Developed for macOS by Takayama Fumihiko, Karabiner-Elements is a utility that provides users the means to remap their keyboard and set up various settings like special characters, shortcuts, or delay time.
The installation process is easy to complete and lasts under one minute. Once you start the application, you discover a simple GUI, with a black and grey theme and rich toolbar options. There are no extra skin themes and thanks to its well-delimited sections, it's quite easy to navigate through menu tabs.
When it comes to its capabilities, Karabiner-Elements can help users to configure key mappings from GUI by accessing the Modifications tab. You don't need advanced computer skills to adjust key mappings, so it should be an easy task for any type of user.
Furthermore, there are multiple predefined rules integrated into the program. Some of them are Mouse keys, Vi key bindings, Diamond cursor, Emacs key bindings, or Unintended command-q. An important aspect is that users can import predefined rules from the Internet or just create personalized rules.
To summarize, Karabiner-Elements is a simple software tool for making various adjustments to the keyboard settings. It's free to use and consumes a small number of system resources, but it can be sluggish sometimes. Still, you should try it and have fun with its features.
v12.1 [May 31, 2018]
- Open config folder button has been added into Preferences.
- The feature provides an easy way exporting configuration.
- Added a workaround for non-dismissible Device is ignored temporarily alert which is caused by some devices that send abnormal input events.
- Fixed Add {key_code} to the Karabiner-Elements button on EventViewer for unnamed keys (raw number key codes).
- Fixed an issue that modifier flag events are not dispatched when changing the pointing button while other character keys are pressed. (e.g., when changing pointing_button::button3 -> command+pointing_button::button1, command modifier is not sent when button1 is pressed while t key is also pressed.)
