I have relatively large hands and fat fingers, which makes typing on many keyboards — laptops, flat desktop keyboards, and almost every iPad keyboard I’ve ever tested — slower and more difficult. And the iPad’s virtual onscreen keyboard is even worse. So, when I discovered the Brydge keyboard for my 9.7-inch iPad Pro it was love at first touch. When I wrote about it here in August 2018, I said it was, “the most functional, usable, durable, and clever iPad keyboard I’ve tried.”
The bad news was that while my old keyboard still worked perfectly when my iPad Pro bit the dust, it didn’t fit properly on my new 10.2-inch 8th generation iPad.
Brydge 10.2 Max+ Wireless Keyboard Case to the Rescue!
The good news was that Brydge recently introduced a new keyboard for 7th and 8th generation 10.2-inch iPads and it’s even better than the first one in myriad ways. It’s called the Brydge 10.2 Max+ Wireless Keyboard Case ($129 at www.brydge.com) and it’s everything I loved about my first Brydge keyboard and more.
Like my original Brydge keyboard, the new model’s features include:
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- A pair of super-functional hinges that provide close to 180° of range for your iPad screen, making it easy to choose a perfect viewing angle for any situation.
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- Backlit keys with three levels of brightness.
- Function keys for common iOS tasks such as volume up or down, play/pause, next and previous track, screen brightness, and more.
- The best tactile response I’ve found on a compact keyboard so far, with longer key travel than most others and the perfect amount of “bounce” for me.
While I still can’t type quite as fast as I can on the behemoth Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 (USB) on my desk, Brydge’s keyboards let me type faster than any other iPad keyboard I’ve tested.
But Wait—There’s More!
The new Brydge 10.2 Max+ not only includes everything I loved about the original keyboard, but it adds several new features that make me love it even more.
The biggest improvement is the multi-touch trackpad below the spacebar. It’s a game-changer and it supports all the usual trackpad gestures including scrolling, swiping, tapping, dragging, pinching, and more so you don’t have to remove your hands from the keys or touch the screen.
That’s huge and a big productivity booster, at least for me.
Another huge improvement is the protective case. My first keyboard didn’t come with a case at all. If you chose to detach the keyboard, your iPad was naked. The new model comes with protection by Otterbox in the form of a plastic and silicone outer case that features 4-foot drop protection, an Apple Pencil holder (yea!), and an active antimicrobial ingredient Brydge says “inhibits the growth of microorganisms.”
And it’s an Excellent Value…
The Brydge 10.2 Max + Wireless Keyboard Case is better than my first Brydge keyboard in oh so many ways. And, priced at just $129 (vs. $99 for the original), it’s an excellent value considering that Apple’s offering with a similar feature set (Magic Keyboard), starts at $299 and isn’t even compatible with my entry level iPad (it’s only available for the more expensive iPad Air and iPad Pro).
If you want to type much faster on your iPad, I recommend a Brydge keyboard without hesitation.