Macworld Forums: iPad Keyboard Dock or Bluetooth keyboard? - Macworld Forums

Post your comments for iPad Keyboard Dock or Bluetooth keyboard? here

Happily I " cut the cord" a while ago and went with the Apple BT keyboard. My thoughts are:

Correct decision. I initially feared losing the Numeric Keypad but i'm surving without it and in a pinch I've got Edovia's NumPad to do virtual 10-key on my iPhone (works well)

Well it appears my decision has paid off. Now because I chose BT I'm going to get to pair my keyboard with my iPhone once I upgrade to iPhone OS 4.0 and my iPad (which I've done and it works great)

The advantages of the BT keyboard is that I can get a dock like the 12South BookArc for iPad which allows me to dock in Portrait or Landscape mode and type using my BT keyboard. With the Apple keyboard/dock you must dock it in Portrait mode only.

I got Apple's Bluetooth keyboard and love it. After reading Andy Inahtko's review of the Keyboard with dock, and how bulky it is, I decided I'll be happier with the Bluetooth keyboard, even if it doesn't have all the media keys at the top.

It works great, paired up quickly and is easy to carry. So now i'm looking for a case that will hold both the iPad and the Bluetooth Keybaord.

The Apple keyboard/dock is only good if you are not traveling with it. It's bulky, heavy and has a weird shape that does not fit any of the available cases. I've been hauling it around since it came out and I HATE it! I will have to look into BT keyboards and a different type of dock (the Apple dock is not travel friendly either).

Many many productivity apps are implementing different UIs depending on the orientation of the device. (e.g. Pages only shows the toolbar in portrait.) (I think this is a design mistake because you don't always have flexibility to change the device orientation as you do with the iPhone e.g. rotation-lock on.) But leaving the app design issue aside, the BT keyboard has the distinct advantage of being able to work with apps in either landscape or portrait mode.

But I have to disagree with the statement that the iPad is even close to touch-typing. Maybe if you're as slow as my 8-year-old, it is, but not for anyone that knows where the keys are. When I tried out the iPad, I wondered why it kept zooming in while I typed, and my theory is that it couldn't tell the difference between a double-tap and typing.

Yeah, NewsJunkie hit it right. The only problem with the Kybd-Dock is the dock part is bulky and awkward. Hard to put in any kind of case, let alone it has to be a bigger case.

I routinely put my BT Kybd in my briefcase, nestled against a notepad that is the same thickness as the battery tube. Very nice.

So, for a fixed spot like at the office, I am using the Kybd-Dock. But it stays at the office. For portability I have the BT-Kybd and I'll need a book stand, preferably one that folds flat and takes up no room. The 12South BookArc looks like it is an awkard shape too and would be weird in a briefcase.

JP

chuckbo, on 14 April 2010 - 10:44 AM, said:

Different strokes, I suppose. After a week of practice, I've been getting over 40wpm on the iPad's landscape-mode keyboard, and I watched Andy Ihnatko type much faster than I can So it's possible. But I'll take a physical keyboard any day for heavy typing.

If you just go search for "Book Stand" or "Picture Stand" in "all departments" on Amazon, you'll see all kinds of 4 oz fold-flat solutions for under $10. Take a $5 stand, add the words "for iPad" to it, and it jumps to $29.99.

;-) Jim

My vote is for the bluetooth keyboard. You can usually find it around $10 cheaper on Apple's refurb store or through Amazon. I think the bluetooth keyboard gives you more options because you can use it with multiple devices, not just the iPad. (Remember one of the features of iPhone 4.0 is bluetooth keyboard support.) The bluetooth keyboard is slim and will slip in a bag whereas the keyboard dock is rigid and can be awkward to carry.

Just my two cents...

Love the iPad keyboard. I have not done a lot of typing, but when I do I am a pretty happy with the result.

I knew before the iPad came out that there was no way I would want the keyboard do because it is not really portable, so I bought a regular keyboard and the BT keyboard. The BT keyboard is used primarily with my Macbook, which I sit on one of those laptop risers I bought from lapvangage some years ago.

I ordered the Apple case and the keyboard dock when I ordered my iPad. The keyboard dock came in two days after the case and when I went to put the iPad in the dock I found that someone didn't talk with someone else about the design of the case and keyboard dock as they are not at all compatible with each other. So I probably ought to see if I can return the keyboard dock and pick up one of the new bluetooth keyboards. I already have two, but they are the older, full size versions and I haven't been able to get them to sync with it yet. :-\

I got my Apple bluetooth keyboard (with keypad) a while ago, when my main computer was still my iBook. I have not used it since due to the MacBook Pro's superior chicklet style keys. It is not portable at all, but it is great if I have my computer hooked up o a keyboard, that and the wireless mighty mouse. I would buy the new wireless keyboard over an iPad dock if I needed one (or had an iPad...) due to it's ability to interface with more than just the iPad... I really love the amount of feedback that the chicklet keys allow me, not too much stroke, yet enough tactile feedback to assure me that I've pressed the keys. Bottom line, go with the bluetooth keyboard.

There are a couple of issues with using the BT Keyboard. If you own a newer iMac, as I do, you can't have the iMac and the iPad on at the same time in the same area, otherwise they get confused: if the BT Keyboard is paired with the iMac, it can't be paired with the iPad at the same time, so you either have to turn off your iMac or turn off its Bluetooth... which of course you can't without losing your input devices! Also, I have found it somewhat troublesome pairing my iMac keyboard with the iPad, it's as if the keyboard doesn't like "bedding around" with multiple devices. I do finally get it to pair, but sometimes it takes some finagling to get them hitched. I'm not sure if this is just me, or if there's a better way, but I am having problems with using a single keyboard for multiple devices.

But like Dan, I can type so comfortably with my iPad now that I'm not really missing it. I'm increasingly coming around to thinking I won't even need an external keyboard, even for longer documents. For those having problems with typing, just think of it as learning a new instrument and getting your fingers to move nimbly enough to play that darn song right!