Drops and spills are no problem for the Zagg Rugged Pro Connect. Photo: Zagg
The Zagg Rugged Pro Connect keyboard and case for iPad can take what life dishes out. It has 2 meters of drop protection, it is water resistant, the keys won’t pop off, and there’s a snap-on screen protector.
The case fits multiple generations of the 10.2-inch budget iPad, and is available starting Tuesday.
★★★★☆
Want to work from a coffeeshop? Your iPad and the Zagg Pro Keys with Trackpad might be just what you need. Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac
iPad is an outstanding tablet, but add the Zagg Pro Keys with Trackpad and it becomes a powerful notebook computer that’s ready for work or school. Plus, the keyboard case offers a welcome 6.6 feet of drop protection.
There are versions for several Apple tablets, so I wrapped my 12.9-inch iPad Pro in the Pro Keys and went to work using it. There’s a lot to like here.
The Zagg Pro Keys with Trackpad is ready to turn the 12.9-inch iPad Pro into a detachable notebook. Photo: Zagg
Zagg launched a version of the Pro Keys with Trackpad that’s compatible with Apple’s largest iPad. It combines a rigid, protective case with a removable keyboard with a built-in trackpad.
There were already versions of the keyboard case for smaller iPad models, and now there’s one for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro.
Versions of the Zagg Slim Book Go and Zagg Messenger Folio for the 2019 iPad were unveiled at CES 2020. Photo: Zagg
Those with the 10.2-inch iPad launched last year will soon have significantly more case options, thanks to announcements made today at CES 2020. Zagg unveiled a collection of three keyboard cases, while its Gear4 subsidiary added two protective cases.
The Slim Folio Pro has a proper keyboard with backlit keys. Photo: Logitech
Logitech has finally delivered its own keyboard case for the 2018 iPad Pro lineup. The Slim Folio Pro works a lot like Apple’s own Smart Keyboard, but it’s more affordable and even more useful.
A Zagg Slim Book Go keyboard case for the 12.9- and 11-inch iPad Pro is in the offing. Photo: Zagg
Zagg is using the Consumer Electronics Show to unveil a trio of clip-on keyboards for the newest iPad Pro and iPad models: the Slim Book Go, Rugged Book Go, and Messenger Folio. These range from lightweight to more rugged options.
In addition, Zagg subsidiary InvisibleShield launched advanced screen protectors for the 2018 iPads that won a CES award.
I’ve tried a lot of iPad Pro keyboards, but nothing beats the ZAGG Slim Book. Photo: Killian Bell/Cult of Mac
The 10.5-inch iPad Pro is officially my primary computing device.
For the past five months, I’ve used it for everything from browsing the web and watching YouTube videos at night, to researching and writing stories for Cult of Mac during the day. I can’t remember the last time I turned on my PC — it’s been a long time.
I wouldn’t have been able to use the iPad Pro for all of this without a great physical keyboard. I’ve tried a bunch of them. And for the past two months or so, I’ve been using Zagg’s excellent Slim Book.
Here’s why it’s my favorite keyboard case for iPad.
Just as our own Charlie Sorrel was puzzled by CruxCase’s first turn-your-iPad-into-a-MacBook keyboard-case when it arrived in 2012, I too am not exactly won over by the idea — I’m just not sure I’d ever want to bulk out an iPad by entombing it in a massive aluminum slab.
Besides the name — the new model, CruxENCORE, sounds like a more solid marketing decision than the first case’s name, CruxSKUNK — and the fact that the new case is designed for the iPad Air, the general idea remains the same. Like the original, the CruxENCORE, with its aluminum casing and full-sized chiclet-style keyboard, emulates a MacBook’s clamshell-style ergonomics — right down to the large hand-wrest islands just fore of the keyboard.
Last month, we told you about a new startup called Typo Keyboard that’s backed and co-founded by TV/radio personality Ryan Seacrest. The story behind it was that Seacrest was so frustrated with the iPhone’s lack of a physical keyboard that he decided to personally invest $1 million in a solution.
We called the Typo keyboard accessory “BlackBerry-inspired” at the time, which was a mild way of saying that it looks like a complete ripoff of Blackberry’s layout. Blackberry isn’t happy, and the company has now sued Seacrest’s startup.