Let’s face it — carrying keys is cumbersome. That’s why you’ll find so many products for organizing keys. Orbitkey was one of the first to do it, and to this day their key organizer is one of the best minimalist options out there. But if you think about it, once you’ve got your keys in order, the weakest link in your keychain is the keyring itself. A traditional split ring is so hard to use, you’d rather set it once and forget it. So what do you do when you need to change up your keychain gear? Orbitkey’s answer is their newest project, poised to be the next step forward in carrying your keys more efficiently. It includes a completely reinvented keyring, a highly adaptable carabiner and hook, and a wrist strap for versatility beyond your pockets. It’s a trio of excellent designs in and of themselves that creates a system greater than the sum of its parts.
It all starts with the humble keyring. Deceptively simple in its appearance, the Orbitkey Ring actually conceals a patent-pending locking mechanism that opens easily for quick access, but locks securely when you’re on the go. It does this using a clever mix of two materials: stainless steel for the outer ring to provide structure and strength, and a polymer core for flexibility and ease of use. You pinch and pull the tab on the polymer inner ring downward, then rotate it to reveal a gap for your keys and other gear to enter through.
It’s an elegant solution to the literal pain points of the traditional split ring, which you have to forcefully pry open with your fingernails every time you need to adjust your keychain. With a better keyring, it opens up options for a more modular setup without needing extra clips and hardware, keeping your EDC lean and efficient.
For a truly dialed EDC, it isn’t enough to just get your keys in order — how you carry them is also important. That’s where the next part of the Orbitkey system, the Clip, comes in. It’s essentially a refined carabiner with elegant proportions, an enlarged ergonomic polymer gate, and a custom leather fob to allow hot-swapping for multiple configurations using a simple metal slider.
The last part of the new Orbitkey ecosystem is a wrist strap that works like a longer version of the Clip. It comes especially in handy if you like to attach keys to your bag. The added length and security means you won’t have to unclip your keys to unlock your door, and retrieving your keychain from the bottom of your bag becomes much easier. While carrying keys on a wrist strap isn’t as popular with guys, it can be repurposed for gear other than keys, like a point-and-shoot camera, too.
Best of all, the gear works seamlessly with each other as a system, including the original Orbitkey key organizers. Get a closer look at how these designs work at the fully funded Kickstarter below, and pick up a few if you’re looking to take your minimalist key carry to the next level.
