I recently found myself with some gift cards to burn, so I went over to Best Buy and picked up the Logitech Slim Folio Pro for my 11" iPad Pro. I've been using the Apple Smart Keyboard Folio with a protective iStyles decal applied (because it's a smudge and dirt magnet) since launch last year, and while I have zero issues with it, I wanted to see if the Logitech lived up to the hype. I tried Logitech's solution for my 10.5" iPad Pro and hated it, but this looked a lot better designed and implemented.
Here's my major issue with this keyboard case, and it's not something any of the thousand reviews I've read ever mentioned: the hinge is TERRIBLE and actually destroys what is otherwise a very good design. It could be that I'm just overly nitpicky, as I have never seen this issue mentioned once in any of the written reviews or YouTube videos I've seen. Be that as it may, it's a deal breaker for me. I'll explain the best I can, as the case has already been returned and I didn't think to take pictures of what I'm talking about:
The hinge on this case is very similar to Apple's Smart Keyboard Folio, just way wider to accommodate the thicker keyboard cover and iPad Pro cover. The problem is that it is not pliable enough. When you lay the iPad down flat on a table, the stiff hinge actually pulls the cover back from being flush from the edges. When you pick the iPad up and hold it like you'd hold a book, the pressure from your hand makes the cover slide up so that it's flush. Logitech's marketing material shows that it's always flush no matter what, but in all the pictures I've seen in reviews, they have the same issue I'm seeing. None of them ever talk about it, which is why I'm thinking this is just me being overly critical/picky. (A magnetic connection on the corners would have alleviated this issue easily, but there don't seem to be any magnets holding the cover in place on top.) I just hate the fact that the keyboard portion of the case is constantly sliding around unsecured, even with the magnetic flap closed.
The other side effect of this overly stiff hinge is that when you pick the iPad up, the flap on the back that comes away from the cover to enable all the different modes does not sit flush against the back. There's a gap that you can easily see and feel in your hand. It just makes the case look sloppy and incorrectly manufactured. I realize that this is the cheaper of the premium keyboard cases for the iPad Pro, but that still doesn't make it cheap. It's still over $100 for a bluetooth keyboard and flap of silicon.
Notice I'm not complaining about the bulk. I don't mind it. My favorite iPad case of all time was, and will forever be, the Zagg Rugged Messenger that was available for the 10.5" iPad Pro. If Zagg had a similar one for the 11" iPad Pro, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. I don't mind a little bulk as long as it still includes versatility and functionality. But in this case, the problems I'm having are not coming from the extra bulk anyway.
The Slim Folio Pro came close to replacing my Apple model. But when I took it off and put the Smart Keyboard Folio back on, I realized that the tradeoffs in design were not worth trying to replace it in the first place. It effortlessly goes on and off the iPad when I want it to, it fits the iPad perfectly, it uses the Smart Connector for power, it's splash proof, and I don't mind typing on the keyboard at all. The lack of side protection is annoying, but I put it in a TomToc sleeve when I leave the house with it, so that's not an issue most of the time.
I'm super disappointed in the lack of good design from third parties in this area. In the third generation of iPad Pro accessories, many of them have refined their efforts but still not perfected their designs, and Zagg has actually gone way backward from several models they had for the 2nd gen iPad Pro that were fantastic. So this experiment was a failure. Turns out Apple's implementation, for me, is still the best one.
Here's my major issue with this keyboard case, and it's not something any of the thousand reviews I've read ever mentioned: the hinge is TERRIBLE and actually destroys what is otherwise a very good design. It could be that I'm just overly nitpicky, as I have never seen this issue mentioned once in any of the written reviews or YouTube videos I've seen. Be that as it may, it's a deal breaker for me. I'll explain the best I can, as the case has already been returned and I didn't think to take pictures of what I'm talking about:
The hinge on this case is very similar to Apple's Smart Keyboard Folio, just way wider to accommodate the thicker keyboard cover and iPad Pro cover. The problem is that it is not pliable enough. When you lay the iPad down flat on a table, the stiff hinge actually pulls the cover back from being flush from the edges. When you pick the iPad up and hold it like you'd hold a book, the pressure from your hand makes the cover slide up so that it's flush. Logitech's marketing material shows that it's always flush no matter what, but in all the pictures I've seen in reviews, they have the same issue I'm seeing. None of them ever talk about it, which is why I'm thinking this is just me being overly critical/picky. (A magnetic connection on the corners would have alleviated this issue easily, but there don't seem to be any magnets holding the cover in place on top.) I just hate the fact that the keyboard portion of the case is constantly sliding around unsecured, even with the magnetic flap closed.
The other side effect of this overly stiff hinge is that when you pick the iPad up, the flap on the back that comes away from the cover to enable all the different modes does not sit flush against the back. There's a gap that you can easily see and feel in your hand. It just makes the case look sloppy and incorrectly manufactured. I realize that this is the cheaper of the premium keyboard cases for the iPad Pro, but that still doesn't make it cheap. It's still over $100 for a bluetooth keyboard and flap of silicon.
Notice I'm not complaining about the bulk. I don't mind it. My favorite iPad case of all time was, and will forever be, the Zagg Rugged Messenger that was available for the 10.5" iPad Pro. If Zagg had a similar one for the 11" iPad Pro, I'd buy it in a heartbeat. I don't mind a little bulk as long as it still includes versatility and functionality. But in this case, the problems I'm having are not coming from the extra bulk anyway.
The Slim Folio Pro came close to replacing my Apple model. But when I took it off and put the Smart Keyboard Folio back on, I realized that the tradeoffs in design were not worth trying to replace it in the first place. It effortlessly goes on and off the iPad when I want it to, it fits the iPad perfectly, it uses the Smart Connector for power, it's splash proof, and I don't mind typing on the keyboard at all. The lack of side protection is annoying, but I put it in a TomToc sleeve when I leave the house with it, so that's not an issue most of the time.
I'm super disappointed in the lack of good design from third parties in this area. In the third generation of iPad Pro accessories, many of them have refined their efforts but still not perfected their designs, and Zagg has actually gone way backward from several models they had for the 2nd gen iPad Pro that were fantastic. So this experiment was a failure. Turns out Apple's implementation, for me, is still the best one.
