Add a Keyboard to Your iPad
I’m a huge evangelist for the iPad as a business tool. I hesitated to get one because I pictured myself quickly tiring of it then setting it aside — which is what happened with my iPod Touch. But it didn’t take me long to see the business value of the iPad, especially after adding a keyboard. (Read my post about how I have found the iPad to be an indispensable productivity tool).
Enter the keyboard
I write a lot of content for my work, and doing this using the soft-key keyboard on the iPad, even in horizontal mode, isn’t terribly productive. It’s a lot better than nothing or a tiny iPhone, but for the power user it’s not enough.
Last spring I purchased a Brookstone keyboard/case on impulse at the airport on my way to a tradeshow. I could have overlooked the anti-merits of the cheap pleather case that added considerable bulk to my iPad had the keyboard turned my head, but I was extremely underwhelmed. There was very little tactile feedback from the keys, and there was a general cheapness and flakiness to it. When I returned from the tradeshow, I returned the case at the airport before heading to baggage claim.
What I learned from the experience was not only that the Brookstone keyboard wasn’t sufficient, but that I absolutely had to have a keyboard. After an evening of web browsing (using my iPad), I learned about the ZAGG/mate bluetooth keyboard/case. More than merely favorable, the reviews I encountered for this product were consistently downright exuberant. I was convinced and plunked down my hundred bucks — and it was well worth it.
This product lives up to the hype. I use this keyboard frequently and its performance has been flawless. I have written full documents (in QuickOffice) and handle email and many of my blog posts with it. The case offers superb protection for my device, and the whole thing adds only a little bit to the overall thickness and weight of the iPad.
ADDENDUM: I wrote this post in September 2011. A year or so later when I got a newer iPad, I got a new Zagg keyboard to go with it. Later I gave that Zagg to my daughter and bought myself yet another one. Yep, that’s right: I’ve bought and loved three Zagg keyboards!
Screen Protection
I have been using my iPad heavily with no protection on the screen for most of the year, and there is not a scratch or abrasion or mark anywhere on my screen. Several months ago a friend asked me to help her put a screen protector on her iPad (she bought it from ZAGG). It was a difficult, harrowing process to get it on there, and I never liked the feel of her iPad after that… it had an almost tacky feel. What’s more, the tiny amount of thickness added to her iPad screen combined with the mild tackiness actually wrecked her ZAGG keyboard! (When your iPad is in the keyboard case, the screen is up against the keys.) So my advice: Unless you have a compulsion for rubbing steel wool on smooth surfaces, don’t get a screen protector. You don’t need it.
Details
Using the ZAGG/Mate case means that I cannot conveniently use the iPad case that I bought from Apple. That’s fine, but when I use the iPad as an eReader, I need it to be easy to hold onto. I addressed that with yet another ZAGG product — a thin backing of embossed leather that is adhered to the back of the iPad. It gives it a little bit of grippiness and, well, it looks neat-o.
Moral of the story
The iPad is a great tool to add to your business productivity arsenal — especially when you pair it with a great keyboard.
2 Responses to Add a Keyboard to Your iPad
Click a tag for related posts:
agencies Basecamp blog brand business computers customer support editing email estimates evernote freelance gadgets graphics iPad job hunting logos mac marketing messaging notes Outlook packaging planning PowerPoint presentations productivity product review professionalism project management projects recommendations resume reviews self publishing social media spam stock photography Technology tradeshows virtual meetings web design windows Word writingAll Posts
- Comparing Five Note-taking Tools
- Breaking up with a client
- Virtual Meeting Tip: Sound
- Can we reduce travel to business meetings?
- A Blog Post about Blogging
- Serious Layout in MS Word
- A Supercomputing vocabulary primer
- Planning categories and tags for an organized blog
- Improving Your Presentations
- 1-minute Photo Improvement
- Why Do You Blog?
- Batch Processing with Affinity Photo
- The Entrepreneur’s 10-Step Condensed Business Plan
- iPad: How Old is Too Old?
- Do I Have Enough to Quit My Day Job?
- Leave Localization to the Pros
- Make Your Calendars Play Nice Together
- Free Graphics Sources
- Mirrored Margins in MS Word
- A Tale of Three Headsets
- Time to Move On
- The Event Plan: a Tradeshow Primer
- GoToWebinar Basics
- Outlook for Mac: So Close!
- From Windows to Mac
- Evernote is Awesome
- Set Up a DocBook Toolchain
- Your Professional Resume
- Stock Photography Tips
- Tricking Your Customers is Disrespectful
- Deadline Management
- Manage To-dos With Basecamp
- The Brydge+ iPad Keyboard
- LinkedIn for Job Seekers
- Week Numbers in Outlook
- Hidden Impacts of Project Schedule Delays
- Getting Started in Self-publishing
- 13 Tips for Your Blog or Newsletter
- Do Religion and Marketing Mix?
- Consistent Color = Brand Power
- Outlook Automation with “Quick Steps”
- Comment Spam: I Give Up
- Good Design Housekeeping
- File Naming Sanity
- PowerPoint Graphics Tips
- Comment Karma
- Comparing Two iPad Keyboards: ZAGG and Logitech
- Outlook Rules 101
- Consolidated Outlook Inbox
- Five Steps to Plan a Website
- Choosing a Domain
- Outlook Productivity: Tagged Searching
- Considering a Switch from Windows to Mac?
- Tradeshow Giveaways & Promotional Gifts
- Why Rush Jobs Are Evil
- Online Printing: Customer Service is King
- Estimate Etiquette
- Getting Organized With Outlook PSTs
- WordPress vs. Weebly
- Comparing 5 Online PM Tools
- Choosing your Next Non-Mac Computer
- Is it Really a Blog?
- Your Laptop’s Video Connectors
- Know Your Graphics – or Look Like You Do
- Add a Keyboard to Your iPad
- Letterhead in an Email World
- Use Simple URLs
- Keep in Touch with Your Customers With Email
- Rolling Up the Feedback
- Keep Agency Project Costs Down
- Merchandising and Your Brand
- Your Email Address and Your Brand
- B2B Social Media: Are you overlooking StumbleUpon?
- Email Marketing vs. Spam
- The Long-copy Sales Page in 5 Steps
- You Need a Writing Style Guide
- Why Reference Cards?
- Lose the Hyphen!
- The Minimalist Marketing Plan
- Your Business Name and Domain
- Trade Downloads For User Data
- Monitor Social Media For Product Feedback
- Take Every Branding Opportunity
- Messaging 101
- Creative Use of Your Customer Service Stories
- Don’t Stop With a Call To Action
- Creating a Text-based Logo
- The Reluctant Social Media Networker
- Save Money With an Effective RFQ
- User Communities and Exclusivity
- Recommendations and Your Reputation
- The iPad As Business Tool
Just got an iPad2 and was looking for recommendations on a bluetooth keyboard. Thanks for the info and review!
Zagg makes a version of their ZaggMate keyboard for the iPad2 — I’d definitely recommend it.