Apple's Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro: Everything You Need to Know

[Ipadlover29]

Honestly, this is not enough for me. I’m guessing they want us to buy the 2020 iPad Pro just for this improved Smart Keyboard pro and the other upgrades on the iPad like camera, processor, etc. I really want the mini led screen version with better screen technology. Im sure Ill change my mind when it comes out since I just have to have the latest iPad Pro.

 

[Lucifer666]

There are lots of competitors in this area and they have substantially better products than Apple's membrane keyboard. One even converts it to a computer with multiple ports. I think it is fully funded on one of Indiegogo or one of those sites and they have a working example.

A small problem with that, is that outfit you mention absconded with $300, and then apparently started another company under a different name with a similar product.

Then there's Brydge, which is legit, and which I bought on preorder (should be here end of March, just in time for the Apple one). Whether or not the Brydge is better, is up for debate. Different.

 

[subjonas]

If Apple makes this, I think it will mainly be for gestures and moving the text cursor. I think it will work with the mouse accessibility feature but it will still be considered an accessibility feature.

 

[no_idea]

Just curious...why would one want a trackpad? The trackpad would be like having a mouse for my iPad...which I'm not sure why I would need. I use my iPad as my laptop replacement, but haven't really seen the need for a trackpad/mouse. What would they be adding that would need a trackpad? Now backlit keys would be nice to have.

I could see a ton of benefit with a trackpad for use with excel, PowerPoint, etc. I could get so much more work done on the iPad and probably ditch the laptop completely if they give us a trackpad. Using fingers on iPad excel or numbers is just not as productive for me. I’m way faster with a mouse.

 

[UltimateSyn]

I loved that the newer Smart Keyboard folios added in a second viewing angle as an option. I'd like even more flexibility in the viewing angles, not regressing to just one. I'd also love a trackpad though, so I don't know how they do both without making it too cumbersome of an experience.

 

[rp2011]

When using the iPad to do things like editing word documents, it's hard to select text, etc. And any task where you have to jump back and forth between keyboard and touching the screen is a pain.

Yep. Its torturous. Hard to believe this hadn’t be addressed earlier.

 

[lkrupp]

If true this is simply Apple admitting the iPad design is a failure (whether it sells well or not) and the netbook/Chromebook design is the answer. The cry for a real keyboard, mouse support, and now a trackpad, if implemented, completely destroys the original design as a mobile touch device. Jobs is rolling in his grave. Apple is downgrading to an also-ran commodity manufacturer.

 

[Professor Rucy]

Just curious...why would one want a trackpad? The trackpad would be like having a mouse for my iPad...which I'm not sure why I would need. I use my iPad as my laptop replacement, but haven't really seen the need for a trackpad/mouse. What would they be adding that would need a trackpad? Now backlit keys would be nice to have.

Agreed. I’ve been against mouse support/cursor on iPad as unnecessary and as redundant as a touch-screen Mac. Trackpad is no different. This is a patch to solve a UI problem, like Excel editing or the like.

 

[CPL593H]

There are lots of competitors in this area and they have substantially better products than Apple's membrane keyboard. One even converts it to a computer with multiple ports. I think it is fully funded on one of Indiegogo or one of those sites and they have a working example.

Best thing this can offer over others is Smart Connector use. The separate charging and bluetooth pairing is frustrating.

 

[pdoherty]

Just curious...why would one want a trackpad? The trackpad would be like having a mouse for my iPad...which I'm not sure why I would need. I use my iPad as my laptop replacement, but haven't really seen the need for a trackpad/mouse. What would they be adding that would need a trackpad? Now backlit keys would be nice to have.

So when you have the iPad inserted to the case and sitting up at an angle you don’t have to keep moving your hands from the keyboard up to try to touch/scroll with the screen. Can’t you we how awkward that is?

 

[DeepIn2U]

i dont need to know nothing...Apple instead of innovating ...they try to make the ipad an macbook clone
and the macbook an more ipad like with ios apps and touchbar...whats next ?!

All this based on a rumor? What is there to know other than the previous report? Silly article.

when Apple debuted that commercial “What’s a computer” there was so much hate not just to thrbiPad product in general or the idea of an iPad replacing a computer yet more to the young actress that stared in that commercial. Ther is even a blog site one can easily search of the ridiculously spewed hate again a youth for a simple comment which in context to her age demographic made perfect sense.

many of us are old enough to remember, yet forget the Apple Navigator concept which highlighted many great things before they where even feasible that the iPad had right out from the start:

wide screen touch (multi-touch) display.
voice recognition for transcribing
Built-in front camera
Video conferencing built in.
an AI system that did what you told it or needed it to do without ANY physical input from the end users! Understanding context as well!
created content (business or research).

over 20yrs later Jobs at D8 Specifically mentioned that Tablets will eventually replace the PC (Macs or Windows traditional computers) and it would make many in the computer industry and users uneasy and uncomfortable. He specifically mentioned for content creation by visual or musical artists will be the first use of tablets and his vision for it. Yet moreover that for specific needs like writing a 300 page document to connect a Bluetooth keyboard for example yet in other needs and use cases it could survive on its on.

so this is yet another transition milestone towardsthat future:
Power of Arm based chipset
Slim design less weight
More apps supporting this
The Pro brining incredible apps and levels OS use beyond what was initially thought of along with the Pencil 2.
power efficiency and matching low end pro laptop line in computational capability.

this keyboard is going to really bring it all home.

we now need:
Magic XCode and swift UI app creation on the iPad Pro to support all other platforms.
Final Cut Mobile & Logic Mobile versions you give us full end support. Graphical design and architecture is there .... game creation is pending as well.

I feel in 3yrs the MacBook Air either dropping off or the 13” MacBook Pro potentially getting dropped and only the top tier high end machines will be made in 7yrs from today.

 

[pdoherty]

Why?
What possible motivation could a consumer have for replacing a more more powerful, faster, higher-memory machine with an iPad? If you said "an alternative for people who can't afford a Mac", then I could see it.

* Portability
* Able to use an iPad *without* a keyboard attached
* Lighter in weight
* Apps that “just work”
* No viruses or malware

 

[smulji]

If true this is simply Apple admitting the iPad design is a failure (whether it sells well or not) and the netbook/Chromebook design is the answer. The cry for a real keyboard, mouse support, and now a trackpad, if implemented, completely destroys the original design as a mobile touch device. Jobs is rolling in his grave. Apple is downgrading to an also-ran commodity manufacturer.

This is not 2010 and not everyone chooses to live in the past. When SJ unveiled his original vision for the iPad, he said for it to exist it had to be better than the smartphone and laptop at seven key tasks. Well, today those tasks can and are being handled in large part by large-screen smartphones. What consumers want out of an 11"+ tablet today has evolved greatly compared to 2010. If Apple dogmatically stuck to the original 2010 vision of the iPad, it would have gone extinct.

The modern tablet needs to evolve beyond just multi-touch and be able to adapt to different inputs: touch, KB, trackpad, Pencil, voice, etc.. Tim Cook once said: "iPad Pro is the clearest expression of our vision of the future of personal computing". If he truly believes that then he has no choice but to keep going down the current path otherwise there is no reason for the iPad to exist.

 

[mudflap]

Let the iPad be an iPad. It doesn't need a trackpad. I'd much prefer backlit keys on the smart keyboard.

 

[pdoherty]

Agreed. I’ve been against mouse support/cursor on iPad as unnecessary and as redundant as a touch-screen Mac. Trackpad is no different. This is a patch to solve a UI problem, like Excel editing or the like.

Why is it a patch to solve a UI problem and not simply the platform growing beyond its original limits and being used for more? And also a recognition of what the user base wants and an acknowledgement that the user base isn’t willing to keep shelling out $1200 for a tablet with artificially-constrained functionality. No one is forcing anyone to buy a keyboard with trackpad, but it’s nice to have it as a option and will likely sell even more iPad.

 

[derekamoss]

this is amazing, I really can't wait for it to happen and will buy on day one. The reason is very simple, until now I have been travelling always with a laptop (for work) and an iPad for reading, watching movies etc. I tried many times to travel with iPad only but it's impossible due to the difficulty of doing productivity tasks that are a little beyond basic. Try editing a 10 page document with touch or work on a spreadsheet constantly moving your hands between the keyboard and trying to select a cell on the screen. It's clumsy, a mouse/trackpad solves these problems and it's about time.

I believe Apple didn't do it until now because this new ipad pro would actually replace many macbooks. But the truth is that due to the weird design choices and the awful butterfly keyboards they lost many sales among laptop users. I love macos but I had to go back to a windows laptop due to how bad the post 2015 macbooks have been in terms of hardware. Now they have an opportunity to get these users back on board. I can't wait

Trust me, the reason why they didn't do it until now has nothing to do with them being afraid of it replacing macbooks because even with a keyboard and trackpad the iPad still cant really replace a macbook for most productivity work flows. It hasn't been the lack of hardware attachments like the keyboard and mouse really that has gimped the ipad, it's the software like iOS/iPadOS where the problem really lies and until they get away from just using a blown up mobile phone OS on the iPad it won't work

The real reason why they are doing this now is because the Surface and devices like it are getting a trackhold and a lot of people like the 2-in-1 experience and apple has to respond. If it wasn't for the Surface line, you wouldn't have the apple pen, any mouse or keyboard support in iOS which everyone wants and you wouldn't have the stupid touch bar on the macbooks, which actually might have been a good thing!

 

[Professor Rucy]

Why is it a patch to solve a UI problem and not simply the platform growing beyond its original limits and being used for more? And also a recognition of what the user base wants and an acknowledgement that the user base isn’t willing to keep shelling out $1200 for a tablet with artificially-constrained functionality. No one is forcing anyone to buy a keyboard with trackpad, but it’s nice to have it as a option and will likely sell even more iPad.

John Gruber’s iPad rant

I wonder, though, if what most folks are asking for in a “Pro Mode” actually be “training wheels“ mode? Like, “Touch is too hard for me, so make it work like something else I’m familiar with?” It would actually be more suited for the “accessibility” pane. The majority of users would would be...

forums.macrumors.com

There is a good discussion here to illustrate my overall point as to what should or should not be the focus of the iPad for pro- vs casual- vs power users, and the confusion ipadOS is causing for some. The use of a point-and-click device easily falls in the muddies if the debate. My personal feeling is a mouse is redundant and software should her than traditional computer users forcing iPadOS to do things that macOS can do. (Conversely, should a MAC adopt touch screen, and would that be practical, and, if so, should software developers adjust accordingly?)

 

[ian87w]

Apple, I don't think this is the ARM-powered "Macbook" people are looking for...

 

[cmaier]

Honestly, this is not enough for me. I’m guessing they want us to buy the 2020 iPad Pro just for this improved Smart Keyboard pro and the other upgrades on the iPad like camera, processor, etc.

Yeah, weird that they expect people to buy it when all they plan on doing is improving the device and improving its accessories
[automerge]1583194407[/automerge]

If true this is simply Apple admitting the iPad design is a failure (whether it sells well or not) and the netbook/Chromebook design is the answer.

No it’s not. It’s a recognition that for some tasks different tools are necessary. The vast majority of people using iPads, the vast majority of the time, benefit from the simplicity of iPad’s design. It’s an added bonus that we can add keyboards and pointing devices and also use the iPad to do some tasks that would otherwise require a computer.

The netbook/chrome book design is TERRIBLE for most of what an iPad is great for.

 

[ksgant]

I forgot how many anti-Apple people there are here. Nearly every story here has people just bashing Apple.

No, I'm not saying we shouldn't be critical, but seriously...this is just a keyboard case they're rumored to be releasing. A KEYBOARD CASE. You know, one that you can buy separately for the iPad? This isn't a mandatory purchase. It's just an accessory. Yet here we are, with people outraged and incredulous with "OMG, they can't innovate anymore! OMG! They're trying to replace MacBooks! OMG, they want to replace all Macs! OMG, I can't understand why anyone would get an iPad when a regular computer is more powerful"

Jeez...this place...guess it's time I left yet again.

 

[[AUT] Thomas]

...that would mean mouse support should improve greatly. That would be grat. I don't care about the smart keyboard...

 

[rowspaxe]

Just curious...why would one want a trackpad? The trackpad would be like having a mouse for my iPad...which I'm not sure why I would need. I use my iPad as my laptop replacement, but haven't really seen the need for a trackpad/mouse. What would they be adding that would need a trackpad? Now backlit keys would be nice to have.

google gorilla arm
[automerge]1583195631[/automerge]

i dont need to know nothing...Apple instead of innovating ...they try to make the ipad an macbook clone
and the macbook an more ipad like with ios apps and touchbar...whats next ?!

People like hybrid devices...get over it.
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Triumph of the toaster-refrigerator!

 

[sledgehammer89]

Finally the last peace to replace a Mac with an iPad. Editing text and using iPadOS on an external Monitor anyone? A LOT better with a Trackpad.

Btw, no one need to use the Trackpad. Like the Pencil. Everything will be then on the Sotware only. Terminal and Xcode App please...

 

[JGIGS]

Unless it has adjustable viewing angles it's still not much use for me personally and will be overpriced, obviously.

Now if it were similar to the brydge keyboard with nice keys and hopefully lighter and thinner then Apple has my attention.

 

[sideshowuniqueuser]

This is a good step in the right direction. Next create a stiff hinge so that the screen will hold itself up without needing a back support, and make the keyboard stiff so that it will sit on your lap, maybe by encasing it in a sleek aluminium case. Then give it a 16" screen so that you have enough screen real estate to do your work. Add some bigger speakers. And a bunch of ports. Then put a Linux based OS in it. And boom, the perfect iPad