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Use classic Mac keyboards and mice with these adapters [Review]

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Extended Keyboard II and ADB Mouse II connected to my MacBook Pro and Cinema Display
You can use classic Mac keyboards and mice with a modern machine thanks to clever adapters and apps.
Photo: D. Griffin Jones/Cult of Mac

Apple’s modern keyboards are perfectly adequate but pretty unremarkable. They are anything but fun. But thanks to the wide selection of modern USB adapters from TinkerBOY, you can liven up your setup with long-lost keyboards and mice of yore.

You can use the legendary Apple Extended Keyboard II, with its unique key switches that make typing an almost ecstatic experience. You can get an adapter for the original Macintosh Mouse, for clicking and dragging like it’s 1984.

I get a fair share of products for review at Cult of Mac but none had me excitedly checking the mailbox every day like these. Read on for my experience using TinkerBOY’s keyboard and mouse adapters with a modern Mac.

Logitech upgrades popular mouse and offers 2 new mechanical keyboards

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The new Logitech MX Mechanical Wireless Keyboard pairs with the updated MX Master 3S Wireless Mouse.
The new Logitech MX Mechanical Wireless Keyboard pairs with the updated MX Master 3S Wireless Mouse.
Photo: Logitech

In its latest release, Logitech offers an upgraded MX Master 3S Wireless Mouse and two new mechanical keyboards. The new mouse is an update on the popular MX Master 3 mouse. The 3S has a quieter click and a more sensitive sensor.

And the new MX Mechanical and MX Mechanical Mini keyboards feature mechanical switches, a departure from the existing MX Keys keyboards.

The MX Master 3S, MX Mechanical and MX Mechanical Mini, which will ship by the end of May, all readily pair with both Macs and PCs.

Logitech’s Options+ software adds full native M1 Mac support

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With the new update, Logitech peripherals like the MX Master 3 mouse should work more smoothly.
With the new update, Logitech peripherals like the MX Master 3 mouse should work more smoothly.
Photo: Logitech

In what will surely be welcome news for folks who like to use the company’s peripherals with their Macs, Logitech said it’s rolling out full native M1 support in the latest beta version of its Logi Options+ software.

If you use Logitech products, you may think of it as Logi Options. Logi Options+ replaces that software and features some enhancements in addition to the native support for Silicon Macs.

Adonit Note-M brilliantly combines an iPad stylus with a mouse [Review]

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Adonit Note-M review
The Adonit Note-M is a 2-in-1 stylus and mouse for iPad.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

iPadOS offers full support for mice, and it also supports styli. But carrying around both can be a bit of a hassle. That’s where the Adonit Note-M comes in. It’s a stylus that’s also a mouse. And one that’ll attach itself to the side of an iPad Pro.

I extensively tested this innovative accessory. Here’s how it performs in real-world use.

Microsoft Remote Desktop now lets iPad users control their PC using a mouse

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better touch tool magic mouse
It's like turning your iPad into a portable Windows PC.
Photo: Harpal Singh/Unsplash

While a large number of iOS users are also Mac customers, many people will use an iPhone or iPad but also rely on a Windows PC in some capacity. For those customers, Microsoft’s Remote Desktop app is a great tool, letting them access and use their professional or enterprise Windows PC through another device.

The latest update for the app is a big one for iPad owners — adding some eagerly anticipated features to the iOS app, including support for the Apple Magic Mouse 2 and Apple Magic Trackpad 2, external mice, and more.

6 iPad trackpad gestures you need to know

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iPad trackpad gestures
Trackpad gestures transform the iPad into something entirely new.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

The trackpad and mouse support Apple added in iOS 13.4 is just amazing. It’s like getting a whole new computer, just by updating your iPad. I’ve been using it for a week for so now, and I want to share my favorite trackpad gestures.

If you use a trackpad with your iPad, these gestures will change the way you use your tablet.

How to customize the new mouse Pointer Control settings on your iPad

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pointer control trackpad mouse, Apple Pencil
So many ways to control an iPad.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

The new mouse and trackpad support coming in iPadOS 13.4 is just fantastic. And, in typical Apple fashion, it just works as soon as you connect a trackpad or mouse via Bluetooth or USB. But there are also plenty of options to customize how the mouse behaves, and even how the pointer looks.

You may already have checked the obvious options in the Settings app under General > Trackpad & Mouse. But several hidden iPad Pointer Control options offer even deeper customizations.

Hands on: Everything you want to know about iPad Pro’s new trackpad features

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Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad, iPad
Pretty much any mouse will work with the iPad in iPadOS 13.4.
Photo: Charlie Sorrel/Cult of Mac

Apple’s new Magic Keyboard case for the iPad Pro looks amazing. But its most impressive feature (aside from that incredibly solid-looking hinge) will become available to any iPad owner with a mouse or trackpad laying around. The new trackpad support coming next week in iOS 13.4 works with pretty much any Bluetooth or USB mouse. You just connect the peripheral, and a cursor appears on the iPad screen.

This is a much, much better system than the cobbled-together mouse support that already exists in iOS 13’s Accessibility settings. Instead of simply imitating a finger on-screen, Apple completely rethought how a cursor should work on a touch-based device. This thing is deep, as we’re about to see.

Here’s a hands-on look at the new iPad mouse and trackpad features.

Craig Federighi shows off awesome power of iPad trackpad

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Craig-Federighi-iPad-Pro
Craig Federighi and new iPad features? What more could you want?
Photo: Apple

Apple is bringing true trackpad support (and improved mouse support) to the iPad. Get ready to enjoy it by learning all the new gestures from Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering.

In a new video released by Apple Wednesday, Federighi demonstrates the improvements and shows how simple swipes can help you access Control Center, switch between apps in Slide Over, return to the Home screen, and more.

Mouse support on iPad could be ‘perfect distruption’ to PC gaming

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iPad Pro as your desktop computer
There's just one problem — and that's Apple.
Photo: Ed Hardy/Cult of Mac

Better mouse support on iPad could be the “perfect disruption” to PC gaming, one analyst believes.

Apple has already added the ability to control iPhone and iPad with a mouse in its latest software updates. Future enhancements could help it become a more compelling notebook computer replacement.

But will Apple ever give us full mouse support in iPadOS?