Apple’s Magic Keyboard add-on for the iPad Pro looks amazing. And it appears even more spectacular when iFixit X-rayed this accessory to see the inner details of the scissor-switch keys, the trackpad and the hinges that make an iPad seem to float.
Brydge on Wednesday rolled out the first firmware update for its Pro+ keyboard for iPad Pro. It’s designed to fix some of the issues users and reviewers have been experiencing with the built-in trackpad — and it’s certainly a good start.
But there are some things you should be aware of before you rush off to buy a Pro+ for your iPad Pro.
Woot is blowing out brand-new Smart Keyboards for iPad Pro. You can bag yours for as little as $99.99, but you’ll need to act fast. This sale is good for today only, and available stock won’t last long at this price.
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$299 won’t get you much in an Apple Store these days. It won’t even buy you an Escape key with your iPad Pro Magic Keyboard. But if you’re finding life a little difficult without one, there is a quick and easy way to add your own.
Today’s pro tip will show you how.
We love the new Magic Keyboard, which adds a trackpad and lets an iPad Pro float almost magically. Read the full Magic Keyboard review and find out everything we like (and a couple things that could be better).
In this week’s issue of Cult of Mac Magazine, you’ll also find an essay on all the ways a 2008 MacBook proves better than a modern Apple laptop. And a bit of trash talk about lazy new Apple TV+ comedy Trying.
Plus, we’ve got even more reviews, the week’s top Apple news, and a bunch of great how-tos and pro tips. Download the free iOS mag now or get the links below.
You shouldn’t have to deal with the frustration of unlocking your iPhone with Face ID when you’re wearing a mask. And you don’t have to. This simple pro tip shows you how to skip Face ID and quickly unlock with a passcode instead.
It should come as no surprise that the iPad is one of our favorite devices here at Cult of Mac. Ever since the introduction of the 2018 iPad Pro models and iPadOS 13, Apple’s tablet has made huge strides in being more capable and powerful for tons of things I do. So, needless to say, when I saw the Magic Keyboard, I had high hopes.
One critical factor for the iPad to be a useful tool for me has been a good keyboard experience. Even more important is the ability to shift from typing on the keyboard to interacting with the touchscreen when I want to go mobile around the house or office.
Now, with the Magic Keyboard, Apple offers a new option for the iPad Pro. The new case lets you effortlessly jump between keyboard and tablet mode whenever you want. Or you can forget about the touchscreen entirely, turning the iPad into more of a laptop than ever before.
Retailers are slashing prices on the 2018 iPad Pro following the launch of its successor. You can save up to $200 on remaining stock at B&H Photo, with prices starting at just $799 for a 12.9-inch model with 64GB of storage.
A limited supply is available, B&H warns, so bag yours before they’re all gone!
Apple’s brilliant new Magic Keyboard might be the best accessory ever made for iPad Pro. Get your 11-inch model today on Amazon and enjoy an early discount. You can also save on the 11-inch Smart Keyboard Folio.
B&H Photo just dropped the biggest discount we’ve seen so far on Apple’s new 2020 MacBook Air. You can save $100 on yours for a limited time only.
That’s just one of the awesome offers in today’s Deals & Steals roundup. Other highlights include:
Find all these discounts and more in today’s Deals & Steals roundup.
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Apple famously boasts the greatest attention to detail in consumer technology. Some say it’s been disappearing over the years, but if you look for it, you’ll find plenty of examples today.
Take the new ad for iPad Pro’s Magic Keyboard, for instance. Pause it at just the right moment and you’ll see the time Steve Jobs announced the very first iPhone beautifully reflected in the eye of a hummingbird.
Apple’s first 5G-compatible cellular 12.9-inch iPad Pro has reportedly been pushed back from late 2020 to the first quarter of 2021, an Economic Daily News report published Tuesday claims.
As with most hardware delays right now, the issue is the coronavirus pandemic. While China is getting back up and running, it has seemingly impacted production enough to delay Apple’s next-gen iPad Pro later this year.
The latest video from Apple shows off the best trick of the Apple’s Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro: it apparently makes the tablet float. A passing hummingbird stops by to see how the magic happens.
Watch it now:
iPad Pro’s exciting new Magic Keyboard, available to order now from $299, has already made its way into the hands of some reviewers. As you might have guessed, they all have great things to say about it.
Its excellent typing experience, unparalleled trackpad, and ease of use make the new Magic Keyboard one of the best iPad accessories to date, though it’s not quite perfect. Here’s what you need to know before you get yours.
Apple’s amazing new Magic Keyboard might be a must-have accessory for some iPad Pro owners, but it comes with one big tradeoff. The combined weight of both devices makes the package heavier than a MacBook Air.
That’s something you’ll want to bear in mind if you use an iPad Pro for its portability. If it doesn’t put you off, however, you’ll want to check out the early hands-on videos that show the Magic Keyboard in action.
Apple is developing its own game controller for Apple TV and iOS devices that will launch this year or next, according to claims from one tipster, published on Monday. It is said to be part of a big push to improve Apple Arcade.
The information comes from the same source who accurately predicted Apple’s plans for the 2020 iPad Pro refresh and the second-generation iPhone SE.
This week on The CultCast: iPhone SE 2 is finally here, and the amount of tech packed into this $400 phone is truly remarkable. We’ll tell you everything you need to know. Plus, a new report outlines Apple’s plans for iPhone 12 with 5G, a new mini (and possibly portable) HomePod, and the AirPower mat, resurrected!
Our thanks to Squarespace for supporting this episode. Easily create a beautiful website all by yourself, at Squarespace.com/cultcast. Use offer code CultCast at checkout to get 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain.
The iPhone 12 may be proceeding as scheduled, but not every Apple product in development is proceeding in a timely manner. According to a new research note from Hong Kong analyst Jeff Pu, sent Thursday, the forthcoming Mini LED iPad could be pushed back to early 2021.
A previous rumor suggested it would arrive later this year. Pu doesn’t give any explanation for the delay in his note, which was seen by Cult of Mac. However, it could relate to the continued disruption in Apple’s supply chain, which is only now starting to get back on track following the effects of the coronavirus pandemic in China.
One of the disadvantages of smaller iPads’ software keyboard is the lack of a numbers row. The 13-inch iPad displays a full keyboard with a numbers row and separate Caps Lock and Tab keys. But to type numbers on smaller iPads — the 10.5- and 11-inch models, and the mini — you first hit the symbol/number shift key to convert the top row of letter into numbers.
It’s a minor inconvenience, but if you do a lot of number entry on your iPad, then it becomes a major usability problem. The good news is that there’s an excellent workaround: keyboard flicks.
Running OS X on a tablet was a pipe dream for many Apple fans long before the iPad came out. Now that the iPad Pro has a processor that can compete with desktop CPUs, that pipe dream is almost a reality.
YouTuber Jules Gerard managed to get Mac OS X Leopard 10.5 running on his new 2020 iPad Pro without jailbreaking the device. Jules turned to the UTM emulator to show off how fast the old Mac operating system can run on the iPad Pro. Everything works shockingly well, including the built-in apps and Microsoft Office.
Prepare to be amazed:
One of the best keyboards money can buy for iPad Pro now comes with a built-in trackpad. The Brydge Pro+ is one of the first to truly embrace mouse support in iPadOS. And it costs a lot less than Apple’s official Magic Keyboard, which won’t debut until May.
Like almost every other Brydge keyboard I’ve used, this one delivers a terrific typing experience that you can rely on every day. It feels superbly comfortable, and it’s brilliantly designed. It makes your iPad feel like a MacBook in the most elegant way possible.
Despite all that — and my appreciation for Brydge as a company — it’s really hard for me to recommend the Pro+. It gets so many things right, but completely misses the mark where it really matters. Here’s my full Brydge Pro+ review after several weeks of use.
UPDATE: February 25, 2021: Brydge is currently preparing a big firmware update for the Pro+ that promises to eliminate its trackpad issues for good by adding native multitouch gestures. That means the Pro+ will soon offer exactly the same functionality as Apple’s own Magic Keyboard.
We have yet been able to test that firmware update, but we have heard that it lives up to Brydge’s promises. Bear that in mind before reading the rest of our original review below.
If you’re asking whether the iPad Pro is a laptop replacement, you’re asking the wrong question. Apple’s tablet is more like a Swiss Army knife that can tackle tasks that a MacBook can never master.
Find out why in this week’s free issue of Cult of Mac Magazine. In the free iOS mag, you’ll also find the latest on Apple’s attempts to battle COVID-19, including a contact-tracing partnership with Google and those rad face shields for health care workers whipped up by Cupertino’s finest.
Plus, you’ll get the usual mix of Apple news, reviews and how-tos. Grab yours now from the App Store.
Apple still hasn’t given an official launch date for the new Magic Keyboard that brings the iPad Pro closer to being a PC-replacement than it’s ever been, but Amazon’s UK site may have spilled the beans Tuesday with an update to its Magic Keyboard page.
Daring Fireball‘s John Gruber said Monday that he has confirmed “with a little birdie” that there is indeed no U1 chip in the new iPad Pro.
The U1 Ultra Wideband chip debuted with the iPhone 11. It allows the iPhone to detect its exact position relative to other devices in the same room. That gives it a sense of spatial awareness for things like targeted AirDrop by pointing one iPhone at another to share a file.
By DP Spender
The launch of the new 2020 iPad Pro brought a plethora of articles from tech journalists asking, “Is this Apple’s laptop replacement?” That question is so open-ended, it might as well be an infinite loop. It’s like asking a toolmaker, “Is your new hammer a suitable replacement for last year’s wrench?”
It is in many ways a pointless question — and one that in my opinion totally misses the point. The question should be, “Does the 2020 iPad Pro get your job done?” To which my answer is yes, but then so did the 2018 model.