This is an nRF52840-based controller which can power any Halcyon keyboard through a wireless connection over bluetooth. Using special connectors, it can simply be clicked on to any Halcyon keyboard; it does not require any tools.

About the Halcyon Series

The Halcyon Series is a series of keyboards that combine what we've learned about split keyboards since 2019 into a unified premium range. That means that you can depend on great quality, complete documentation and shared features such as hot-swappable switches, per-key RGB and RGB underglow, USB C interconnect, and much more.

Unique to the Halcyon Series are its modules, which enable you to add functionality to your keyboard without having to solder. For wireless keyboards, we can recommend the e-paper display module and the rotary encoder module due to their low power draw. All keyboards in the series use the same standard, so modules can be reused across them, and more modules will be released as we expand the series, which will be backwards compatible.

The controllers used for the Halcyon Series are cold-swappable so they can be reused, replaced or upgraded in the future.

Features

• The nRF52840 controller provides plenty of speed for any functionality needed for keyboards and then some, which comes in handy for tinkering and enabling advanced firmware features.
• It is powered by ZMK firmware.
  • Halcyon keyboards are compatible: either through downloadable firmware files which you can customise with ZMK Studio, or by compiling it yourself through a provided sample repository.
    
• This controller can be used in wireless and in wired mode. For wireless, bluetooth LE is used. Halcyon keyboards all support the  use of USB C cables for the wired connection.
• It has 8Mbit (1MB) of flash memory, which is plenty for just about any ZMK firmware configuration.
• It achieves an ultra-low power consumption in deep sleep of 2.31µA with a LiPo battery and a mere 1.63µA when using a coin cell battery (measured while using the Halcyon Wireless USB C Dongle and without using modules, precision of ±10%). When idle, the usage is a mere 27µA for both. Idle mode is the default state of the keyboard while not actively pressing a key (and thus not transmitting wireless data), while deep sleep is entered after 15 minutes of inactivity.
• It provides ESD protection on all inputs and outputs, including the connection to the host device as well as to the other half of the keyboard. This will ensure your keyboard will live a long life.
• The controller has an on-board reset button, making it easy to flash new firmware to it: just double-tap the button.
• There is no power LED, so it'll be stealthy when you want it to be.
• The controller is cold-swappable, making it easy to reuse, replace or upgrade in the future.
• We've ensured A-grade quality control. Each controller is semi-automatically tested and has its own serial number.
  

Available bundles

The wireless controller is sold in a few different bundles:

• As a single controller, for when you're building your own custom keyboard or when you need an out-of-warranty replacement;
• As two controllers with a wireless module connection kit, which includes all the mounting hardware and cables you need for a Halcyon keyboard.
• As a wireless upgrade bundle, which includes all the parts to upgrade an existing Halcyon keyboard into a wireless one. It includes:
  • Two wireless controllers;
  • One wireless module connection kit;
  • One Halcyon Wireless USB C Dongle;
  • One USB A to USB C adapter;
  • Your choice of a set of Coin Cell Battery Boards (including two additional replacement batteries) or a set of LiPo battery boards (LiPo battery not included).

Documentation

The Halcyon Series keyboards come with documentation, including:

• An exhaustive build guide helps you with the initial assembly.
• Module-specific guides help you install, replace or remove Halcyon Modules.
• A firmware flashing guide helps you flash the appropriate files to your keyboard so you can put it to work.
• Advanced guides are available to help you set up your own ZMK firmware for deep firmware customisation, use non-Halcyon VIK modules and even design your own Halcyon module.

Read more

You can learn about how the Halcyon Series came to be in the Winter 2024 update over at our blog. 

Remarks

• This product is incomplete on its own. Please follow the steps in the Composer to select all the parts needed. Any cases, keycaps, cables and modules shown in the product pictures are not included by default and need to be purchased separately.