May I ask how you use your Macbook for work and not MacBook Air? I personally feel the MBP is underpowered for what its supposed to be, MacBook is really weak on spec.
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Combined Weight of a 12.9-inch iPad Pro and a Magic Keyboard Is Heavier Than a 13-inch MacBook Air
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May I ask how you use your Macbook for work and not MacBook Air? I personally feel the MBP is underpowered for what its supposed to be, MacBook is really weak on spec.
I think the keyboard kind of needs to be heavy so it isn't tipped over by the weight of the iPad. In a normal laptop, the battery and computer are in the keyboard section, not the screen section, so it does not have such a heavy display to support.
Imo, they did good to make the keyboard only slightly heavier than the iPad it supports. I still have concerns that this thing won't topple over all the time when used on my lap instead of on my desktop, though.
Imo, they did good to make the keyboard only slightly heavier than the iPad it supports. I still have concerns that this thing won't topple over all the time when used on my lap instead of on my desktop, though.
I think its more questioning what the actual story is here? The Magic Keyboard cover, just like the Brydge, effectively converts an iPad in to a laptop (form factor). Anybody who didn't expect it to weigh as much as a laptop was clearly living in cloud cuckoo land.
But the thing is, what's the problem with it weighing the same as a laptop?
Especially since screen size and performance are comparable to a laptop. But...
Marketing. Maybe the promise of a new world with great lighter devices doesn't seem to pan out?
Quite obviously Apple themselves perceives it as an issue.
Why otherwise would they not tell us the weight?
...when they do for desktop keyboards, Magic mice, notebook protective covers, sleeves, external hard drives, etc?
Withholding the weight spec of a attachable/detachable keyboard / trackpad for a mobile "Pro" computer seems... just wrong and intransparent.
I think they rightly understood that if they published weights before people had them in hand to use them, the weights would have completely dominated the narrative. I expect weights will be added sooner than later.
After having it for 20 mins or so I’m quite happy for the extra weight as on a lap it is far better balance than the old ASK was. Certainly feels more secure and better to type without typing at a funny angle.
I don't know anybody who was thinking the Magic Keyboard would make for some sort of lighter device and its not like Apple could have kept it a secret. Of course, they could have been worried that if they'd published the weight, that it would become the story as happens these days.
You could spin it the other way and point out that there's now effectively an iOS laptop which you can remove the screen from and use as a tablet...
This is (bad) news because Apple always insisted on the weight even until the iPad Pro starts to bend. It doesn’t make sense to optimize the weight until you got structural problems and than add a keyboard that weights more than the whole iPad.
For me this is an example of bad execution and design. The Surface for example use the clever design choice to integrate the stand into the case. Because of that you don’t need heavy keyboard cases with integrated stands and hinges. The Type Cover for the Surface Pro with backlit, Trackpad and good keys weights only 308 grams which is less than half of the 710 grams of the new Magic Keyboard. It only cost about $100 and not $350 like the Apple keyboard.
Even the combination I use for may IPPs since 2015, a Smart Cover together with the excellent „original“ iMac Magic Keyboard weights only 389 grams. An iPad that weights more than in MBA is ridiculous .....
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That built-in stand on the Surface is fine for desktop usage, but it won't work well for using on your lap. The device most equivalent to what Apple is offering here would be the Surface Book, which is heavier than the 12.9" iPad Pro + Magic Keyboard/Case.
The Surface Book is definitely a Notebook and not a tablet any more. That should be compared to the MacBook Air or MacBook Pro. But there are even many 13“ Notebooks out there that are much lighter than the 12.9" iPad Pro + Magic Keyboard/Case. Today the MBA is more on the heavier side of the Ultrabooks (compared to 20 years ago when is was super light).
A tablet needs to be significantly lighter than a notebook because you hold it in your hands (even with a keyboard that you don’t want to detach all the time).
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From what I’ve seen you’re not holding this in your hand with this keyboard attached. It doesn’t fold back and holding it in your would be like holding a laptop from its screen.
The CPU in the 12" was gutless and completely hopeless for anything other than light productivity work.
For anyone requiring a little horsepower, the 12" was a no-go from day one.
Some good news for you though. I'm hearing the very first ARM based MacBook will be a 12" variant. Nothing more than a strong rumour at this stage.
The Surface Book is both a tablet and a laptop (when connected to its base/keyboard). Whether it's a particularly good tablet or laptop is debatable. The iPad Pro's CPU appears to be just as capable as the MacBook Air's, possibly moreso. The iPad OS is still in its infancy in terms of taking advantage of the power, and it may be that we'll actually see OSX for ARM become the "mode" that the iPad Pro runs when docked.
This dock is magnetic. The design is intended for you to easily/quickly undock it when wanting to use it in tablet mode.
Ok, got ot. But that makes it even worse for me. If I want to use it as a tablet I have no cover and a big chunky accessory laying around (and I have to attach/detach it all the time). For me it makes more sense to use the lightweight Smart Cover which I can fold back and when I need a keyboard I add my small and lightweight „original“ Magic Keyboard, that even has function (scissor) keys, cost less than $100 and can be detached for a better distance. I have it always in my bag with the other stuff for the „desktop“ type of work. When I am running around, laying in my bed or sitting on the sofa I don’t need a keyboard....(but I need a cover and sometimes a stand).
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I would not buy the Magic Keyboard cover solely for the keyboard. I'd buy it for the trackpad and keyboard combined. As apps are updated to make better use of the trackpad, this will greatly narrow the gap between the iPad and a laptop in terms of UI.
I think we won’t find out the complete value of the keyboard until Apple releases iOS 14.
For that I have my super small Switfpoint Bluetooth mouse (or with IOS 13.4 many other BT mouse) with me. Better than any trackpad...
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Well, no it's not. (As a full time trackpad user, even for my intense, very precise workflow, I'll leave that discussion for another day). It's not because a mouse loses access to simple execution of most of the gestures that make this so useful, and further, it requires one to be sitting at a desk or table or other flat surface to use. An iPad, being designed to be extremely portable, is going to be used in all sorts of places where a mouse is just not an option.
Well, there you go. You've got a full size bluetooth keyboard and your mouse and you can use a simple cover for your iPad, and it sounds like all of that works best for how you like to use it.
What you've just decribed wouldn't work well for one of the main places I like to use my MacBook Pro: In my lap while lounging in my living room. But it sounds like this Magic Keyboard case *could* work very well in that situation.
Obviously, the costs start adding up, but I could see a setup where I've got a dedicated Bluetooth Magic Keyboard, mouse and/or trackpad, a USB hub, and a larger monitor on the desk in my home office, but then also have this Magic Keyboard case for when I want to use the iPad Pro in another part of my house. It would also be all I'd probably want/need when going on a short trip. And when I want to focus on drawing, I'd just pull it off the magnetic base. I don't see a need to have a separate flip cover/case also...I'd just snap it back onto the Magic Keyboard case and close it when I'm done using it.
If you already have an iPad Pro, this is a great upgrade, even if it is 300 bucks.
That being said, there is one drawback to this design. My wife and I sit on our patio watch it on a table. I don't want the keyboard there when I'm watching it like that. Logitech made a keyboard for the previous 10.5 inch iPad Pro that was detachable and had a back with a kickstand. It was a perfect set up except it was bulky as hell.
I think i will put it in my current thin case for this purpose and moving between the two cases. It's not a huge deal.
That being said, there is one drawback to this design. My wife and I sit on our patio watch it on a table. I don't want the keyboard there when I'm watching it like that. Logitech made a keyboard for the previous 10.5 inch iPad Pro that was detachable and had a back with a kickstand. It was a perfect set up except it was bulky as hell.
I think i will put it in my current thin case for this purpose and moving between the two cases. It's not a huge deal.
Looks like everyone has a different use case for the iPP. If I am „lounging in my living room“ I don’t need no keyboard or trackpad at all. I use the input device that I use 95% of the time and for what the iPad was designed for: my finger! All that keyboards and trackpads are nice to have and very useful for several business use cases but they are only additional. After asking for an indirect pointing device for years I gave up on that more than a year ago and got me an additional Surface Pro. That solves all my needs regarding input and output devices (like a extended mode display).
After 24 hours with the Magic Keyboard I am satisfied overall but with one caveat: The trackpad is sometimes too small, especially when dragging apps or text. I wish Apple had found a way to make the trackpad bigger. This is not a showstopper, but just something for the second generation of the Magic Keyboard.
well, you are clearly a Louis fanboy but we have 12 designers running CC I design on these with i7 CPU’s with zero issues. And the in design files are gargantuan.