workflow!!!!
The two photos below also show the 3D Printed BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform PRO, which we plan to bring to market soon. I would not bring this full size BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform to market unless I thought it was amazing and potentially better than our standard BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform.
What makes the BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform PRO better than the existing BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform? The much wider body offers a significantly wider right wrist rest which is really comfortable. In apps where I scroll a lot like Safari, photos, and the finder it is extremely useful to have a dedicated Page Up, Page Down, Home & End keys!!!!!! Also, having a dedicated delete forward key is pretty cool.
Having the inverted T-Cursor key layout is really nice, as well as having a dedicated numeric keypad for typing things like phone numbers or working on spreadsheets is also great. Before I made and started using an eXpress I had a full-size keyboard with the inverted T cursor and number keys, which was more than a dozen years ago, but my muscle memory is still there for using the numeric keyboard, which is excellent for typing numbers, especially for things like calculating numbers using dedicated addition & subtraction, and multiplication keys.
I say this as I got used to just using the upper number keys like on a MacBook, so it is nice to have the convenience of the dedicated numeric keypad back.
Also, having 7 additional programmable F-Keys is amazing for creating one-touch keyboard shortcuts with apps like Size-UP and MooM, which are great for radical windows management with a 6 monitor setup. I used Size-Up to program the F18 and F19 keys to make any window take up 50% of the width of whatever monitor they are on. So being able to move ANY app window with the touch of a button to the left or right of any screen is a godsend. Also, I use Moom for moving any window to any monitor very easily by tapping on the F17 key to activate the arrow keys. This solution has radically improved my workflow!!!
The full-size BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform PRO is surprisingly lap friendly and comfortable which is an added bonus. As strange as it might sound, it makes me feel more like a PRO when I use it!?!! And in the looks department it looks surprisingly cool and proportional.
I have had to retrain my muscle memory when using this bigger setup since the space bar is much wider, so for things like 'Command + N", I initially kept minimizing the app I was in as I would hit the 'M' key instead of the 'N', but I it only took a few days to adapt. Also, the full size keyboard has a right 'Control' key which the smaller Apple Magic Keyboard lacks.
Why Make A Wide-Body eXpress?
In June of 2017 when Apple introduced the first wireless Magic Keyboard with a numeric keypad customers began writing in asking if we planned to make a wider BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard to accommodate it. I initially was against the idea as the reason I made the original eXpress was to create the most ergonomic desktop keyboard that was almost identical to a MacBook Keyboard.
The original eXpress worked so well and was so comfortable with its built-in wrist rest I initially thought there was not a good reason to make an eXpress for the full size keyboard. Boy was I wrong!?!! As the years went by I kept thinking about it, and we slowly started doing conceptual designs. Now that we have made one I am stunned with how much I love it for the desktop!?!!
We have been working on making our eXpress Pro BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform for a while and expect to have it to market in the first half of 2023. This all-new model will work with both the current Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keyboard as well as the all-new Touch ID model. It has all benefits of it smaller sibling like access to charge ports without having to remove the keyboard or trackpad, so you can use it while you charge, and the list of benefits goes on and on.
BulletTrain eXpress PRO Keyboard Platform Prototype pictured above on right,
next to standard BulletTrain eXpress Keyboard Platform for Apple Magic Keyboard & Trackpad.
This 'eXpress Pro' model was designed with professional users in mind who specialize in Video, Graphics and Accounting, but can be enjoyed by anybody who wants all benefits of the numeric keyboard as well as the inverted 'T' Cursor arrow keys as well as dedicated Page Up, Page Down, Home & End keys. The eXpress Pro will come in our classic colors of Ruby Red, Polar White, BulletTrain Blue and Stealth Black. Below are some early renders.
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