7 Jul 2011

Aluminum Keyboard Disguises iPad as MacBook Air



Keyboards all come down to feel. Buying one without trying it first — unless there is a good returns policy — is probably foolish. But that doesn’t stop me wanting to send $50 to the M.I.C Store right this minute.

The keyboard in question is the Aluminum Keyboard Buddy Case for iPad 2, a keyboard very similar in concept to the ZaggMate case. It is similarly shaped to the iPad 2 itself, with a curved aluminum back, but instead of a screen there is an almost full-sized QWERTY keyboard, complete with keys to control iPad functions like media playback and brightness. When you place the iPad and keyboard face-to-face, magnets put the iPad’s screen to sleep and you have yourself a protective cover.

In keyboard mode, the iPad slips into a slot where it is held at an angle. Respect is due to the folks at M.I.C: When they review their own case on their Gadgets blog, they call out the design for only holding the iPad at one fixed angle.

The keyboard has its own lithium-polymer battery, rechargeable via USB, and has its own sleep mode to conserve power.

If the actual keyboard on this thing is as good as a proper MacBook Air keyboard (which it resembles in miniature), the $50 is a great deal, especially considering that Apple’s own Bluetooth Aluminum keyboard costs $70.

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