SMART KEYBOARD FOLIO PROIt’s the iPad Pro-as-Surface Pro dream, a tiny laptop that significantly lightens my working load. I only use my new MacBook Pro when I absolutely must, for example when I need to enter this text into Mashable’s secure content management system. No one was more surprised than me when I fell for the Smart Keyboard Folio (opens in a new tab), and fell hard - to the point where my iPad Pro is now my main writing device away from my desk. On a whim I decided to buy the Smart Keyboard Folio, figuring I’d probably return it in a day or so, just like all those prior Folios. I’d planned on a new Smart Cover too, but none of the colors appealed. I bought the 11-inch iPad Pro, rejecting the larger 12.6-inch version (still too much bulk for me, even with a slimmer bezel), and one of the new magnetically charging Pencils (definitely superior to the Pencil 1.0). Then fate forced my hand: my iPad Pro was stolen alongside my late, lamented Rose Gold MacBook. I was loath to get rid of that, and to trade TouchID for FaceID, so I decided against an upgrade. Hitting the wrong key was just a matter of time.Īt the time, my setup consisted of a 2017 10.5 inch iPad Pro with a Smart Cover and a $10 transparent gel case that held the always-easy-to-lose Apple Pencil. SMART KEYBOARD FOLIO FULLSecondly, their keys never quite felt right, mostly through no fault of their own: squeezing a full keyboard into the 10-inch space afforded by most tablets is one of the greatest design challenges of our time. Firstly they were unnecessarily bulky, requiring you to either tuck the whole iPad inside a leather compartment, or squeeze it into a plastic sleeve, or, in the case of the Brydge, put your precious tablet inside folding metal clamps. I’d tested dozens of third-party iPad keyboard cases since 2010. I had no need to protect the back of my iPad (c'mon, Apple, it’s pretty durable) so I dismissed the option out of hand. But Apple’s version seemed more like a full-on keyboard case, which often name themselves Folios. I’d long been jealous of Microsoft Surface users, who used keyboard covers to turn their tablets into tiny ultraportable laptops. And yes, I was forever hunting for the best not-on-screen keyboard solution for my iPads. Sure, I’d been a huge iPad fan, and a sucker for the latest model, ever since nabbing the first model the day it launched in 2010. Little did I know it would become my constant companion, one of the most loved and most essential Apple products I’d ever bought. When Apple unveiled its Smart Keyboard Folio (opens in a new tab) alongside its latest and priciest iPad Pro models in late 2018, the peripheral barely registered on my radar. The Smart Keyboard Folio is priced starting at $179 for the 11-inch version and $199 for the 12.9-inch version, which is a good deal cheaper than the $299/$349 asking prices for the new Magic Keyboard options.Essentials Week spotlights unexpected items that make our daily lives just a little bit better. Apple is no longer selling the version with the vertical camera cutout.Īpple in May will release the new Magic Keyboard, which is equipped with scissor switch keys with 1mm of travel and backlighting, making the new keyboard more similar to a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro keyboard. On 2018 iPad Pro models, the camera cutout will be larger than necessary, but it fits both. The new Smart Keyboard Folio replaces the prior model and it is designed to work with both 20 iPad Pro models. It's not the greatest typing experience, but it's passable. The keys are shallow with little travel and have a fabric-like texture that's meant to be waterproof and spill proof. When it comes to the keyboard and the typing experience, there's no change. There's also a square-shaped camera cutout instead of the vertical camera cutout of the prior model, which allows it to accommodate the new square-shaped camera bump on the new iPad Pro models.Īpple's 2020 iPad Pro models feature a dual-lens camera setup with wide-angle and ultra wide-angle lenses along with a new LiDAR Scanner that's designed to scan the area around you for all-new augmented reality experiences. The new Smart Keyboard Folio is outfitted with an Apple logo, which the original did not have. The material on the outside feels the same, but there is one major exterior difference - an Apple logo. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos.ĭesign wise, the two keyboard are close to identical, but the new model is slightly darker in color, though it's still a dark gray shade.
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