I have KORG (nanoKONTROL Studio and nanoKEY) and love them. I get that the keys are weird, but I also have an Akai MPK mini and tried a few other keyboards (ROLI Bluetooth ones, etc.) and nothing quite came close.
Something you might want to look into is getting a Yamaha Reface (I recommend the DX or the CS, which are the ones I have) and use them as a keyboard. The keys are excellent, and velocity sensitive on all models -- and you get a very nice standalone synth to play around with.
Seconded on the Yamaha Reface series [0], they are widely regarded as having the best mini keys on the market. One note on the velocity sensitivity, though - while they all have the same keys and send velocity data when used as a MIDI controller, the built-in sound engines on the YC and CS models don't actually use the velocity. Just something to keep in mind.
Anyway, they're quite portable, solid and well-made. It feels like a real piece of kit and not a cheap plastic toy synth. They're really ideal for a great-sounded keyboard that you can just sit down and play without needing anything else.
Unfortunately, they've been unavailable for months now on the retail market but you can find used ones on Reverb [1] for a modest markup over retail price (USD $400)
A budget options is the Yamaha PSS-A50 [2][3], which has the exact same keyboard as the Reface series, but it's definitely more of a plastic toy and the sounds are just okay. But you can still use it as a MIDI controller if that's all you're after and it's only USD $100 at MSRP.
Something you might want to look into is getting a Yamaha Reface (I recommend the DX or the CS, which are the ones I have) and use them as a keyboard. The keys are excellent, and velocity sensitive on all models -- and you get a very nice standalone synth to play around with.