Byok Is My New Go-to Distraction-free Writing Tool

I person agelong been connected nan hunt for nan cleanable distraction-free penning setup. The latest contender is BYOK, which stands for Bring Your Own Keyboard. It’s a elemental $199 achromatic integrative rectangle pinch a low-resolution LCD surface that lets you edit matter and does almost thing else.

I’ve tried dedicated apps. I’ve moreover converted an aged laptop into a writerdeck. But neither solution really clicked. Last year, I paired a Boox Palma pinch a NuPhy Air and location was a batch to like. The unique, quick-refreshing E Ink surface provided my favourite typing acquisition yet, and it synced seamlessly pinch my different devices acknowledgment to Obsidian. But Boox’s OS is simply a spot janky, and nan Obsidian Android app is messy. The interface is inconsistent, and you’ll want extensions to make nan astir of it, which you past person to retrieve to update, and dream that erstwhile you do, they don’t break anything. With BYOK, location are conscionable a batch less variables to contend with.

Unlike different distraction-free devices, for illustration those from Pomera aliases Freewrite, BYOK doesn’t effort to container you into a circumstantial setup — this is awesome news if you’re picky astir your keyboards. It’s not a stripped-down laptop aliases trying to re-create a vintage typewriter shape factor. There’s nary keyboard that it has to enactment attached to. It’s conscionable a box. With nan correct accessories, it has nan imaginable to beryllium overmuch much ergonomic than nan competition. The MagSafe-compatible ringing connected nan backmost lets you usage it pinch a assortment of stands, mounts, and holders. You could skip a guidelines and conscionable guidelines it up consecutive connected your desk, aliases laic it down connected a array top, but I wouldn’t urge it.

The institution sent maine a fewer different guidelines options to trial pinch nan BYOK, ranging from elemental collapsible rings to cumbersome gooseneck stands. I’ve chiefly utilized a folding tripod stand from Ulanzi. It’s not nan astir stable, but I’ve recovered it offers nan champion equilibrium of portability and height, limiting strain connected my neck. You could besides usage a stack of books aliases an easel, aliases conscionable person a friend clasp it, though that’s a small little convenient.

This customizability is portion of nan entreaty of BYOK. I’ve besides tested BYOK pinch a number of keyboards, some wired and Bluetooth, from palm-sized ones reminiscent of a Blackberry to nan luxurious MQ80 from Iqunix. The second decidedly provided nan nicest typing experience, but its dense aluminum chassis made dragging it astir unpleasant, truthful I tended to instrumentality pinch my trusty NuPhy.

The package connected nan BYOK is delightfully stripped down. You person projects (essentially folders), and wrong those are files. Most of nan keyboard shortcuts you’re utilized to successful immoderate modular matter editor work: CTRL+F to find wrong a document, CTRL+C to copy, CTRL+V to paste, et cetera. You tin besides quickly propulsion up a position barroom pinch your connection count and artillery info. You tin besides insert notes, tasks, and a fewer different contented types by adding “::” and a keyword to nan commencement of a statement (i.e., “::note”). But that’s benignant of it. No links. No bold aliases italics. Just text.

I could nitpick astir nan uneven backlight aliases nan Bluetooth that didn’t ever automatically reconnect to my keyboard. But for nan astir part, nan hardware is rock-solid. Battery life is quoted astatine 20 hours (five pinch nan backlight astatine maximum) and, successful my testing, that seems to beryllium a flimsy underestimation, if anything. I utilized it connected and disconnected for much than 2 weeks earlier I needed to recharge. And while nan navigation buttons connected nan backmost of nan instrumentality are a small awkward to use, you don’t really request them erstwhile you’ve sewage a keyboard hooked up.

This benignant of reliable simplicity is precisely what I request to support maine focused while writing. I wrote 3 reviews (including this one) and 2 short stories connected nan BYOK successful nan clip I’ve had it. It’s peculiarly well-suited for my caller return to fabrication writing.

It’s not perfect for everything, however. It would only slow maine down connected nan regular news grind, aliases thing wherever I’m relying heavy connected investigation and pulling from different sources. Unsurprisingly, it’s a batch much annoying to move devices than it is to move windows aliases tabs. It’s besides not awesome for heavy-duty editing. I find BYOK fantabulous for focusing connected getting my thoughts down, but nan infinitesimal I commencement trying to jump astir a archive and make changes, it gets a small wonky. You’re amended disconnected drafting connected BYOK and past moving to thing for illustration Google Docs to edit and format.

Getting your documents connected Google Docs is elemental enough. All your files are saved arsenic plain .txt connected a microSD card, which you tin popular into a reader. Or you tin link nan BYOK straight to your machine complete USB-C to transportation files. But location is besides a unreality sync work and app called BYOK Studio that will moreover backmost itself up to your Google Drive. The basal matter sync usability useful reasonably well. While it’s expected to sync automatically complete Wi-Fi erstwhile powering off, I’ve recovered it champion to manually sync erstwhile you decorativeness a penning session, conscionable successful case.

Things get a small messy pinch nan different formats that a premium BYOK Studio subscription ($9.99 a period aliases $83.88 billed annually) enables, including cards, wikis, communicative grids, and manuscripts. The measurement notes, tasks, and each of these different features are implemented connected nan instrumentality is thoughtful. A elemental “::card” turns a statement into a card, “::wiki” makes a wiki entry. And you tin way them utilizing @tags, truthful each your “@characters” and “@plot” notes extremity up successful nan correct place. But they besides complicate nan experience, and plain matter connected a low-res LCD is not nan perfect interface for them.

They’re overmuch amended knowledgeable connected nan web interface connected your machine aliases successful nan mobile app. Though, moreover location I find nan UI a spot unintuitive astatine times and crowded. While I understand nan entreaty of having a azygous destination to grip each these aspects of writing, I already person Obsidian, and it does them better. Where Obsidian had been letting maine down was arsenic a portable distraction-free penning environment. (Though, if I could conscionable sync a circumstantial vault aliases files to nan BYOK, that would beryllium nan cleanable solution.)

The institution precocious raised nan BYOK’s value to $199 from $179, but it’s still a acold outcry from Freewrite’s cheapest device, nan $349 Alpha, aliases nan $549 Pomera. Obviously, you request to supply your ain guidelines and keyboard, but if you already person a keyboard you love, why walk other connected a instrumentality pinch a worse 1 built in?

For 99 percent of people, BYOK whitethorn look frivolous. But if you, for illustration me, struggle to enactment connected task and you want thing to constitute connected without nan changeless enticement of nan net astatine your fingertips, nan BYOK’s allure is obvious.