iFixit hasn’t been able to do its normal physical teardown of the new Magic Keyboard and trackpad for the iPad Pro but the company has gotten creative and done an X-ray teardown of the device. Follow along for a fascinating look inside Apple’s beautiful and intricate iPad Pro accessory.
Update: Federighi is also interviewed on the same topic in a special episode of the AppStories podcast.
Creating the iPadOS cursor without compromising the touch-first nature of the iPad was no easy task, says Apple SVP Craig Federighi in a new interview.
He says that the project leaned significantly on what the company had learned from Apple TV …
Apple today updated the 13-inch MacBook Pro with the Magic Keyboard, alongside performance and tech spec improvements. The new 13-inch Pro features scissor switch keys, marking the end of the butterfly keyboard MacBook era.
The new MacBook Pro is available to order today, starting at $1299. Apple has doubled the base SSD storage across all configurations.
I said in my two previous pieces on Apple’s Magic Keyboard for the iPad that it’s not a perfect product.
It’s really expensive, and that fact isn’t reflected in the look and feel of the cover. There’s no Escape key, and no functions keys. The screen angle doesn’t quite go back as far as I’d ideally like. It’s not quite as stable on my lap as I’d like.
But I also said something else …
Two days ago the Magic Keyboard for the 11-inch iPad Pro landed on my desk. I’ve been using it constantly since it first arrived, and although it’s not perfect, I absolutely love it.
It’s so good that I can easily say that this is the best iPad accessory in the 10-plus year history of the device, and that includes the Apple Pencil.
Watch our hands-on video as I walk through the top Magic Trackpad for iPad Pro features. I’ll talk about features I like, and things that I don’t like. If you want the details about the Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro, then this is the video for you.
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Apple famously says no a thousand times for every time it says yes, and if there’s one thing the company has been saying “no” to more often than anything else, it’s a touchscreen Mac.
But some are suggesting that the new Magic Keyboard for the iPad Pro — which setup Apple describes as “a computer” — amounts to the company tacitly endorsing the idea of a touchscreen laptop…
The new Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro packs quite a few features, including backlighting and a built-in trackpad. One complaint from users, however, is the lack of a physical Escape key. Thankfully, there are two easy ways to replicate this functionality.
The first Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro orders arriving to customers, and some are wondering what sort of protection options are available for the pricey new accessory. One little known detail is that AppleCare+ coverage for your iPad Pro also extends to your Magic Keyboard.
I’ve often said that my Mac is my most important Apple product: if I could only have one, that’s the one I’d choose. Partly because bigger is better in my view when it comes to screen sizes, and partly because of its flexibility. The combination of powerful apps, a proper file-system and windowing.
But last night I chose to reach for my iPad and Magic Keyboard when it came to writing a personal blog post and doing a few other things …
I guess first impressions of the Magic Keyboard with trackpad can be thought of as layered. There’s the ordering experience, otherwise known as: did I really just pay £349* – more than the price of the entry-level iPad – for a keyboard?
*Usual reminder: In the UK, VAT (sales tax) is included in the list price. So the UK price is £291 without sales tax, which is the equivalent of $359. This compares with a US price of $349, to which sales tax needs to be added.
Then there’s the set up experience …
As the first Magic Keyboard orders arrive to customers, Apple has shared a new iPad Pro video simply titled “Float.” The video highlights the new Magic Keyboard’s floating design and built-in trackpad.
The first Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro orders have started arriving to a few lucky customers ahead of schedule. Apple had originally said the Magic Keyboard would be available in May, but then it went up for order this week alongside the new iPhone SE. Head below for a collection of the first hands-on videos of the new Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro.
Apple has announced that the Magic Keyboard with trackpad for iPad Pro will be available to order today and begin arriving to customers next week. This is ahead of schedule, with Apple having originally said orders would open in May.
Apple has updated iMovie for iPadOS with new features including mouse and trackpad support, new keyboard shortcuts, more image format, and more. The new version also prepares Apple’s video editing app for the upcoming Magic Keyboard accessory for iPad Pro.
A supply chain report indicates that demand for MacBooks and iPads remains positive despite the fact that most stores are closed and many consumers face financial concerns during the coronavirus outbreak.
While it’s just one measure, today’s report says that suppliers of Apple’s scissor-switch keyboard are continuing to ramp up production as per pre-coronavirus plans …
My 2018 iPad Pro was hardly in need of a revival last week, but that’s exactly what Apple delivered for it.
I have the 12.9-inch iPad Pro with 256GB of storage and built-in cellular for internet access almost anywhere. The full-screen design and build quality are unbeatable even now. Speed-wise, its performance still outpaces my needs for a tablet.
But sometimes a new accessory comes along that dramatically improves the product for which it’s made. For me, that’s the Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro.
A report from Digitimes suggests that the iPad Pro will get refreshed later this year, and with it, a new Smart Keyboard with backlit keys.
Digitimes says Apple plans to roll out its “glowing” scissor switch keyboard across its products, starting with the 13-inch MacBook Pro in the first half of the year.
Apple’s Mac Pro is still slated to ship sometime this fall and a new image asset shows off new Apple Magic accessories including a keyboard in silver and black without the numpad. So far, Apple has only made its space gray Magic Keyboard in the larger variant that includes the number keypad.
It seems a given that Apple will bring Face ID to Macs sooner rather than later, now that the tech has been extended from iPhones to iPads too. We’ve today seen the latest in a series of Apple patent applications to do just that.
But the patent also suggests the Touch Bar could be coming to Magic Keyboards …
This week for 9to5Rewards, we’re giving away a customized Space Gray Apple Magic Keyboard from ColorWare, the Minnesota-based company that specializes in custom painted products & skins.
Shipping times for the Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad have slipped to 6-7 weeks, in contrast with the standard Magic Keyboard which is shown as in stock with immediate availability. We’re seeing the same availability for the product across Apple Stores in all countries, though it is still in stock with other suppliers.
Seven weeks would take us into December, which is when Apple has promised us the new iMac Pro it first teased back in June …
I wondered soon after the launch of the 2016 MacBook Pro whether Apple might have plans to bring the Touch Bar and Touch ID to a new Magic Keyboard. A new Apple patent application shows that the company is at least exploring the idea.
As ever, the language of the patent is dense, but the illustrations include a standalone keyboard as well as a laptop one.
In some embodiments, the device may also include a processing unit positioned within the housing, and a primary display positioned at least partially within the housing and configured to display a graphical-user interface executed by the processing unit. In some embodiments, the display is an organic light-emitting diode display. The electronic device may be a keyboard device.
As I noted previously, this would seem to address the greatest weakness of the Touch Bar …
One big question people have been asking since Apple’s announcement of the Touch Bar is if the technology could come to the standalone Magic Keyboard. My colleague Ben Lovejoy noted of the possibility earlier this week, explaining that battery life and price would be to inhibiting factors for the Magic Keyboard with Touch Bar to come to fruition.
Those factors haven’t stopped some eager designers from creating some pretty convincing mockups, though…
I’ve been waiting for Apple to update the 2007-vintage Apple Wireless Keyboard and 2010 Magic Trackpad since the first time OS X displayed a “low battery” notification — since then, I’ve had years of near-daily pop-up reminders that either my keyboard or my trackpad (both fueled by Apple’s official Battery Charger, no less) were supposedly running low on power. Although I preferred the minimalism of a wire-free desk, I reluctantly switched back to Apple’s old but still excellent Wired Keyboard to cut “low battery” notices in half, hoping that Apple would leverage 5+ years of Bluetooth and battery improvements to produce better wireless input accessories.
Last week, Apple finally released sequels to its three major input devices: the new Magic Keyboard ($99) replaces the $69 Wireless Keyboard, the Magic Mouse 2 ($79) updates the $59 Magic Mouse, and the Magic Trackpad 2 ($129) vaults over the $69 Magic Trackpad. The signature improvement to each is the replacement of AA batteries with integrated Lithium-Ion rechargeable cells, refueled once per month with an included Lightning cable — previously only used for iPad, iPhone, and iPod accessories. Apple also tweaked each of the accessory designs, one more significantly than the others.
Having given up mice five years ago (and radically improved a carpal tunnel-damaged wrist in the process), I opted not to test the Magic Mouse 2, but my colleague Dom Esposito discusses it and the other Magic accessories in the video below. My review is focused on the Magic Keyboard and Magic Trackpad 2, neither of which I’d call “must-have” accessories, though each has a couple of worthwhile assets, and at least one surprising Apple device compatibility limitation. Should you buy Apple’s latest accessories, or go with excellent third-party alternatives such as Logitech’s K811 Keyboard and Rechargeable Trackpad for Mac instead?… (Updated November 2015 and December 2015 with new battery testing results.)
