Zagg Id8bsfbb0 Folio Case for Apple Ipad Pro 97 Review
The research
- Why you should trust usa
- Who should (and shouldn't) purchase this
- How we picked and tested
- Our selection: Zagg Pro Keys
- Flaws but not dealbreakers
- Runner-upward: Logitech Slim Folio
- Upgrade choice: Brydge x.two Max+
- Budget option: Logitech K380 for Mac Multi-Device Bluetooth Keyboard
- What almost other iPad models?
- The contest
Why you should trust usa
I've been covering Apple products and accessories professionally since 2011, and in that time I've reviewed more than 2,000 products, including keyboard cases for every model of the iPad. I'yard also responsible for Wirecutter's iPad example coverage, among many related topics.
Who should (and shouldn't) purchase this
If you've ever thought, "I don't like typing on this iPad screen—I wish I had a real keyboard," odds are, you'll benefit from a keyboard case. You can dramatically increase your iPad productivity with existent, tactile keys that let you type (most) as speedily and with (almost) every bit few errors as you can on your computer.
A keyboard case combines the advantages of a physical keyboard with a protective case—instead of having to carry a dissever keyboard, you have a keyboard built right into a case that'due south similar to the ane you're probable already using (though a keyboard case can be a chip bulkier since it has to adjust the keyboard). And most keyboard cases are specifically designed to let you lot blazon on your lap, every bit yous would with a laptop, making a keyboard case better for portable use than an iPad with a carve up keyboard and stand.
But earlier y'all rush out and buy a keyboard case, consider the drawbacks and temper your expectations, because adding a keyboard instance to your iPad is all about making compromises. You get the superior productivity and typing experience of a physical keyboard, merely y'all also add together noticeable bulk and weight. And many keyboard cases are designed to stay on your iPad, so you tin't easily leave the keyboard backside when you don't need it—which eliminates i of the big advantages of using a tablet over a laptop.
An iPad keyboard case is worth getting if you need to use a physical keyboard regularly and you want ane with you lot most of the time. Even then, you should at least consider a standalone Bluetooth keyboard instead. If yous'll be doing much of your typing on a desk-bound, tabular array, or other apartment surface, a separate keyboard will give you a larger keyboard with better keys. You'll too be able to create a much more than ergonomic setup by elevating the iPad and putting the keyboard at the platonic typing position; when you lot don't demand the keyboard, you can leave information technology behind to travel light. You lot tin can as well continue using your favorite iPad case, and if you ever upgrade your iPad, yous won't have to purchase a new keyboard case to fit it. (The biggest downside to a separate keyboard is that yous can't easily type on your lap.)
How we picked and tested
We've covered iPad keyboards since not long later the first iPad came out in 2010, and since then, nosotros've tried pretty much every offering from every major make, as well as dozens from brands you've likely never heard of. Hither are the things an iPad keyboard case should offer:
- A good typing experience: The most of import part of any iPad keyboard case is the keyboard itself. Later on all, if typing on the keyboard isn't dramatically better than typing on the iPad's screen, there's no point to the extra weight and expense.
- The right fundamental layout: The keyboard should utilize a standard primal layout with all the expected keys in all the correct locations.
- Good keys: The keys shouldn't be and so small or and then cramped that yous regularly press adjacent keys past blow. The keys should have a decent amount of travel (the distance y'all press the key to actuate it) and should accept a good tactile feel.
- Defended iPadOS keys: We like having iPadOS-specific keys for functions such as Spotlight (search), adjusting effulgence, and Home. We adopt (but don't require) dedicated keys, every bit opposed to overlays that require you to press the Fn key to access these functions.
- Solid protection: A skillful keyboard instance must protect your iPad well.
- Reasonable size and weight: A keyboard example makes an iPad bulkier and heavier, but it shouldn't practice so to an unreasonable extent. It likewise shouldn't accept up too deep a space on your desk.
- An like shooting fish in a barrel on-off design: We appreciate keyboard cases that brand it elementary to leave the keyboard behind when y'all don't demand it and so y'all aren't forced to carry extra bulk and weight.
- Multiple angle options: Multiple angles for propping up your iPad give yous more flexibility in terms of ergonomics, comfort, and fugitive screen glare—merely at the very to the lowest degree, a case should offering an angle that lets you comfortably view the screen but isn't easy to tip over.
- Long bombardment life: The less you lot accept to worry near your keyboard's bombardment dying, the better. Luckily, this is rarely an event with current iPad keyboards.
- An Apple Pencil holder: All current iPads support the Apple Pencil, and then having a style to conduct one with you lot is a minor but appreciated feature.
- A reputable brand: Keyboards accept lots of moving parts, and cheaply fabricated ones tend to have reliability problems. Nosotros primarily looked at models that come from known brands with skillful customer support and offer a practiced warranty, but we didn't entirely exclude popular models from less-established companies.
Testing keyboards requires extended utilize, because switching to a new keyboard requires a menstruum of adjustment—you demand to be certain that a keyboard that doesn't feel good at first is really a bad keyboard and not only 1 that's different from what yous're used to. Of the models that met our criteria, we tested each for a minimum of two weeks of regular utilise, and we used each of the top contenders for much longer. We tested the keyboard cases both for longer sessions, which are important for getting a feel for how good the overall experience is, and for quick hits, to see how convenient a keyboard example was for "Pull out your iPad, do something, and put it away" tasks. Sometimes a smashing overall blueprint is ruined by a bad typing experience; sometimes a fantastic keyboard is hampered by a poorly designed case or stand.
Our selection: Zagg Pro Keys
Our pick
Zagg Pro Keys for iPad (7th, 8th, and 9th generation)
All-time for the 2019, 2020, and 2021 ten.2-inch iPads
With comfortable, responsive, and backlit keys, also equally a removable inner case, two viewing angles, and the ability to pair with ii devices, the Zagg Pro Keys is the keyboard instance to beat.
The Zagg Pro Keys is the best iPad keyboard for people who type a lot. In a relatively small field of trustworthy contest, the Pro Keys is one of the best models to blazon on thanks to great keyboard hardware and a proper central layout. What sets it apart are the extra features on top of the great typing experience: backlit keys, a removable inner case, two viewing angles, and the ability to pair with ii devices. It does everything the next-best selection, the Logitech Slim Folio, does just besides, and it does many things better.
The keyboard has all the keys you'd find on a laptop, and they're all in the correct location—something many other iPad keyboards get wrong. The entire keyboard is smaller compared with a laptop's, but the departure is more than noticeable with the miniature modifier keys than with the messages. Tab, Caps Lock, Shift, and Control, for example, are still wider than the letter keys, but not past as much as they are on a full-size keyboard. Getting used to slightly smaller keys and their rounded-square shape is easier than having to relearn where a bunch of keys are every time you switch from your computer to your iPad. The Pro Keys also offers a nice array of iPadOS-specific special-function keys in a half-peak row across the elevation. And each key is backlit, with vii colors and four brightness levels.
We enjoyed typing on the Pro Keys, and we establish that the physical keys were large enough to exist comfortable and piece of cake to press; they provided good tactile feedback, too. Key travel was shallow compared with that of a high-quality laptop keyboard, though it was better than on an older 13-inch or 15-inch MacBook Pro with the butterfly-way keyboard. And using the Pro Keys felt more similar typing on a "real" keyboard than on an reconsideration accessory. The whole matter is sturdier than its competition: Whereas other iPad keyboards we tested flexed under the pressure level of our fingers pressing on the keys, the Pro Keys did not.
Although other keyboard cases, including the Logitech Slim Folio, offer a great typing feel, none combine that with a removable design like the Pro Keys does. The segment that holds and protects the iPad magnetically attaches to the rear console of the Pro Keys, and the keyboard is easy to pull off when yous don't demand it. The case isn't the slimmest or virtually attractive one effectually, just it does offer full button protection, the appropriate cutouts for the ports, speaker redirection, and a stylus holder on the right side.
The Pro Keys'due south automatic connection is one of its all-time features. The initial Bluetooth pairing process is identical to that of any other wireless keyboard and takes seconds. But the Zagg keyboard uses a clever system to reconnect whenever you're ready to type. The iPad's left edge—the lesser border, when y'all take it in typing orientation—magnetically connects to one of the two strips above the top row of keys (at 30-degree and 37-degree angles, respectively). When that happens, the keyboard wakes up and is gear up for you to type after a moment. Other models may require you lot to press a button to wake up the keyboard, whereas this one is set up when you are. And when y'all elevator the iPad off the base, the keyboard automatically disconnects.
This keyboard'southward battery life is rated to last for a year, and you tin easily recharge it via a USB-C connector. In contrast, Logitech'due south Slim Page offers a four-year battery, but that's with a user-replaceable coin-cell battery. Either style, y'all won't take to worry about charging very often.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
Equally we noted, all iPad keyboard cases require y'all to make some compromises, and that holds truthful for the Zagg Pro Keys, too. Its keys are smaller than standard keys, and they don't feel as nice to type on as good laptop keys, then the keyboard isn't as pleasant to utilize equally the best standalone Bluetooth keyboards, specially for extended typing sessions. And though the Pro Keys has one of the best key layouts we've seen on an iPad keyboard example, the sizing is merely a bit unlike from that of a regular keyboard, and so you may end upwardly making some errors. To be fair, this will happen with pretty much any iPad keyboard instance due to universally cramped keys, and we've found ourselves making far fewer mistakes with this keyboard than with models that put commonly used keys in unfamiliar locations.
The Pro Keys doesn't have an Esc key—we oftentimes miss having it. Only that particular merchandise-off is very mutual; few iPad keyboards include an Esc key.
At almost 0.9 inch, the Pro Keys isn't the thinnest keyboard example, but it's not thicker by much. It is, however, noticeably heavier than Logitech'south Slim Page—1.5 pounds, compared with 1.09 pounds.
Runner-upwards: Logitech Slim Folio
Runner-upward
If yous are willing to sacrifice the power to split your example and your keyboard to have a lighter bundle, or if you accept a 5th- or 6th-generation, 9.7-inch iPad, the Logitech Slim Page is your best selection. Much similar the Zagg Pro Keys, it'southward excellent to type on. Merely it offers less flexibility in how you tin can use it because it has a single typing angle and can pair with just i device at a time.
The Slim Folio's keys are the same size equally those on the Pro Keys, though they're full squares, not rounded at the corners. Logitech, much similar Zagg, put them all in the right place and included a row of function keys forth the height. We've spent countless hours over the past several years typing on many iterations of the Slim Folio, and we've always constitute it pleasant. Unfortunately, the keys aren't backlit, and then you may take a tougher time typing in the dark.
The Slim Folio provides only 1 typing angle for the iPad, with the tablet securely held in identify past a magnetic strip much every bit with the Pro Keys. We found that bending, roughly 30 degrees back from perpendicular, to be comfortable during use. The Slim Folio'southward sturdy design allows you to poke and tap at the iPad'south screen without the tablet bouncing dorsum around.
The Slim Folio example's design looks overnice, if somewhat bulky, but despite its size, information technology'south quite light. With the Slim Folio weighing about ii pounds with an iPad inside, only Apple's Smart Keyboard is lighter. The iPad snaps into a hard-plastic shell with cutouts for all the tablet'due south ports and buttons and its rear camera. The 10.2- and 10.v-inch models are wrapped in polyurethane, and the nine.7-inch version is covered in a textile panel stacked on top of the trounce. This cover continues around to the underside of the keyboard and acts as the front of the screen encompass. The whole packet feels nice, peculiarly in comparing with the usual combination of plastic and prophylactic nosotros see on iPad cases. The Slim Folio's keyboard and case don't divide, though, different on some models we've liked. Thankfully, the blueprint allows yous to hands snap the tablet out of the example when y'all need to. A simple loop on the right edge securely holds the showtime-generation Apple Pencil, offering a handy way to keep the Pencil from getting lost at the bottom of your bag.
Because Zagg doesn't brand the Pro Keys for the ix.7-inch iPad, the Logitech Slim Folio is the all-time pick for people who use an older tablet.
Upgrade pick: Brydge 10.ii Max+
Upgrade pick
Apple doesn't make a version of its trackpad-integrated Magic Keyboard for the ten.2-inch iPad, but a handful of third-party accessory makers practice. Brydge'southward 10.2 Max+ for iPad (seventh, eighth, and ninth generation) is the best instance with a trackpad, combining a great typing experience with trackpad support and a fully protective and removable OtterBox example. Although we don't think a trackpad is a necessary part of the iPad feel, we tin hands recommend the Max+ for anyone looking to take advantage of a trackpad on the entry-level iPad.
The 4-by-2.4-inch trackpad is clearly the reason to cull the Max+ over the Pro Keys or the Slim Folio. Similar Apple's laptop and standalone trackpads, the Max+'s trackpad is made of drinking glass, simply considering it uses a concrete swivel rather than haptic feedback, you have to exist inside the bottom two-thirds or so of the trackpad to click. Otherwise information technology works well, with the same gesture support you'd get if you were using 1 of Apple's Magic Trackpads continued over Bluetooth or the Magic Keyboard with the iPad Pro. Using a cursor in iPadOS feels natural, and the iPad supports the same kind of intuitive multi-finger gestures that you'd utilize on a Mac. Fifty-fifty though the trackpad is small compared with a laptop's, information technology offers plenty room for you to gyre and swipe without feeling cramped.
Compared with Logitech'due south Philharmonic Touch, the merely other 10.two-inch iPad case with a trackpad and our former pick in the category, the Max+ offers a more laptop-like design and a improve example. The detachable OtterBox instance snaps into two hinges above the meridian row of keys that magnetically agree it in place. They allow a total range of positions dorsum to almost 123 degrees without anything propping up the tablet from behind. The Philharmonic Bear on, in contrast, employs a kickstand-style mechanism that takes up more room on your desk and isn't very lap-friendly.
The Max+ has the same physical dimensions as the Slim Page (it's 0.8 inch thick when it's on an iPad) but weighs nearly a 3rd of a pound more. You can remove the keyboard when yous don't need it and withal proceed the iPad's body protected, and because the keyboard uses Bluetooth, you can yet type even when the two pieces are separated. Brydge says the USB-C–rechargeable battery volition final for upwardly to six months with two hours of use a day if you don't utilise the backlight and for 40 hours of consequent utilise if you do.
The keys on the Max+ are slightly narrower than those of the Slim Folio, a divergence nosotros noticed when nosotros put the two models next. But because the keys are notwithstanding big enough, and in the right layout, we didn't have any bug or discomfort while typing from the offset. Plus, these keys are backlit, and a full row of function keys sits along the top.
In addition to adding the high-quality trackpad, Brydge fabricated the Max+ feel more premium with a example that we like quite a chip on its own merits, separate from the keyboard. Designed by OtterBox, the plastic and rubber example is slim but offers protection all the way around the iPad, including the buttons, with a raised lip to forbid the screen from making contact with the ground. The case even has an rubberband loop on the right side to hold an Apple Pencil. Whereas about detachable cases feel like a mere piece of the total production, this case feels like something that could exist sold on its own.
Upkeep pick: Logitech K380 for Mac Multi-Device Bluetooth Keyboard
Upkeep pick
The Logitech K380 for Mac Multi-Device Bluetooth Keyboard is an affordable keyboard option that's comfortable, compact, and versatile. After trying multiple sub-$50 keyboard cases, nosotros think information technology'due south the all-time choice if you're on a budget. But it does require making some compromises. Instead of existence housed within the forepart cover of a case, it's a standalone keyboard (our favorite Bluetooth keyboard, in fact). This means that it's another thing to carry, but also that you can use your own iPad case without having to comport the keyboard when you don't demand information technology. In addition to the keyboard just existence dandy to type on, it tin can pair with up to three devices, including a phone or computer, and two AAA batteries can power it for upwardly to ii years.
What about other iPad models?
Equally for the iPad mini, in that location are no swell keyboard cases for that tablet, given that all the drawbacks of most keyboard cases for the iPad—cramped keys, odd central layouts, additional bulk, and the similar—are even worse on keyboards for Apple tree'due south smallest tablet. Unless you absolutely need an all-in-one design (and you have a lot of patience for typos), you lot're much ameliorate off using a standalone Bluetooth keyboard and either an iPad stand or a case with a built-in stand up, and leaving those accessories behind when you're on the go.
The contest
We've tested more than a hundred iPad keyboard cases over the years, so we can't mention every option we've dismissed, only we've included some of the more notable models below.
iPad (seventh, 8th, and 9th generation)
Apple'southward Smart Keyboard is available for the iPad (7th, 8th, and 9th generation), iPad Air (3rd generation), and 10.5-inch iPad Pro, and it provides a solid, comfy typing surface. It's much more expensive than other cases but offers enough to justify the price. Thanks to Apple's Smart Connector, information technology automatically connects without any pairing process, and information technology doesn't need its own bombardment (so you have no bombardment to accuse). But these factors are just barely inconveniences on other keyboard cases. The Smart Keyboard's folding options permit for but ane typing bending, and this model doesn't protect the back of the iPad. We'd recommend this keyboard case only if you're concerned nearly thinness over everything else and you don't mind paying a premium for information technology.
Logitech'southward Rugged Folio is the only keyboard case other than Apple'due south that uses the iPad's Smart Connector, meaning no pairing process is necessary and it doesn't need its ain bombardment. But the keys are rather soft and mushy feeling, and the Rugged Folio requires 10 to xvi inches of desk infinite to unfurl, compared with simply about 8 inches for the Slim Folio. But the Rugged Folio is spillproof and rated to survive drops, according to Logitech, then information technology's a skillful pick if yous use your iPad in a rough environment (or around kids).
If you need a keyboard case that tin position the iPad in a variety of angles and directions, get with the Yekbee 360 Rotatable. For almost the same price equally the Slim Page, you get a case that y'all can adapt in many more ways, in a similarly sized package. It has two major downsides, though: The keys don't feel quite as nice, and the maker isn't as established, and so you lot may be out of luck if you require customer service.
The keys on the Yekbee Folio feel as inexpensive and hollow every bit those on the 360 Rotatable. And its keyboard presses right upwards against the iPad'south screen, which might damage the screen over time. Plus, it doesn't automatically lock the tablet'south screen when closed, so you might come back to a dead battery if you lot don't manually turn off the iPad.
iPad (5th and 6th generation)
If you need extra protection from drops, Zagg'southward Rugged Messenger is the side by side-all-time pick in this limited field. Information technology'southward around an inch thick when fully assembled and nigh a half-pound heavier than our main selection, and it offers the second-best typing feel we institute. It has a handful of useful features that are uncommon among iPad keyboard cases: The case is detachable from the keyboard, the Bluetooth connection supports two devices for easy switching, and the keys are backlit, making for a better experience when you lot're typing in dark settings.
Zagg'southward Slim Book Go provides a pleasant typing experience, but the big difference between it and the Logitech Slim Folio is that the Slim Book Become consists of two separate pieces: a instance that holds the iPad, and a keyboard that magnetically attaches to the example's edge and doubles every bit a cover. Information technology takes up more than infinite than the Slim Folio when open up, but it is a good alternative if yous value being able to disassemble the keyboard. The biggest downside to the Slim Book Become is how much desk infinite information technology requires—the keyboard and stand are effectually 12 inches deep when propped up for typing, compared with 7½ inches for the Slim Folio.
Logitech's Slim Combo is our former pick for a case with a detachable keyboard, and it'due south a scrap smaller than the Zagg Slim Book Go. But information technology's not as stable on a lap, it can't pair to multiple devices, the bombardment needs to be charged four times every bit frequently, and it's more expensive.
The Zagg Flex universal keyboard uses the same proficient-but-not-great keyboard as the rest of Zagg's lineup, and the case isn't specifically tailored to any 1 tablet. At a lower price, this model might be an acceptable option, simply we recall it's besides expensive given those compromises.
The Zagg Rugged Book, which fits the iPad Air, iPad Air two, nine.seven-inch iPad Pro, 5th-generation iPad, and 6th-generation iPad, is thicker and heavier than every other case we tested, including the Rugged Messenger. That said, if yous're willing to put upward with this weight and bulk, you get an uncommonly durable and protective keyboard case that'south great for families with kids, for classroom utilise, or for work in rough environments.
The Zagg Folio isn't as overnice to blazon on as our pick. The entire keyboard flexed as nosotros typed, the terminate on the keys on our review unit of measurement was a dry matte plastic that felt cheap, and the keys sounded unpleasant as we moved our fingers across them. You lot tin't fold the Page's keyboard underneath for a tablet mode, and it slides effectually on a desk more than than better cases. Plus, you have to press the power button to activate the keyboard afterward it has fallen asleep, as opposed to the automated re-pairing on our option.
Nosotros tested the Fintie 360 Degree Rotating Case to see how a popular, inexpensive case stacked upward. (The same OEM design is available from many dissimilar brands on Amazon.) It'southward a faux-leather case that'due south more than an inch thick, with a big, ugly hole exposing the Apple logo on the back of the tablet. Overall, information technology but looks and feels inexpensive, and it takes upwards far likewise much room in a bag.
The Brydge 9.7 is a very skilful keyboard in a laptop-like aluminum torso; two small, silicone-lined hinges hold and position your iPad like a laptop screen. It lets you use the iPad on its own, and the same Brydge model works with the 6th- and fifth-generation iPads, both iPad Air versions, and the 9.7-inch iPad Pro. Aesthetically, it'due south also among the nicest keyboard cases we've tested: With the "screen" closed, the setup looks about as if the iPad and keyboard had come in a package together. However, the Brydge doesn't protect the back of the iPad on its own—the visitor offers a Slimline Protective Case if y'all need full protection.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/the-best-ipad-keyboard-case/
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