- I've had multiple iPads
since the release of the original in 2010.
Each of them ended up on a desk or in a drawer
after just a few weeks waiting for an airplane travel day.
The third gen 12.9 inch iPad
could have suffered the same fate,
if not for the added mouse support
and the iPad Magic Keyboard.
So after 6 months with the iPad Magic Keyboard,
is it worth it?
Let's see.
Hey, I'm Jerry,
and the iPad Magic Keyboard changed every perception
I had about the iPad over the last 10 years.
For me, it transformed the iPad
from the defacto content consumption device while traveling
to at times the only computer I would use for months on end.
And it all started with the laptop like four factor
with the twist.
The hinge on the iPad Magic Keyboard
is unlike any hinge I've seen before.
Actually, it's two hinges.
The first hinge raises the iPad off the keyboard,
and then the second hinge kinda folds it back
to bring the bottom of the iPad just above the keyboard
and allowing for viewing angle adjustments
while keeping the center of gravity
closer to the front of the iPad Magic Keyboard.
The iPad just attaches with magnets
and floats above like this.
This is so unique and actually functional
because unlike the Apple SmartFolio Keyboard,
you can actually change the angle however you want
and make adjustments to get the perfect viewing angle
just like on a laptop.
Let me just say, there are a ton of first
and third-party keyboard cases out there for all iPads.
And most of them just have two or one viewing angle.
And I don't wanna knock them too much because they work,
they hold the iPad up.
But having a range of motion is huge for actual usability,
whether the iPad is sitting on a desk like this,
or sitting on your lap and adjusting for glare or comfort.
Now, let's talk about keyboards, it feels good.
With the 12.9 version the main keys are full-size
and it's super easy to switch back and forth
between other Apple devices like MacBook Air
or my iMac wireless keyboard
without needing to rethink how I type.
As explained before, there is a lack of function row keys
which is a little disappointing,
because it would be nice to be able to adjust the brightness
or the volume from the keyboard.
But I'm guessing it has something to do
with the overhang of the iPad.
When I type with the top rows of letters,
I frequently hit the iPad with my fingers.
For some strange reason, as I type,
I stretch out the other fingers
that I'm not pushing the keys with
and they rub against the bottom of the keyboard.
It's kind of annoying, but I think it's my fault
more than it is Apple's.
It's a bit distracting,
but at least it doesn't throw my train of thought off
anymore, like it used to.
I do wish there was more distance
between the iPad and the keyboard to avoid this.
The keys are backlit on the iPad Magic Keyboard,
which makes using this in the evening
on the couch or in bed much better.
Again, there's no function row for key brightness,
but they can be adjusted by going to settings,
and general, and keyboard, and then hardware keyboard,
and then keyboard brightness.
That is a bit annoying.
But because it uses the ambient light sensor of the iPad
and it automatically adjusts the brightness of the keys
based on that, I find that
I rarely need to actually adjust the brightness manually.
One last thing about the keyboard is that
it's pretty comfortable to type on when sitting on a desk.
And I think it's because of the very low profile of the lip.
Unlike a laptop, which has higher bottom case,
the iPad Magic Keyboard is incredibly thin,
which doesn't require me to raise my wrists very much
when typing and that helps me type for longer periods
without needing breaks.
Below the keyboard is a trackpad
that uses a mouse support added in iOS 13.4.
I know, you already know this
but the cursor on iPad is not like the cursor on a computer.
It was built to act more like a finger
which has a much larger touch point
and it snaps to certain objects as it gets close to them.
The trackpad is kind of a strange trackpad
for 2020 Apple, more of a hybrid
between modern MacBook trackpads and trackpads of yore.
It is a fully glassed track pad with multi-touch
that could be used to swipe between apps or home screens,
scroll in any direction, take you home
and just adjust settings.
You can still click the trackpad anywhere,
unlike an old diving board style trackpad.
But like the old diving board style trackpads,
it is mechanical.
It's not like forced touch
on the MacBooks and the Magic Trackpad too.
It's pretty cool how it works, but I do find
that it requires more pressure to click
compared to Apple's other trackpads.
And when using it for a long time,
I start to feel a little fatigued in the hands.
Maybe it's some kind of placebo effect
but I'm not a fan of the trackpad click on this guy.
You can enable tap to click on the iPad settings,
which I have, and I prefer to use that as much as possible.
Oh, and the trackpad is a bit on the small side.
Usable but nowhere near the size of Apple's other trackpads
and a hair smaller
than the Microsoft Surface Keyboard cover.
On the rear left side,
Apple added a USB-C port for pass through charging.
This port can only be used to charge the iPad
and can not be used with accessories.
And that's totally fine with me.
Having that extra USB-C port is really helpful
when you're actually using the iPad
and charging at the same time.
The power passes through the Pogo pins on the case
to the smart connector on the iPad.
The back left location is actually much better
than the middle right side of the iPad.
It keeps the cord out of the way
and keeps the iPad USB-C port available
for accessories as needed, like for an SD card reader,
or an SSD, or an ethernet adapter,
or HDMI adapter, or a USB-C hub for all of them.
It's a small thing, but the extra USB-C is super helpful.
So that's really all of the features
of the iPad Magic Keyboard.
But let's talk about a couple other things.
First, the rubbery material it's made of.
It looks really nice brand new.
It's a matte finish with a tackiness
that keeps the iPad where you put it.
Over time it starts to pick up grease and oil
that gets harder to remove.
I've tried Goo Gone, rubbing alcohol, Dawn dish soap.
They seem to help for a while, but eventually stains
from your skin or tables or wherever you set it,
just start to sink in.
This along with worrying about scratching
or tearing the material somehow gave me anxiety
about actually just using it.
I found that the best thing for me
was to cover it in a skin, and a comment on the channel
pointed me to the SopiGuard skins.
The skin was very easy to apply
and I was able to cover the front, back,
and insides of the keyboard in about 20 minutes.
And it makes the iPad Magic Keyboard
feel like a completely different device.
Not only does it have a much different look,
but it actually feels more durable
and nothing's going to stay in this thing
like it will with the rubber.
I do wanna point out
that I did damage my iPad Magic Keyboard
when I was making my 6 week review video,
is like that. (surprised sound)
I made a weird mistake of just trying to adjust the screen
from the bottom of the iPad.
And I wasn't really holding the iPad when it popped off
and put a small gouge next to the delete key.
I know that scared some people off
and they decided not to buy the iPad Magic Keyboard
because of that.
But when you actually use it,
you can clearly feel that you should be adjusting the iPad,
the angle of the iPad from the top of the iPad.
The iPad really does stay put exactly where you put it.
It stays on the case with the magnets
and has never fallen off unexpectedly.
As far as the durability in that respect,
I don't see it as an issue.
The sharp edge of the iPad
fell onto a sharp rubber covered edge of the case.
If the case were aluminum, it would have dented that.
So there's no fault in design in this respect.
It was my fault for not having a grip on the iPad
when I took it off and when I was lifting it
(surprised sound)
Then there's the weight.
The 12.9 inch iPad Magic Keyboard is nearly the weight
of the iPad Pro itself.
And together they're about the same weight
as the 13 inch MacBook Pro.
That might come as a bit of a shock to someone
who buys this case and assumes
that the iPad will still be very slim and very lightweight.
I personally do not find this to be an issue
since it has essentially acted as my laptop replacement
for many months.
But if I had to carry this and a laptop
more frequently together,
I would probably be looking at how to ditch one of them.
And third, there's battery life.
As reported other places, there seems to be
a little bit extra additional battery drain when idle
and attached to the iPad Magic Keyboard.
Most people speculate that this has to do
with the backlight on the keyboard.
And I've seen before where my iPad was asleep
but the light on the keyboard was actually still on.
The amount of drain is usually not noticeable for me
but there have been times where I found the iPad
to be much lower battery life than I expected.
I think if you're leaving the iPad idle
for a long period of time, just folding it
kind of helps reduce that issue.
And fourth, the price.
There is no getting around it.
The iPad Magic Keyboard seems expensive.
At $300 for the 11 inch version
and $350 for the 12.9 inch version,
that's 35 to 38% of the costs of an iPad Pro
and 50% of the cost of the new iPad Air 4.
How can a keyboard be worth that?
Well, sure, you can get a $15 Bluetooth keyboard
and a $20 mouse, and add a case,
but that's a pretty clunky solution.
You can look at a third-party like Logitech
which offers a case with a built-in trackpad for cheaper,
but it's bulkier
and takes up a larger footprint on the desk.
And no other case offers an additional charging port.
For me, the iPad Magic Keyboard offers all of the things
that I need in an iPad case to use it
as a laptop replacement.
I get adjustable viewing angles, a great backlit keyboard,
built-in trackpad, and an extra charging port
all in a single portable laptop like solution.
The trackpad allows me to edit text easier,
scroll webpages, launch apps, and get home
without needing to reach up and touch the screen.
The ability to attach and detach the iPad from this keyboard
in a second allows this device to instantly switch
between being a tablet
and being something I can actually get stuff done with.
Hey, future Jerry here.
I was just finishing up the edit for this video.
And I did realize that I actually have another second ding
here on the keyboard and this one I have no excuse for.
I have no idea where it came from, but I wanted to make sure
that I did let you know before this video went out.
This doesn't change my overall feelings
about the iPad Magic Keyboard,
and I definitely see how others would decide
that after this,
especially the second one showing up on here,
that this probably is not the case for them
because of the cost, because of the type of material,
et cetera.
However, if it were me and I am me, if this thing died today
or I lost it somehow, you know, traveling to another place,
I would not hesitate
getting another one of these right away.
The utility of this, the design,
the features that this offers,
and the compact altogether package
makes me still want to go out and buy another one
if I needed to, despite some issues with the casing
and apparently some other dings.
Back to the show.
So the bottom line is yes,
the iPad Magic Keyboard is worth it.
After just a few hours of using it,
you can see how one accessory can transform your iPad
from the original content consumption device
to a clear content creation device.
But hey, what if you actually wanna use your device outside
or in a very bright location?
Well, you can install a matte screen protector like I did,
which gives you an anti-glare display
and a better texture for writing with the Apple Pencil.
And if you're looking to see more about that,
you can check out this video right over here.
Hit the thumbs up button if you liked it,
hit subscribe if you want
and I'll see you next time.
(upbeat music)