[PREORDER] Elora rev1.0 Ticket

This product is a ticket which reserves for you one set of Elora PCBs. You can purchase any other parts and options by early December. Purchasing this item is a reservation and does not ship you a product of its own.

The Elora is a 62-key keyboard, based on the Kyria by splitkb.com. It comes preassembled (no soldering!), is compatible with Vial so you don't need to program or compile your firmware, and accepts Myriad modules so you can add cool features with just a screwdriver. Let's dive in!

What's the Elora?

The Elora is an evolved version of the Kyria that comes with a number row, and has an emphasis on ease of use for beginners, as well as being hackable for advanced customers It comes preassembled: the only tool you need is a screwdriver.

What's Myriad?

Myriad is a system that allows you to plug in modules to add new functionality to your keyboard, all without having to solder. It's an open source standard, meaning that anyone will be able to create their own modules, which you can then plug into your keyboard. It's a very capable standard, so we're very curious to see what other modules you will come up with!

Wait... a preorder ticket?

That's right! We're still waiting on the last bits and pieces to come in. We've already extensively tested every part, and we're just waiting on the last few shipments from our manufacturers - they're already on their way.

You can purchase up to three tickets, and each ticket is a voucher for a free Elora PCB Kit - the basis you'll need to build the keyboard, which doesn't include the case, switches, keycaps, cables and optional Myriad modules. This means that for this first production batch, sales are limited to three Elora keyboards per customer.

The ticket guarantees you a base kit, so that you'll be sure you can purchase your keyboard once we make them available. You'll be able to select your parts with less stress this way, as you won't have to worry about the kits running out.

We'll communicate the final release date by email and Discord, so you'll know when you can use your ticket. It depends on when we're finished kitting and packaging everything, but it'll likely be two to three more weeks - likely just in time to ship your keyboard to you before Christmas!

If the first production batch would happen to run out, we'll open up ticket sales for a second batch. It'd take another two months for us to complete another production run. The Elora will not be a limited production: we'll keep restocking it as long as you are interested.

We'll do our best to add the Elora to the Composer too, so it'll be straightforward to select all of your kit options, besides the keycaps.

Hey now, what about risk?

This preorder is not a group buy. All items are already designed, manufactured, tested and paid for. We already have some of the items: the PCBs, Myriad modules and some packaging material is still in transit. The copper and brass top plates are being manufactured and will arrive by mid to end December 2023.

This ticket reserves the base kit for you. Some options may still run out, but will be restocked as soon as possible - I've purchased as much stock as I could. This also means that once you place your final order in two to three weeks, it'll ship out within a week after: we'll just have to pick and pack all the orders, no further waiting.

Features

The Elora supports the following features:

• A comfortable 62 keys, including a number row. It's perfect for beginners who want to feel what a split keyboard feels like without the layout feeling cramped, and a nice option for people who know they frequently use the number row, like typists, gamers, some software engineers and Excel warriors.
• Powered by QMK and Vial firmware. Vial makes it especially easy to configure your keyboard, as there is no need to do any programming or compilation.
• Powered by an RP2040 controller, it’s quick enough to handle anything a keyboard should be able to do… and much more.
• 16 megabytes of flash memory ensure that it’s ready for just about everything. Putting a sped-up movie on an RGB display you’ve wired up to your prototyping Myriad module? Say no more.
• Supports MX switches with preassembled hot-swap sockets. No soldering iron needed. You can solder them to the alternative set of pads if you'd prefer to, though.
• Supports Choc switches by soldering. This does require assembly with tools like a soldering iron. Hot swap is still possible using Mill-Max sockets, which too require soldering.
• Subtle RGB underglow with 6 LEDs per half to personalise the colour of your keyboard. It can be disabled for those who don't want it.
• Supports the tenting puck, which allows you to mount it to most camera tripods so you can place your keyboard at exactly the angle you want it.
• Supports up to one Myriad module per half, so you can add a myriad of available modules without having to solder.
• Supports up to one 128x64 pixel OLED display per half, which doesn't require assembly.
• There's a jack for foot pedal or external switch support. You can use one such switch per half by default, but the wiring supports up to three external switches per half. Great for accessibility purposes, or just plain fun if you want to hook up a digital foot pedal to your voice chat software, game or whatever else you can think of.
• If you're into soldering, you can put up to three encoders per half on seven predefined locations: near the top of the thumb cluster, at the innermost thumb cluster button, or each location on the outer columns. If you don't want to assemble, you can of course still use a rotary encoder Myriad module.

What's included?

Included with this ticket purchase is:

• Elora Keyboard rev1.0 PCBs
• The left and right half of the Elora, forming the base of the keyboard. Purchasing this ticket gets you the Elora PCBs for "free": it's a preorder.

What will be available for order once it's ready by early December?

There'll be plenty of options available upon launch. Here they are:

• Elora Keyboard Low Profile Case
• Similar to the Kyria's case options, you can pick from many options:
• Top plates in aluminium, brass and copper in premium finishes, and a nice clean black FR4 plate. For those who don't want to use hot swap, there will be acrylic top plate options, too.
• Bottom plates in clear, frosted and matte black acrylic.
• OLED covers in clear and dark tinted acrylic.
• Felt sound dampening mats in grey, yellow, red, pink and royal blue, for a nicer sound and an accent colour of choice that's visible from the edges of the case.
• Myriad Collector's Edition Bundle
• Want to have them all? All the Myriad cards below are also available in one attractively priced bundle, which includes one of each card as well as the set of prototyping cards.
• Myriad Expansion Cards
• Want to get an extra card, or fancy a particular module? They're also available for sale individually!
• Macropad with four buttons, for when 62 keys isn't enough. They come with programmable per-key RGB LEDs, which aren't enabled by default (not supported in firmware yet).
• Tactile encoder, for easy volume control, scrolling and much more. Comes with RGB backlight, which isn't enabled by default

• (not supported in firmware yet).
• Joystick, for mouse control, use in games, or whatever else you can think of.
• Expansion module, which comes with a QWIIC and VIK port. It'll allow you to hook up a host of existing and future modules, including a Cirque trackpad module (will be stocked at splitkb.com), which does require custom firmware compilation.
• Perma-proto and breakout modules, which allow you to hook up custom components to the Myriad system by soldering to these affordable and easy to use cards. They come in a set of 3 small perma-proto cards, 2 big perma-proto cards, and 2 breakout board cards. Enthusiasts beware: you're hooking up parts directly to the microcontroller, so be sure to not cause shorts or apply too much voltage to the pins, same as with any other DIY project.

What's required?

Beyond the kit contents, you'll also need to get the following items to make a working keyboard:

• 62 × Kailh Choc or MX-compatible switch;
• 62 × Kailh Choc or MX-compatible keycap;
• 1 × TRRS cable, and;
• 1 × USB C cable that can connect to your host device of choice (usually a USB C to C or USB C to A cable)

What's optional?

You can get these options to add some bling to your keyboard:

• A set of case parts is recommended to use to protect your keyboard during use and transport;

• 2 × 128x64 OLED display (hotswap sockets come presoldered);
• Up to 6 × Encoder with knobs, and;
• 2 × Tenting puck (compatible with most camera tripods, like the Manfrotto Pocket Tripod).

Build guide

A build guide will follow before the final release. In short, though: get the top plate, put the switches in, screw on the bottom plate and the OLED cover if you have one, plug in the TRRS cable, then plug in the USB cable and... done! It'll work out of the box after that, it comes pre-flashed with Vial firmware - it'll even work with the macropad, joystick and encoder modules without having to recompile or flash anything. Nice!

Terms of conditions for tickets

• One ticket = one Elora. One ticket gives you a 100% discount on one set of Elora Keyboard rev1.0 PCBs.
• Up to three tickets per customer. During the preorder period, we're limiting sales to three keyboards per customer. After that, you can get as many as you like, if you like to collect many Elora keyboards.
• Tickets are refundable. They can be exchanged for a gift card of equal value, or be refunded for at least 96%, because of payment provider fees. Depending on your payment method, you may be able to cancel your own order without any fees for up to 24 hours after your purchase.
• Tickets are not transferrable. Due to technical limitations, we cannot transfer your ticket to another person. If you need to recover your account, please reply to your order confirmation email, or reach out to support@splitkb.com.
• Taxes apply as usual. We're marking the value of the Elora kit as appropriate, so you won't pay duplicate taxes on importing in case of ordering from Great Britain, Switzerland or Norway.

Of course, the Elora is not a limited production run - we'll make more. Production does take time, but it'll be generally available soon enough. You can wait until it's available as an in-stock item if you so desire.

Remarks

• There's no per key RGB. There is underglow, making for pretty lights.
• There's no second revision planned yet. It's too soon, we just finished the thing! Per key RGB might make it into that, but it'll take us a good while - can't anger the early adopters, after all!
• What about warranty? Two years! If your keyboard breaks, please send an email to support@splitkb.com and we'll do our best to find a good solution for you.
• Just to be sure: This does exclude damage by wrongful use, such as damage to the hotswap sockets by wrongly inserting switches, damage caused by unplugging the TRRS cable while the power is plugged in, and damage caused by plugging in a wrongly soldered, non-stock Myriad card.
• It looks pretty complex, how do you know whether it works? Every Elora PCB has its own unique serial number. We've written custom testing firmware and software, and every PCB gets ran through a rigorous semi-automated testing suite. We can view all test results in our database, so we're sure that all keyboards passed our test suite.

The case and keycaps shown are not included with this item. Purchase of the preorder ticket includes the PCB kit only, which you'll need to purchase once it becomes available by early December. The keycaps shown are MT3 White on Black, the case options are an aluminium plate, tinted OLED cover, grey felt sound dampening mat and a frosted bottom plate.