The Winmaxle Mobdel B1 can be a physical keyboard for typing on your iPhone, harking back to the days of the BlackBerry. And because it’s also a motion-sensitive mouse, you can use it with your iPad, too. Either way, it’s a handy little gizmo.
I found multiple uses for the wireless keyboard while I was testing it. But I also ran into a limitation that made it not as useful with my iPad as I hoped.
Winmaxle Mobdel B1 review
The early smartphones usually had tiny physical keyboards. We used the ones built into BlackBerry, Palm Treo and other models to tap out texts and emails. They worked quite well. Then the iPhone came along with its all-screen design and killed the smartphone keyboard.
Well, it’s back … if you want it to be. You can wirelessly connect the Winmaxle Mobdel B1 to your iPhone and forgo the on-screen keyboard. You can have a physical keyboard to type on instead. And it’s even backlit.
Or you can connect the B1 to your iPad, where it also acts as a motion-sensitive mouse. Just wave the keyboard around in the air to move the pointer on the tablet screen.
The Mobdel B1 is small keyboard with a motion sensing mouse that looks a lot like a BlackBerry. It can connect to devices such as Windows, Android, and Apple for control and input. It has 2.4G communication and Bluetooth communication capabilities, and its key input is very comfortable.
- Replaces tiny on-screen iPhone keyboard
- Also a motion-sensitive mouse
- Works with iPad, too
- No scroll wheel
Table of contents: Winmaxle Mobdel B1 review
- A physical iPhone keyboard
- And an iPad keyboard
- Bluetooth or 2.4G connectivity
- Winmaxle Mobdel Mobdel B1 review: final thoughts
- Pricing
A physical iPhone keyboard
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
You can connect any Bluetooth keyboard to your iPhone, but toting around a full-size keyboard makes no sense. The Winmaxle B1 is just 5.25 inches by 3 inches by 0.6 inches, and a mere 0.2 pounds, so it’s as pocketable as your phone.
You hold the keyboard between your hands and type on it with your thumbs, as you do your iPhone. But because the keys are larger, and physically there, typing can be easier.
That said, prepare yourself for a learning curve. You’ll need to get used to the arrangement of keys, and especially punctuation, before you can expect to quickly write out messages. I called out punctuation because this is all accessed as a function of a letter key. Typing a period is Function-B, for example. You’ll need to learn these.
The needed practice is totally worth it if you have some kind of physical issue that makes it difficult to type on a tiny virtual on-screen keyboard. I can see the Winmaxle Mobdel B1 being a godsend for this group.
But if you simply don’t like on-screen keyboards, the Mobdel B1 probably won’t free you from it completely. It’s a lot of extra steps to pull out an external keyboard to type a short text message like, “See you there.” Still, if you regularly write long emails on your iPhone, and are willing to put in the time getting used to the keyboard’s arrangement, I predict you’ll end up typing a lot faster.
If you need to type in the dark, the keyboard offers backlights for the keys. There’s even a choice of colors for these: white, red, green, purple and more.
And speaking of colors, while my review unit is basic black, the product also comes in pink or white.
And an iPad keyboard
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The iPad’s on-screen keyboard has the opposite problem from the iPhone’s. Rather than being too small and cramped, the keyboard is so wide that holding the tablet while typing takes large hands. If this sounds all too familiar, the Winmaxle Mobdel B1 could be just what you need to write on your tablet.
That said, there are so many excellent keyboard cases for iPad that there are better options for those who regularly type large amounts of text into their tablet.
To me, the best use for the Mobdel B1 is when I’m leaning back on a sofa and watching video on my iPad — usually connected to a larger screen. That’s because Winmaxle’s little gadget isn’t only a keyboard, it’s also a motion-sensitive mouse. A gyroscope inside the accessory detects the movements, so all I need to do is tilt or move the device in the air to control the screen cursor. There are left and right mouse buttons on the keyboard.
Making this useful takes practice. At first, expect to do a lot of waving the keyboard around, trying to get the %&#@ cursor to go where you want it to. After lots of use, I’m quite good at quickly getting to move just where I need it to.
It’s very convenient to connect my iPad to my TV, sit back on the sofa, and use the B1 to control the tablet. It really adds to movie night.
But it’s time to bring up that limitation I mentioned near the start of this review. And honestly, iPadOS and some third-party software help share the blame. The Winmaxle Mobdel B1 doesn’t have a scroll wheel, which is a problem moving around in many iPad apps. It’s sometimes impossible to get to the bottom of a long screen without either a scroll wheel or using the touchscreen.
Whether the problem is bothersome varies from app to app. I can scroll around in Disney+ with the B1’s arrow keys just fine, but not the Paramount+ app, for instance. With that app, I’m stuck at the top of the listing of shows and movies unless I use the touchscreen. There’s nothing the B1 can do.
Bluetooth or 2.4G connectivity
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
The default connection option with Apple devices is Bluetooth 5.0 Low-Energy, but the Winmaxle Mobdel B1 also comes with a 2.4G wireless dongle in a slot on its back. Pop this out, plug it into a computer’s USB-A port and you’re ready to type on it. And the motion-sensitive mouse works with this type of connection, too.
Both Bluetooth and 2.4G require a battery in the keyboard. The accessory maker promises “days of use” on a charge. After all my testing, the battery in my review unit is still at 90%, so you won’t need to plug the gadget in very often. When you do, there’s a convenient USB-C port on one edge.
Winmaxle Mobdel B1 review: Final thoughts
Whether you yearn to return to the days of the BlackBerry, or your hands aren’t up to tiny on-screen phone keyboards, the Mobdel B1 might be just what you’re looking for. Or use it with your iPad, instead.
It’s easy to carry around, and speeds up typing vs. an on-screen keyboard… after a lengthy learning curve.
I just wish it included a scroll wheel.
★★★★☆
Pricing
The Winmaxle Mobdel B1 wireless keyboard and mouse sells for $59.
Buy it from: Amazon
The Mobdel B1 is small keyboard with a motion sensing mouse that looks a lot like a BlackBerry. It can connect to devices such as Windows, Android, and Apple for control and input. It has 2.4G communication and Bluetooth communication capabilities, and its key input is very comfortable.
- Replaces tiny on-screen iPhone keyboard
- Also a motion-sensitive mouse
- Works with iPad, too
- No scroll wheel
Winmaxle provided Cult of Mac with a review unit for this article. See our reviews policy, and check out more in-depth reviews of Apple-related items.
