9to5Mac Reviews

The iRig Keys Mini is an electronic MIDI music keyboard that connects to iPhone and iPad with a Lightning cable. Although it isn’t regularly advertised, iPhones and iPads have had great support for MIDI input instruments and other devices for a long time. Since iOS 4 in fact, Apple gave the developers the ability to interact with MIDI peripherals. Simultaneously, the App Store has bloomed a wide ecosystem of sophisticated music creation and audio production apps. This makes for a perfect storm of capability and functionality: not only are MIDI accessories possible, they can really be used to make music on iPhone and iPad.

Read on for my full review of the iRig Keys Mini piano keyboard for iOS ($79.99).

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Today we’re taking a quick look at two Incase sleeves made specifically for Apple’s 12″ Retina MacBook. Neoprene Classic Sleeve ($39.95) comes in five colors and zips the 12″ MacBook in a low-profile soft carrying case. ICON Sleeve ($69.95) has a slightly larger profile that makes it thinner and ditches zippers for a tight-fitting opening at one end.  We compare both MacBook sleeves in detail below:

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For a while, Scotland-based audio company RHA was known primarily for delivering audiophile-grade sound in affordable earphones. With the T20, that’s not exactly how they played it. In fact, this set of headphones is not anywhere near cheap enough to be classed as an affordable pair, but I still feel that in terms of design, audio and versatility, they comfortably give you your money’s worth. That’s despite the fact they’d set you back $240/£180 if you decided to splurge on them…

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Backpacks are as convenient a way to carry things around a city as they are when hiking in the great outdoors, keeping your hands free and spreading the load across two shoulders, but they can be a little worrying when you’re carrying expensive gadgets. The reason? All the zips are behind you. Standing on an escalator, in an elevator or on a platform waiting for a train, you always have the worry of a thief quietly unzipping the compartments to make off with your hard-earned technology.

A messenger bag feels safer, because you can carry it at your side with an arm across it, but it’s less convenient and less comfortable than a backpack. This is the problem Riut set out to solve, with a secure backpack designed specifically to keep your gadgets safe from sneak thieves – so I thought I’d give it a try …

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Ever since I upgraded from an 11″ MacBook Air to a 13″ Retina MacBook Pro, I’ve been hunting for the perfect hybrid computer and camera bag — a compact backpack that could hold my laptop, DSLR, lenses, and accessories at the same time. Six months ago, I covered several MacBook/camera bags from Incase, including the DSLR Sling Pack I’ve loved for years, and larger “Pro” options for bigger laptops. Each hybrid bag makes different compromises: for my needs, the Sling Pack’s too small, and the Pro bags are too large. But users of 11″ MacBooks might find the Sling Pack “just right.”

Seeing potential in a new alternative, I jumped at the opportunity to test Booq’s upcoming Slimpack ($195), a MacBook-sized evolution of its earlier iPad/DSLR backpack $145 Python Slimpack. Booq makes excellent bags, but apart from offering a multipurpose camera/headphone compartment in Boa Flow, it hasn’t taken a deep dive into the camera-laptop hybrid category. While the new Slimpack’s laptop compartment is just a hint too small for the 13″ MacBook Pro and iPad Pro I’m currently using, it’s right-sized for 12″ or smaller MacBooks, as well as 10″ or smaller tablets, any of which can be paired with a full-sized DSLR, three or four lenses, and accessories. Bundled with a rain shield and Booq’s standard Terralinq loss recovery protection system, it’s a very nice bag, and one I would certainly use if I switch to a 12″ MacBook next year…

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Between confusing implementations and unappealing prices, the first wave of iOS game controllers had a very rough launch, nearly killing a new accessory category that had the potential to be huge for Apple. Some of the earliest iOS game controllers only fit smaller iPhones and iPod touches, others had limited buttons, and most were originally priced at $70 or more. With the exception of Mad Catz’ more affordable, device-agnostic C.T.R.L.i series of Bluetooth controllers, iOS gamepads quickly racked up mediocre reviews and wound up in discount bins. The message to Apple and controller makers: follow Mad Catz’ template, and price the controllers more reasonably, or no one’s going to buy them.

Currently an Apple Store exclusive, Hori’s new HoriPad Ultimate ($50) is the latest acknowledgement that the lesson’s been learned: it’s the second Made For Apple TV game controller, including full MFi/iOS 7+ compatibility for use with iPads, iPhones, and iPod touches, plus Mac support. The pricing, design, and basic feature set are substantially similar to SteelSeries’ Nimbus, though Hori — a respected Japanese developer of game controllers — has outdone SteelSeries on the specifics. For the same price as Nimbus, you get a more PlayStation 4-like controller design with superior hand grips, twice the battery life, better-feeling buttons and a more substantial weight. HoriPad Ultimate uses a Lightning cable to recharge its battery, too…

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Portable Bluetooth speakers are a dime a dozen these days – Amazon lists more than 37,000 of them! Though our shootout should help narrow the choice if you’re in the market for one. But portable AirPlay speakers are rather rarer, pretty ones even rarer and the Sugr Cube goes one step further in its bid to stand out from the crowd: it offers gesture-based control.

You tap the top of the speaker to pause/play, tilt it 45 degrees left to return to the previous track or 45 degrees left to skip to the next.

When I saw this on our sister site 9to5Toys, I wondered whether this would be a gimmick that you use a few times, or a genuinely useful form of control. There was only one way to find out, so I took delivery of one earlier this month to put it to the test …

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Thanks to Nest and other “smart home” accessory developers, wirelessly controlled appliances and security accessories are rapidly becoming mainstream. Garage and home doors have gone wireless, adding Bluetooth locks and remote controls, so it’s no surprise that the same features are beginning to appear in portable locks, as well. Since the ability to unlock doors without carrying old-fashioned keys is undeniably convenient, the only question is whether wireless locks are worthy of the premium prices they carry.

Best known for Apple device cases, Australian developer Dog & Bone has released Locksmart ($90), billed as a “keyless Bluetooth padlock.” Made from a zinc alloy with a 1.5″ stainless steel shackle, Locksmart is imposingly substantial, holding a Bluetooth 4 LE chip and two-year rechargeable battery inside a weatherproof frame. While it sells for a higher price than a basic weatherproof padlock with a key, or the sort of basic Bluetooth padlock one might use on a school locker, Locksmart is bolstered by a legitimately worthwhile app that enables it to work like $110 fingerprint-scanning padlocks — and arguably much better, since Dog & Bone’s app has several cool features that aren’t found in other padlocks…

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The Elgato Avea Flare is an egg-shaped mood light with an iPhone and Watch app available to control the scene and colors displayed. It sits in the corner of a room or garden and discreetly glows. I tested the standalone unit, but you can also buy the Avea Bulb which is the same concept in a different form. The Elgato Eve Room ($78) is an indoor climate detector — it measures air quality, humidity and temperature. This data can then be reviewed through an iPhone app to act upon or using your voice with Siri questions. The Eve sensor (pictures below) is meant to be tucked away and out of sight, on a shelf or wall, silently checking up on your interior air quality.

These two products are from the same manufacturer, but they sit at opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of smart home gear; one has a clear functional purpose and the other is a ‘smart’ whimsical decoration. Both integrate with iOS via an iPhone app and both make cool additions to your life. I’ve been using both for a few weeks; read on for my full review of these smart home devices from Elgato …

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The iPads are not actually vertical – it’s just the angle of the shot …

I reviewed the Brydge Keyboard for the iPad Air/Air 2 back in March. At the time, I found it hard to choose between this and the ClamCase Pro, and for a while switched between them. However, the Brydge won the battle in the end, becoming my daily driver for my iPad Air 2.

Brydge has two models for the smaller iPad, one for the iPad mini 1/2/3 and a second version coming out next month for the iPad mini 4. Both have the same all-aluminum construction, the same matching colors (silver, space gray and gold), the same three-month battery life and weigh the same 300g.

One of the beauties of the original is that you pretty much get a full-size MacBook keyboard for your iPad, with key sizes and spacing very close to that of a MacBook Air. They keys are slightly narrower and a touch closer together, but the typing experience is very similar. With the much smaller footprint of the iPad mini, however, I wondered how the BrydgeMini would compare …

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After Mophie and several other companies created the “iPhone battery case” category, Apple’s Made for iPhone accessory team quietly began to limit what the cases could do. For instance, developers were told that they couldn’t charge both the iPhone and the case at the same time; instead they had to charge the iPhone first, then the case. And although some early battery cases used Apple connectors to recharge, that convenience was nixed by Apple, too. I covered the inception and growth of the battery case market, and heard numerous stories of last-minute scrambles to meet Apple demands, none of which appeared to be making the cases better for end users. Today, the best iPhone 6/6s battery cases are incredibly similar to one another, distinguished more by pricing and capacity than differences in features.

Years later, some of the advantages Apple denied to third-party developers have appeared in the iPhone 6s Smart Battery Case ($99), Apple’s first battery case for iPhones. Roundly mocked for its rear “hump” and unfavorably compared to best-selling $40 alternatives on raw battery power, Apple’s latest design clearly isn’t for everyone. But despite the criticism, Apple isn’t stupid, and even if it isn’t winning beauty or capacity awards, the Smart Battery Case’s few special features give it a leg up on certain competitors…

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The UK entered glove-wearing weather in the last week or two, leaving the annual problem of how to use touchscreen devices when out and about. If you’ve ever used cheap touchscreen gloves, you’ve probably been disappointed. Most aren’t good at either job: they aren’t very warm, and their touchscreen performance is poor.

Jordan was impressed when he tried out a couple of pairs of Mujjo’s touchscreen gloves almost two years ago, and as I still use the company’s Leather Wallet Case as the daily driver for my iPhone 6s, I thought I’d put the latest gloves to the test …

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It’s no secret that I love the designs of Apple products. The anodized aluminum look and feel are perhaps my favorite things about my iPhone, iPad Pro, and MacBook, especially when so many other companies on the market tend to lean towards lower-end materials that just don’t look as sleek. For this reason I’ve never been a huge fan of putting cases on my devices, often sacrificing the long-term condition of them in favor of using the design that Apple intended everyone to use when it designed the products.

With my latest trio of Apple products, however, I’ve decided to take a new approach in protecting them. I’ve been keeping my iPhone 6s Plus, 12-inch MacBook, and iPad Pro in handmade leather sleeves from Joli. Based in Holland, Joli Originals is an independent company that imports leather from Italy and performs the entire production process from start to finish. Sleeves for each device are available in a trio of waxed leather colors with the wool on the inside available in additional colors, as well. How good of a job do they do at protecting your devices? Read on…

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Twelve South is probably best known for its extremely cute BookBook cases for MacBooks, for iPads and even for iPhones. But it offers a range of other products, including the ParcSlope MacBook stand released earlier this year. Designed for those who don’t want a full desktop docking system but want to raise both keyboard and screen to a more comfortable angle, the device is now seeing a new application: as a stand for the iPad Pro …

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At the start of the week we saw Apple officially pull the plug on Beats Music after using it as the foundation for Apple Music which includes a streaming radio station dubbed Beats 1 as a salute. On the hardware front, Apple is totally marching forward with the headphone and speaker business it acquired after buying Beats for $3 billion a year and a half ago. The first totally new product to come from Apple under the Beats brand is the recently announced Beats Pill+ ($195, reg. $229), a portable Bluetooth speaker that recharges over Lightning like iPhones and iPads.

The Pill+ marks Apple’s first real step back into the speaker business since briefly entering it in with the iPod Hi-Fi from 2006 to 2007; aside from color variations and wireless models, all other Beats hardware has been designed before the Apple move. Still, Apple’s new portable speaker resembles previous versions of Beats hardware more than you might expect from the iPhone maker in 2015. There’s even a companion Pill+ app for both iOS and Android. And even though this is clearly a Beats-branded product and not purely Apple, there’s something for fans of both to like, but is it the best speaker in its class?

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Mechanical hard drives will continue to be available — though decreasingly important — into the foreseeable future. New drives are cheaper and higher-capacity than increasingly popular solid state drives, and old drives pulled from computers are hard to throw away, even if they’re past their prime. Most people would seek out an external hard drive enclosure, which is ideal if you want to commit to repurposing one internal drive for an extended period of time. But what if you want to swap multiple internal hard drives in and out on an as-needed basis?

Sporting a substantially metal chassis with Thunderbolt 2 and USB 3.0 ports, OWC’s new Drive Dock ($245) is a premium solution for people who want high-speed, on-demand access to internal hard drives. The top has two SATA-compatible drive bays, each capable of holding 2.5″ laptop drives or 3.5″ desktop drives, while the bottom holds a power supply capable of safely powering both drives as plug-and-play volumes…

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A couple of months ago we took an in-depth preview look at the Sonos Play:5 all-in-one wireless speaker ahead of its release as the company unveiled its new Trueplay speaker tuning feature. The new Sonos Play:5 (2nd gen, $499) has since launched in stores and Apple Music streaming will be supported from December 15th. I’ve spent a few weeks testing a pair of new Play:5 speakers to see how it performs. The short answer is that it delivers on its promise of providing premium sound, but here’s how it compares to the cheaper Sonos Play:1 ($199) and mid-sized Sonos Play:3 ($299):

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Several brand-new iPad and iPhone accessories I’ve been testing recently aren’t necessarily worthy of full standalone reviews, but because they come from some of our readers’ and editors’ favorite companies, they’re still worth knowing about. Four of the five are sequels to prior products I’ve covered, while one is totally new — though similar to an earlier design.

Today, I’m taking a quick look at Anker’s PowerCore+ 10050 ($33) and PowerPort 2 ($14), Just Mobile’s AluPlug ($30), and Mophie’s “new” Powerstation 2X ($60) and Powerstation 8X ($150). The names may sound familiar, but each of these power accessories is actually different from what came before, and better…

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Meet Apple’s largest Netflix display ever: iPad Pro. I’ve been using it for a little while now and have gathered some thoughts regarding its functionality, uses, and even the accessories like Apple Pencil and the new Smart Keyboard. Is it all worth the hype? Let’s go ahead and find out…

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