A portion of this video is sponsored by Paperlike. On March 18th Apple introduced new iPad Promodels, which added an ultra wide camera lens, a LiDAR scanner, and improved graphics performance. 

But what garnered even more attention wasthe announcement of an accessory called Magic Keyboard for iPad Pro. 

For the first time, Apple would offer an iPadkeyboard with full-sized backlit keys and one millimeter of travel. 

But that’s just the beginning. 

Apple also managed to include a trackpad thatactually clicks, and a USB-C port for pass-through charging, all built in to a compact foliocover that magnetically connects to the iPad, suspends it in mid-air, and has an adjustableviewing angle. 

Therefore allowing the iPad Pro to delivera true notebook experience that users have wanted for almost a decade. 

But as you can imagine, this accessory withall its incredible features doesn’t come cheap. 

The Magic Keyboard for an 11 inch iPad Procosts $300, while the 12.9 inch variant costs $350. 

Now in this video we’re going to take alook at the 11 inch model, so you can decide for yourself if it’s worth the premium price. 

This is Greg with Apple Explained, and ifyou’d like to see more in-depth reviews like this one, don’t forget to subscribe. 

Now I ordered my Magic Keyboard from Apple’sonline store and it arrived one week later. 

The front of the box features a product photoas well as its name at the top, and some illustrations on the back demonstrating how the accessorywould appear in use. 

After lifting the lid you’ll find the MagicKeyboard itself, and after removing it from the box, you might be wondering where thedocumentation is. 

Apple typically includes a cardboard envelope filled with paperwork in front of or behind the product. 

But with this accessory, they actually integrated the envelope into the protective packaging that’s wedged between the cover. 

It slides out beautifully, and although therearen’t any Apple stickers, there is a very simple manual instructing users how to attachand adjust their iPad, in addition to using the USB-C port for charging. 

Now I should mention there aren’t any extrasincluded with this keyboard. Unlike the Magic Mouse or trackpad, it doesn’tfeature a USB cable, since the keyboard itself doesn’t need to be charged. 

It’s simply powered by the iPad’s batterywhile in use, thanks to these three metal contacts on the inside of the cover that arealso found on the iPad Pro. 

When it comes to the size and weight of thiskeyboard, people often point out how heavy and thick it is. So let’s put its size into context. 

An eleven-inch iPad Pro weighs in at aboutone pound. The same iPad with a Smart Cover would weighsix ounces more. 

While a Folio Keyboard would add eleven ounces. 

But what about this new Magic Keyboard, wellattaching it to your eleven inch iPad Pro would add twenty-two ounces. 

That means going from using your bare iPadto using it with this Magic Keyboard would more than double its weight. 

But keep in mind that you’d be using youriPad more like a notebook than a tablet. 

Likely by resting it on your lap or a table,which makes its weight less of a concern. 

Also, there are benefits to this, like thekeyboard setup being much less top heavy, which prevents tipping while resting on amore unstable surface like a lap, pillow, or bed. 

Now the weight distribution isn’t as optimalas a notebook, but it’s a noticeable improvement over the Folio Keyboard. 

But what about portability? After all, people who choose the smaller 11inch iPad Pro are more likely to carry it from place to place, compared to those withthe larger 12.9 inch model. 

Well, I’m going to compare this eleven-inchiPad & Magic Keyboard combo to one of the most portable notebooks Apple has ever made. 

The eleven-inch MacBook Air, which weighsjust two point four pounds and has a maximum thickness of seventeen point eight millimeters. 

So how does the eleven-inch iPad Pro plusMagic Keyboard measure up? Well, it weighs two ounces more than the Air,but has a maximum thickness that’s actually two point eight millimeters thinner. 

It’s also two inches shorter than the Air,which makes it very compact and easy to fit inside a bag. 

But most people have notebooks much largerthan the eleven inch MacBook Air, like for example, my sixteen inch MacBook Pro. 

Which is connected to all sorts of externaldevices like a microphone, SSD, and display. That means taking my notebook with me, isn’texactly an effortless process. 

That’s why having a notebook experienceavailable on my iPad is a total game-changer, since it’s already a super portable device. 

I can just throw it in my bag, not even noticeit’s in there, and write my video scripts on a comfortable keyboard complete with atrackpad, no matter where I’m at. 

The only issue I’ve run into while usingmy iPad in cafes or even outside is how reflective the screen is. 

It causes me to try to angle my iPad awayfrom the light source, and even have to move to a completely different area. 

So to solve this issue I’ve actually beenusing this matte paper like screen protector that diffuses ambient light really well andallows me to focus on my screen’s content without any reflections getting in the way. 

Now if you use an Apple Pencil with your iPadthere’s an additional benefit, after all, the company who makes these is called Paperlikefor a reason. 

Their matte protector actually mimics thetexture of paper, so you have some friction when writing or drawing without any slippagefrom the iPad’s glass display. 

It was actually really easy to apply sincethey not only include instructions and tools to do it properly, but also a video tutorialto make things super straightforward. 

So if you want to protect your iPad’s screen,take care of those annoy reflections, and take your Apple Pencil experience to a newlevel, I recommend checking out what Paperlike has to offer, just click the link in the descriptionto get your Paperlike and free shipping worldwide. 

Now, there are tradeoffs to having such acompact keyboard accessory. 

The biggest being its trackpad. While it has a generous amount of width, it’snarrow height does take some getting used to. 

When I used vertical gestures like scrollingthrough web pages or swiping up with three fingers to go home, my hand would run offthe trackpad area quite often, cutting the gesture short. 

Sometimes the action would register, othertimes it wouldn’t. 

So it took time learning how to minimize myvertical gestures as much as possible, in order to perform them reliably on the trackpad. 

But the good news is that I never had thatproblem with horizontal gestures. 

Now when it came to the trackpad’s physicalclick, it was something of a disappointment. 

While you can click anywhere on its surface,the amount of force required to register a click was too high for my taste. 

It led to mis-clicks since the cursor may’vemoved slightly while I was pressing down. 

Also, it caused some hand fatigue after usingit for a few hours. To remedy these problems, I turned on tapto click in the iPad’s settings, and found myself enjoying a much more comfortable trackpadexperience. 

But what about the keyboard? Well, it turned out to be a much easier adjustmentthan I expected. 

The smaller keyboard does feel a bit claustrophobicat first, but after just fifteen minutes of typing, my fingers were already comfortablewith the smaller area. 

I think a big part of this comfort is dueto the individual keys themselves. 

They’re not miniaturized versions of notebookskeys, and they’re not covered by a mushy fabric like the Folio Keyboard. 

These are full-sized, hard-plastic key capscomplete with scissor mechanisms, ample travel, and even backlights. 

Which auto adjusts to ambient lighting, andcan even be manually adjusted in settings. 

These features make the typing experiencesurprisingly enjoyable despite the keyboard itself being smaller. 

Now when using your iPad with this accessoryand enjoying more of a notebook experience, it becomes clear why Apple included a passthroughUSB-C port. 

Not only does it give you the choice of chargingyour iPad from the left or right side, depending on your situation. 

But it also frees up the iPad’s port toconnect to other devices like a camera, microphone, or display. 

Now in my experience, the iPad charges justas quickly the Magic Keyboard’s USB-C port, although it doesn’t support data, only passthroughcharging. 

Now in terms of battery life, you can expectthis keyboard to deplete your iPad’s battery about 10-20% faster, depending on how muchthe keyboard’s backlight is used. 

And since I primarily typed scripts, the backlightwas almost always on when I used the keyboard, so I definitely noticed a decrease in my iPad’sbattery life. 

Although I should mention it still lastedsubstantially longer compared to typing scripts on my MacBook Pro. 

Another huge benefit of this Magic Keyboardis the hinge design. It allows you to precisely adjust the viewingangle between ninety to one-hundred thirty degrees. 

A huge improvement over the two fixed viewingangles offered by the Folio Keyboard, but still not as generous as most MacBook’sone-hundred seventy-eight degree viewing angle. 

And there’s a good reason for this. 

If Apple had allowed the Magic Keyboard’shinge to extend beyond its current limit, it’d throw off the setup’s weight distributioncausing it to be very unstable and likely to tip backward. 

There were also questions about why Appledidn’t include a row of function keys at the top of the keyboard, and it’s becausethey would be extremely frustrating to access. 

The bottom of the iPad would block your fingersfrom reaching the function row comfortably, and likely cause people to wonder why Appleincluded a function row at all. 

It’s important to keep in mind that thiskeyboard, while a very impressive piece of technology, does have compromises. 

But Apple did their best in mitigating mostpotential hangups. 

For example, there may not be any dedicatedfunction keys, but you can utilized the long list of keyboard shortcuts to quickly performactions like switching apps, going home, taking screenshots, or even opening Spotlight withoutyour fingers ever leaving the keyboard. 

And if you become annoyed that there’s noescape key, like I did, you’ll be happy to hear that Apple allows you to remap modifierkeys to perform the escape action. 

Now the last thing I want to talk about isthe Magic Keyboard’s cost. 

This 11 inch model is $300, which is a steepprice to pay for an iPad accessory. 

And if you’re having trouble deciding wheth e ror not to make the purchase. 

Consider how you’re using your iPad Pro to day. 

Are you just watching YouTube videos, browsing the internet, and checking email? If so, the addition of a keyboard and track pad wouldn’t really improve the experience of those tasks. 

But if you’re taking notes, writing essays,or using content creation apps like i Movie or Garage Band, you’d likely appreciate the note book experience that the Magic Keyboard provides. 

I’ve not only been using my iPad more thanks to this keyboard, but its freed me from being so reliant on my Mac Book Pro, which isn’t as portable or convenient to carry around. 

Alright guy thanks for watching, and if you enjoyed my review, don’t forget to like and subscribe with the notification bell,so you’ll be notified of future product reviews just like this one.