MoErgo Glove80 Keyboard Review

The MoErgo Glove80 keyboard comprises two pieces you can choose to separate or angle as you wish, so the above dimensions include the keyboard's width with the narrowest straight configuration as pictured. Furthermore, the Weight test result is measured with both halves but without wrist rests. The two wrist rests weigh an additional 95.5g combined. With the wrist rests included, the total weight of the keyboard is 0.554kg.

The build quality of the MoErgo Glove80 keyboard is fair. It has an all-plastic construction that's impressively lightweight but feels quite sturdy and doesn't flex much. That said, some of the tolerances between parts, particularly the two large pieces of plastic that make up the chassis of each half, aren't completely flush, as can be seen in this image. This gap between pieces may be intentional, so the typing quality isn't quite as stiff, but it may be disappointing for some. Additionally, while the wrist rests feel durable and provide good support, they're also made of the same lightweight and fairly cheap-feeling plastic as the rest of the board.

The keycaps are made of high-quality POM (polyoxymethylene) plastic and have a pleasantly smooth, almost slippery texture. Additionally, they have a unique MCC profile that has a concave 'channel,' designed to contain your fingers and allow them to glide upwards or downwards within key columns without hitting the raised edge that standard MBK or most other dish-like Choc V1 keycaps have.

Altogether, the build quality doesn't feel as premium as a conventional custom mechanical keyboard around this price point. The fit and finish of some parts may be underwhelming if you care a lot about build quality detail.

The MoErgo Glove80 keyboard has outstanding ergonomics. It comprises two halves that you can angle and position as you wish. Each half has a concave key well designed to follow the curves of your fingertips and minimize the distance your fingers need to travel to reach the keys. Each half of the keyboard also has a dedicated, detachable wrist rest that provides good support but is also made of fairly cheap feeling plastic.

Additionally, the key layout is columnar, which limits the amount of side-to-side movement your fingers need to make. The keycaps are made of POM plastic with a smooth, almost slippery texture and a shallow, half-pipe-shaped channel in the center to glide your fingers up and down each column.

There is an incline system incorporated into the feet of the keyboard that you can use to set a tenting angle that can reduce forearm pronation while typing. These feet are simple screws you can adjust to provide tenting angles between 10 and 30 degrees. You can see an image of the maximum tenting angle here.

The MoErgo Glove80 keyboard very limited hardware customizability according to our testing methodology, but it's worth noting that it does provide a high degree of customizability in other respects.

This keyboard is compatible with Choc V1 keycaps. However, the stock keycaps have a unique MCC profile designed to allow ease of movement within key columns. For more details about this keycap profile, see the Build Quality section above.

All keycaps are 1u sized, and you can rearrange them to correspond to your preferred layout. You can then use the web-based layout editor if you want alternative layouts, including Dvorak, Colemak, Workman, or other custom layouts of your design. For more details about layout customizability, see the Configuration Software section below. MoErgo also sells add-on keycaps for AZERTY or various other international layouts.

This keyboard has excellent backlighting features. By default, you can customize the lighting and effects directly on the keyboard by switching to the 'Magic' function layer.

This keyboard has acceptable backlight clarity. While the keycaps don't have shine-through legends, the POM plastic they're made of is translucent, allowing you to read the legends in lower light conditions.

This keyboard comes with a short, generic USB-A to USB-C charging cable made of white rubber.

This keyboard connects wirelessly via Bluetooth and can be paired with up to four devices simultaneously.

With LED lighting turned off and ZMK sleep functionality disabled, this keyboard has an advertised battery life of two to four weeks for the left-hand module and upwards of two months for the right-hand module.

There are no dedicated macro keys on this keyboard. However, all of the keys are macro-programmable using the web-based layout editor. Note that this web-based editor isn't considered software according to our test methodology, but we've included more details in the Configuration Software section later on.

By default, this keyboard has three function layers: A Base layer, a Lower layer, and a "Magic" layer. The Base layer is the keyboard's default primary layer. You access the Lower layer by holding the Layer key on the thumb cluster of the left module. By default, this layer contains the Numpad and several navigational cluster keys. Lastly, you access the 'Magic' layer by holding down the "Magic" key that's on the bottom left corner of the left module and labeled with the MoErgo logo. By default, you use the Magic layer to control the RGB lighting; it displays Caps, Scroll Low, and Num Lock indicators. These layers are customizable using the web-based layout editor detailed in the Configuration Software section.

• MoErgo Glove80 keyboard
• USB-A to USB-C cable
• 12x Extra feet
• 12x Extra silicone pads
• 10 Extra threaded rods in three different lengths
• 14x Nuts
• Wrench
• Keycap puller

We bought and tested the MoErgo Glove80 keyboard with linear Kailh Choc V1 Low Profile Red (50g) switches. They arrived unsoldered, and we soldered the switches in our lab, but you can purchase these switches soldered instead.

You can also buy this keyboard with tactile Kailh Choc V1 Low Profile Brown or clicky Kailh Choc V1 Low Profile White switches.

At the time of writing, MoErgo also has a pre-order batch available with Kailh Choc V1 Low Profile Red switches in two different spring weights, either 50g or 35g. We tested the 50g switches. We expect the 35g switches to behave very similarly but to have an actuation force of ~30gf.

The linear Kailh Choc V1 Low Profile Red switches (50g) on the unit we bought and tested are smooth, lightweight, and have a very short pre-travel and total travel, making keystrokes feel responsive and immediate.

Regarding other switch options, We expect the Kailh Choc V1 Low Profile Red switches (35g) to require less force to actuate but otherwise be very similar to the switches we tested.

We expect the Kailh Choc V1 Low Profile Brown switches to feel somewhat heavier and have a small tactile bump to overcome.

Lastly, we expect the White switches to feel considerably heavier and have a pronounced tactile bump that makes an audible click.

The MoErgo Glove80 keyboard offers excellent typing quality. However, because this keyboard has an unconventional, split design with concave key wells and a columnar key layout, it may take some time to get used to it before you can type comfortably at your regular speed— depending on the keyboard you're used to. The keycaps are made of POM plastic and have a smooth texture which feels pleasant but may be unusual if you're used to the rougher texture of PBT keycaps.

That said, the keys are very stable, and because all keys are the same size, none of the keys require stabilizers that are typically needed for larger keys on conventional keyboards. Additionally, the columnar layout can minimize the side-to-side distance your fingers need to travel and may reduce the strain and fatigue from typing for extended periods.

Typing noise with the linear Kailh Choc V1 Low Profile Red switches on the unit we bought and tested is quiet and unlikely to bother those around you. This keyboard is also available with tactile Brown or clicky White switches. We expect the Brown switches to be somewhat louder and the White switches to be considerably louder.

The MoErgo Glove80 keyboard has exceptionally low wired latency and delivers an extremely responsive in-game experience for gaming in any genre. The wireless latency is perfectly suited for casual gaming and everyday tasks, but we don't recommend playing fast-paced or competitive games using a Bluetooth connection.

Our current testing methodology considers this keyboard as not having dedicated configuration software. However, you can configure this keyboard using ZMK firmware and MoErgo's web-based layout editor. The layout editor is well laid out and reasonably easy to use. It offers a significant degree of customizability for using alternative layouts, adjusting lighting, or creating complex macros. Altogether, these customization methods aren't very intuitive to use without a reasonable degree of technical familiarity with custom keyboard firmware tools.

You can use the MoErgo Glove80 layout editor from this link, and MoErgo has a guide for using this layout editor that you can read here.

You can learn more about ZMK firmware by following this link to the ZMK website.

The MoErgo Glove80 keyboard is fully compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux.

All functions work on Android devices. On iOS and iPadOS devices, all functions on the base layer work, but the Pause/Break, Scroll Lock, Print Screen, and Insert buttons do nothing on the lower layer.