what is going on, everybody?
I am Mike
Welcome back to Tech 24/7 TV.
I'm glad that you're back with me today because it
is keyboard day.
New from Brydge.
I got the twelve-point nine-inch (12.9") Max+ for the
twenty twenty-one (2021) iPad Pro.
And in today's video, we're going to unbox it.
I'm going to see how types, see with the
trackpad experience like, and whether or not it is worth
two hundred and forty-nine dollars that Brydge is
charging for it.
Let's get started.
Now before we get that review, I do have the Satechi aluminum
iPad stand from Satechi.
This integrates several different ports in it.
Let me know in the comments below if you want to see a
review of this so I can make a video for you.
Now onto the main event.
This is the Brydge twelve-point nine-inch (12.9") Max+.
This is a wireless keyboard with a trackpad that's
available for the twelve-point nine-inch (12.9")
iPad Pro.
It works with a third, fourth, and even the
fifth-generation iPad Pro.
This model that I have here is two hundred forty-nine dollars
and it does go on sale later next month, in July.
This is available in silver.
It's available in space grey.
In addition to a limited edition, white color.
Now in the spirit of full transparency, Brydge did
send this keyboard to me.
I did not pay for this keyboard.
You asked me if I want to go and check it out.
They want to get my thoughts on it.
And if you're familiar, I've reviewed several keyboards
in the past, and so they wanted my feedback.
Now let's talk about the features that are contained
within the twelve-point nine-inch (12.9") Max+,
This is a Bluetooth keyboard so it's wireless.
It does connect your device via Bluetooth 5.0.
And it does have a feature that Brydge is calling instant-on.
It allows the Brydge keyboard to connect to your iPad and
basically have zero lag or be indistinguishable from a
keyboard that has a hardware connection such as
the Magic Keyboard.
Now it does have a very large five-and-a-half-inch
trackpad on it, which is quite big,
I think might be even the biggest trackpad that I've seen
on a device that is shipping at this moment.
It is backlit and it does have a row of iOS function keys at
the very top.
Let's open this bad boy up.
This is the classic consumer electronics packaging,
It has the product here on the right-hand side and it's got
this nice plastic feel to it.
It looks what you see when you open up your iPad for
the first time.
Here are some of the same details that we went through.
Let's get a sense of it.
Now, the version that I have here is a sample, so there
might be some difference in the marketing materials that you
see here, but otherwise, it should be exactly what you
would get from Brydge.
Now here
Open that up.
I'm a sucker for good packaging, meaning that I
like things that are packaged well.
It does give a nice presentation to them.
And also it makes it feel like what you're paying for in some
degree worth it.
Looking at this trackpad, it is gigantic.
The keys have a nice feel for them, just kind of getting
a sense of it.
There's that upside-down T-shaped arrow key, which I am
certainly a fan of.
There is all the same keys that I would expect to see on a
keyboard with the addition of here is the button
to activate Siri.
And then so that means that there's no globe key.
If you wanted to use emojis, you'd have to use the keyboard
shortcut to do that.
You have the usual suspects of iOS function keys at the top.
This keyboard is meant to address two challenges that
people had with their products to begin with.
So, one, it ditches the clips that were here on the side that
held your iPad in place.
And it adds this back layer of protection,
which is actually made.
It seems like it's nice.
It is plastic.
And I'm told that it does have magnets in it.
So it will stick to the back of the iPad Pro,
which is also nice.
And this hinge here, if you look if I'm looking at
you here, it actually goes all the way back.
So it should give you, I think, a better viewing
experience as opposed to having part of your iPad display being
blocked by this.
We have the USB-C port on the side.
There's are no more hinges, as you know.
I just talked about that.
So there are footies here to give a nice stable footing.
So now I'm going to place.
My space gray fifth-generation iPad Pro.
And it just magnetically attaches to this
backplate here.
I'm going to press the Bluetooth pairing button,
which should blink blue.
And it is I'm going to go to settings.
I see the Max+ here appearing request that we are off
to the races.
You have three stages of backlit,
screen brightness, on-screen keyboard,
global search, media control keys,
volume keys, Bluetooth pairing.
And then Power.
Brydge does have an app called Brydge Connect and that does
offer the ability to update the software periodically as Brydge
works to improve updates on the iPad.
For the sake of transparency, I'm using my twenty twenty-one
iPad Pro that does have the very first beta on it.
If I encounter any issues, I'm going to check it against
the twenty-twenty iPad Pro.
Just see if that issue persists.
There are these ears, as I like to call them, that are on the
back here that allow you to easily I mean not that you
would pick it up this way, but just pull that apart and it
looks like it functions as a way of separating your iPad.
Yeah, that sounds nice.
I like the way that the magnets are.
What we're gonna do next is I'm going to do a typing test
on this, which is TypingTest.Com.
It's the site I normally use to do my typing test and see
how it types.
There's a one-minute timer, so hopefully not too
boring for you.
Now I'm someone that can get close or get accustomed to
typing in about 15 minutes worth of usage.
And I normally type, I think about fifty-five words
a minute, so not too fast.
You're analyzing results,
59 seconds, typing test.
Fifty four words per minute.
Ninety-six percent accuracy.
Fifty two words is the net result.
I would say that it is a pretty good typing experience.
My tabletops a little bit higher than I would
normally like, but it does feel like a classic Brydge keyboard
and Brydge, in my opinion, has a good typing experience.
This is a keyboard where the key caps themselves are
fairly flat.
They do have a good feel to them in terms
of responsiveness, the type.
Well, and I'd say that feels like any other Brydge keyboard
that I've typed out.
Now, when I talked to Brydge, they told me that they change
the resistance curve just a little bit to tweak it.
So it should feel still like a Brydge keyboard mostly does a
little bit more resistance than the twelve-point nine-inch
(12.9") Brydge Pro+.
In terms of this trackpad that it is quite big.
It's five and a half inches by three-point three inches.
So again, it is quite big.
Now, in terms of clickability.
It's not the type of trackpad where the top of it is
clickable and say up along the top here, that is
not clickable, but I wonder if it's still tappable .
So up at the top, like if I click up here, sorry,
if I tap, I would go like, let's just say open notes.
If I go to notes and I tap on it, it does open.
So even though the very top portion is not clickable,
you can still tap to click by turning that on,
which is great.
Now they're going to be two critical aspects
to any keyboard.
Does a type one, which I think we establish it does
type well.
And how good does the trackpad work if you're using a
trackpad?
So we are using a track that let's check out the gestures
that are in iPadOS and see how well they render
themselves with this.
Now, Apple and Brydge worked together on fine-
tuning the software.
So this should give us an experience that is somewhat,
if not exactly like what you see on the magic keyboard.
I am right now on Apple's website.
This is for iPadOS gestures and I am just reading
through these.
So click with one finger.
We know that that already works.
I opened up maps, click and hold, press and hold
with one finger and that should give me a contextual menu.
That's absolutely right.
Drag if I click and drag that works as well.
Wake iPad,
iPad is awoken.
Go home, use one finger to swipe the pointer past the
bottom of the screen disappears.
So I pass that again.
Swipe down and there we go.
Yep.
So that works as expected view slide over.
I don't think I have any apps open and slide over.
Use one finger to swipe the pointer past the edge.
So that works exactly how you expect it to.
One finger swipes over the right hides it.
Swipe again pulls it out and there's even this cool little
arrow key that shows that that's discoverable there.
In terms of the next one, view slide over
open control center.
So use one finger to move the pointer to the select status
icon then click.
Yep, that is there.
Open notifications, time.
Yep.
There you go.
The additional gestures for the magic trackpad
two and keyboard.
Scroll up or down using two fingers scrolling with two
fingers works scroll left or right,
Just scrolling left or right without pressing down.
That works as well.
Zoom.
We are established that works.
Go Home.
Three fingers up works well.
Open the app switcher.
So three fingers up and then hold works as well and it shows
a little slight over window right there.
Switch between apps.
Three fingers.
Yep.
Today View is not an iPadOS 15 so I don't think this is going
to work, but we'll try.
When the home screen or the lock screen is visible.
OK, so home screen, it does work.
It just brings up the I guess what was the home screen view.
Secondary click with two fingers to show the quick
actions menu like icons.
There.
If I go let's go here.
The camera.
But that's just like so I never understood this gesture because
it's just like the single finger click and hold.
Right here.
So those are all the gestures that are supported on
the iPad.
There is one gesture that this person asked me about, and I've
never heard it.
This feature allows you to use one finger on the trackpad
where you can double tap and hold your finger
and select text.
Let's go to drafts since I have that in here.
I know I have text.
Double tap to drag
one, two, and then hold, that works, that works
as expected, double tap drag.
So I guess from a like-for-like scenario in everything
that I've tested.
There's other gestures that you want me to let me
know down below.
But these gestures are exactly how they would work in terms of
like for like what I iPadOS supports and what this
trackpad can do.
So I don't know of any other gestures, even that one
that the person has told me, which was double-tap to drag.
Now looking at the weight of the keyboard, it's two-point
three pounds by itself.
And when we add this in, we are at three pounds,
eleven point six ounces.
Definitely not thin when you especially when you think about
the magic keyboard and what that weighs coming in at
one pound, one point one pounds if I'm not mistaken,.
Which I don't think is necessary too heavy.
I think Combo Touch weighs three-point one pounds.
Depending on what your appetite is for this type of weight,
it may or may not be attractive to you.
Some people are going to say it's way too heavy.
I'm to go with the magic keyboard and that's
your personal choice.
Some people I know really like the look of this.
You know, the brushed aluminum,
the typing experience, they like how it
resembles a MacBook.
This has a very unique style in a very unique appeal
to people, people I know who just like the way it looks.
And they appreciate the aesthetics of it.
If you like the look of your MacBook,
your MacBook Pro, the way that this keyboard looks is unique
to a Brydge product.
And quite frankly, they do offer a good
typing experience.
So at the day you have to ask yourself, is the Brydge
twelve-point nine-inch (12.9") Max+ worth purchasing
at $249 dollars.
Overall, this is a great keyboard.
It offers a good typing experience.
It offers a gigantic trackpad and that trackpad adds value
when you consider that all of the trackpad functions that you
find in iPadOS work like-for-like.
Two, there is a high degree of fit and finish and this
keyboard is manufactured well.
It is heavy, but that is personal preference,
whether it's going to be too heavy for you,
In my opinion.
I think the two biggest challenges that Brydge had were
the implementation of the clips that were holding the iPad in
place and the fact that there was no way to cover or protect
the back of the iPad Pro.
And that is seemingly solved in this design.
Now, I am traveling this week, so I apologize for the little
bit and change of audio quality here at the end.
But let me know what kind of questions you have down
the comments below.
I am.
Mike,
24/7twenty-four-seven TV.
Folks, I'll talk to the next one.