iPad Here’s how to modify an iPad Air case to fit an iPad Air 2

[EugW]

Now that the the kids are at home and we have to do all their class activities here, they need keyboards. Using iPads with Google Docs kinda sucks. With external keyboards, the experience is much better. Both my 7 and 5 year olds have iPad Air 2s. However, around here, the name brand Bluetooth keyboard cases are generally considerably more expensive for the iPad Air 2 than they are for the original iPad Air. In fact, the Zagg Hinged Folio Keyboard is only CAD$23 (US$16.40) at the moment. The other issue is that due to the viral outbreak, a lot of the items at Amazon aren’t shipping for a month, but this particular item ships immediately.



So, I decided to buy the iPad Air case to work with the iPad Air 2. The problem:



So, all I did was take a drill with a 1/4” bit and drilled out the camera hole, and using a knife I cut out the bar covering the volume button.



However, because the iPad Air 2 is thinner, it was a bit loose in the case. So I added thin pads.



Once that was done, it was OK, but I decided to add a strip of tape at the bottom on the curved edge to make it just a smidge more snug:



Now, it works perfectly. Here is the comparison of the finished result vs the original:



Is it worth it? Maybe in certain situations, but I am not sure it’s worth the time for a lot of people to spend just to save $20-30. However, the more important factor here is I wouldn’t be able to get the Air 2 version for a month so I needed something quick, and this solved the problem.

 

[BeatCrazy]

Nice work! My kids are 7 and 9, each have and Air 2. The price sure is right, but the reviews on Amazon make me worry my kids will destroy them in a week. My son is currently using my old Magic Trackpad 1 and a solar Bluetooth keyboard. If we have to plug in/charge one more device in this house, I might lose my mind.

 

[EugW]

Nice work! My kids are 7 and 9, each have and Air 2. The price sure is right, but the reviews on Amazon make me worry my kids will destroy them in a week. My son is currently using my old Magic Trackpad 1 and a solar Bluetooth keyboard. If we have to plug in/charge one more device in this house, I might lose my mind.

That was the other factor. The reviews of various hinged Zagg models suggests the hinge is weak so I didn't want to invest a lot for these keyboards. They say the Bluetooth connection is reliable and the battery life is excellent however.

Now that I have them in hand, I can tell you the Bluetooth pairing seems good as does the battery life. However, if you open it from a corner, it places a lot of stress on that plastic hinge, and it will eventually crack. OTOH, if you open the device from the centre, it distributes the force across the hinge, and it feels somewhat more robust this way. I suspect it will eventually crack regardless, but for CAD$23 I won't complain too much if it only lasts until say Xmas.

BTW, the other small Bluetooth keyboards that are shipping quick are Chinese knockoffs of the Apple wireless keyboards, but people complain of less reliable persistence of pairing, and poorer keyboard quality. I tried a real Apple wireless keyboard (2009) and I sometimes had to manually turn it on via the on-button so it wasn't necessarily a great solution. Perhaps the more recent Magic Keyboard would be more reliable but I wasn't going to spend 3-digit $ for a keyboard for kids of this age.

 

[EugW]

One drawback I’ve noticed with this modded iPad Air keyboard cover on the iPad Air 2: It doesn’t automatically turn off the screen when you close the case, and it doesn’t automatically turn on the screen when you open it up. (I don’t know if this is supported with this case on the iPad Air.)

However, I found the exact version of this Zagg Hinged Keyboard Folio on Amazon.ca for the iPad Air 2, and it is CAD$124 / US$89. For that price the kids can deal with this minor issue.

BTW, the key spacing is 17 mm, which isn’t too surprising, given the size of the iPad, although they probably could have fit something like a 17.5 mm keyboard in there, which is what I think the 9.7” iPad Pro has with the Apple Smart Keyboard. Occupational therapists consider proper ergonomics to be 18-19 mm. The 10.2” iPad / 10.5” Pro/Air / 11” Pro have 18 mm, and 12.9” Pro and Macs have 19 mm. Key feel on this case is good though.

 

[EugW]

After a month with these, they have held up. No case hinge cracking yet, even after a couple of drops of about 1-2 feet onto a thin carpet, but I've been reminding the kids repeatedly to only open the case from the centre and not from the corners. Note they have also occasionally thrown the iPad onto the couch or bed, but not too often because they see I get quite irritated when they do that.

One now has a cracked tempered glass protector since the case doesn't provide much cushion, so I'll have to replace that screen protector, but the case itself is fine.