I have been using iPads since the original one came out in 2010. iPads were primarily a secondary device – check email, browse the web, and watch movies on vacations – but that always meant I needed a laptop to do anything that required creating something. This all changed with the iPad Pro and the Magic Keyboard.
With the addition of the Magic Keyboard to the iPad Pro, I would feel comfortable leaving my laptop at home when I travel. The Magic Keyboard paired with an iPad Pro transforms it from a device designed for drawing and consumption into a 95% replacement for a laptop.
The most remarkable thing about the Magic Keyboard is that it is unremarkable. It works just as you’d expect, yet the keyboard itself makes it so much easier to do the creation tasks that have dominated computing for the last 20 years – writing emails, composing documents & spreadsheets, etc. These tasks have been difficult to do on a standard iPad and adding these common tasks to the repertoire of the iPad vastly improves the usability.
Yes, there have been keyboard cases for iPads for years, but with the recent addition of the mouse support, all of the elements are in place for a superior iPad experience going forward and the Magic Keyboard is a superior accessory.
As for that 5% I referred to earlier… There are still some things that the iPad is not good at. For example, tasks that require switching between 3 or 4 apps can be more challenging on the iPad. Also, when I was creating this WordPress website, the iPad was NOT well suited for that task. I think these use cases are definitely limited for me, so that is why my iPad + Magic Keyboard combo will be my travel laptop going forward.
See below for my additional notes.
What Works Well
- The keyboard is expensive at $300 for the 11″ iPad Pro and $350 for the 12.9″ iPad Pro.
- The combination of the iPad and the keyboard really does combine the best of both worlds. The iPad is connected to the keyboard via magnets, so it is easy to move between “laptop” mode to “handheld” mode.
- The keyboard is very comfortable to type on and the trackpad is small but very useful. It has a nice springy feel when clicking and the tracking is very responsive.
- The iPad connects via the rear magnets and this connection makes it easy to separate the iPad from the keyboard to jot down a quick note or sketch a drawing.
- The keyboard has a pass thru USB-C charging port to provide power to the iPad while leaving the onboard iPad USB-C available to connect accessories.
- The hinge and angle pivot design works for nearly every viewing angle.
What Could Be Improved
- It’s heavy. The 11″ iPad Pro weighs 1.04 pounds and the Magic Keyboard weighs 1.3 pounds. This is likely by design, since the keyboard needs to be heavy enough to counterbalance the iPad when open.
- You need two hands to open it. This sounds like a “first world problem” and it definitely is, but every time I open it, my muscle memory tries with one hand (because I can open my laptop with one hand) but inevitably need to use both hands.