We have a MacBook Air 2013 that is on its last legs and we need to replace it. My wife also wants an iPad so that she can read our Apple News+ subscription and watch movies in bed. I feel like the most cost effective solution is to get a keyboard case for the iPad and use it as the laptop replacement. The only thing we use the MacBook Air for is normal web browsing, ordering pictures prints via the web, some home office work using Google Docs, and I use it to remote to my PC when I don’t feel like going to my basement office.
I don’t see why a keyboard case wouldn’t suffice in this scenario. The Magic Keyboard trackpad entices me, especially potentially not having to rewire any muscle memory with normal web usage, using google docs, or when I remote to my PC. But is the web browsing experience nerfed enough by iPadOS that its not worth spending $300 on the Magic Keyboard? Is it better to get the cheaper Smart Keyboard Folio case and try to use the Apple Pencil for the same workflow instead?
Just curious what this community’s experience with these accessories are. Thanks in advance for the input.
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The Magic Keyboard is a much more natural experience, iPadOS has good cursor support now and touchpad is decent too.
Trying to use the Pencil as a mouse replacement feels awkward when using the iPad propped up with a keyboard.
Logitech also make some keyboard+touchpad cases if you wanted an alternative to the Apple one. I used one for a while with an older iPad Pro and it was good, very robust and protective case as well.
Neither of them are good, partly due to the design and partly due to iPadOS. Nevertheless, if you are determined to get one, then the Magic Keyboard.
Designed to fail. Both the Magic Keyboard and the Smart Keyboard Folio requires physical connections with the gold contacts on the back of the iPad; to do that, there is a ribbon cable embedded in their hinges. The Magic Keyboard hinge is metal, much like that on a normal laptop; so there is nothing wrong there. On the other hand, then Smart Keyboard Folio hinge is a flexible piece of rubber/fabric. This means that as you open and close the folio, the copper traces in the in the hinge would get folded and eventually fatigued break. My Smart Keyboard Folio start losing connections after 1.5 years and would required me to hold it in certain ways to register. It completely loss all keyboard functionality after the second year.
Magic Keyboard does not have the aforementioned design flaw. However, as the hinge is similar to that as a laptop, you cannot just gently open it to check notification (or something like that) like a normal tablet. It needs to be open with intent. Also, you will also need to decide on how often (or if) you want to use the Apple Pencil. As the iPad needs to be remove from the Magic Keyboard for usages with the pencil. However, the camera bump is huge and it will cause the tablet to rock around as you write on it without a case. My only solution for this, so far, is to flip the iPad upside-down and have the camera bump dangle off the table edge while writing.
The software is not there yet (or it may never be). The key problem is that this is not entirely Apple’s fault, but they are responsible for a lot of it. Most apps are not built with the physical keyboard in mind. Therefore, the UI can sometime glitch-out with the keyboards attached. This goes on both of them. In addition, the spacebar often just acted as “select” rather than a “space”. This means that you would sometime select whatever button on the top left of app (like the “Back” button in a browser), rather than inserting a “space” into whatever text field you are typing in. The work-around here is to use Option+Space instead.
Overall, I had bought into the iPad-as-a-laptop-replacement idea in 2018 (literally), and I am very disappointed. If you want to buy some accessories for an iPad, then I suggest the Apple Pencil and whichever cover on Amazon that fit your taste/needs. The keyboard and cursor experiences on the iPad is usable; but, it does not worth $150/$300. If you need a keyboard, get a real computer.
Thank you for sharing your experience. That’s exactly what I was looking for in terms of feedback. It seems like Magic Keyboard is the way to forward if I decide to go that way, I don’t know if I’ll use the pencil as I don’t have a creative need for it. I have a Bluetooth keyboard at work, I might try using it for a few days to see if the Magic Keyboard would work for my workflow before sinking $300 into it
The best keyboard I found to use as an iPad as a laptop replacement is the Logitech Combo Touch. There are different ones for iPad, Air, and Pro. The keyboard and trackpad both feel great to work with and you can pull the iPad off if you want to use it as a tablet. On the plus side, staying in a case protects it (and it has a sturdy kick stand), but the biggest downside is that it adds a lot of weight. You’d just have to feel it to decide. I also bought a generic magnetic folio, which I use about half the time.
That looks really nice and is much more reasonable in price than the Magic Keyboard. I’ll definitely look into this. Thanks for commenting!
The balance on the Magic Keyboard is still pretty shit. It will work on a flat surface, but the adjustment aren’t good and it will fall over if you try to use it in your lap.
The trackpad is really nice, but it’s worth considering a third party option that gives a more functional laptop form factor if you intend to use it on a lap.
