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Is the iPad keyboard dock worth buying?

J

jjahshik32

macrumors 603
Original poster
Sep 4, 2006
5,366
52
I would think it would be as it can charge your iPad + leveling the iPad up at a comfortable position + physical keyboard.

I'm contemplating on buying the keyboard dock, for the people who have purchased it, are you happy with it?
 
Read the iLounge review. I'm undecided which is better, the keyboard dock, or the standard dock and the Bluetooth keyboard.
 
jjahshik32 said:
I would think it would be as it can charge your iPad + leveling the iPad up at a comfortable position + physical keyboard.

I'm contemplating on buying the keyboard dock, for the people who have purchased it, are you happy with it?
Click to expand...
The Keyboard Dock is superbly crafted and well suited to the iPad. As long as you know you'll have to dock the iPad naked, or modify any currently available case to use it.
 
You can't use the case with the dock, so personally I'd just get a bluetooth keyboard.

You're probably not going to have problems with iPad battery life - just charge it at night when you're sleeping, and it will last all day when you're awake.
 
I already have the bluetooth keyboard, and I do not feel like spending that much money on another one. I use the bluetooth keyboard for my macbook, as I do not like typing to close to the screen, and will just transfer the keyboard between the two. What I am trying to decide, though, is if I should get the type of case that is constantly on the iPad, or the kind that covers it when not in use. (like the incase brand covers)
 
ARH1956 said:
The Keyboard Dock is superbly crafted and well suited to the iPad. As long as you know you'll have to dock the iPad naked, or modify any currently available case to use it.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Other things I've noticed:

The weight of the keyboard dock (compared to the non-keyboard one) lets you lift the iPad off, one-handed, without the dock coming along too! It's very stable.

The row of iPad-specific function keys (picture frame mode, volume up/down, mute, play/pause, lock/unlock, brightness, home, search, etc.) make it incredibly easy to do things like mute the music when the phone rings. I'm surprised how useful I find "picture-frame-on" :) The only downside is that the volume up and down keys don't control the audio-out port (by design)

With the rear audio-out and power-in ports connected, it's become a surprisingly useful 'home' for the iPad on my desk.
 
I would rather get a apple blutooth keyboard. If you never use the keyboard. It can be a keyboard for your computer
 
I use my bluetooth keyboard for my iPad to take notes in class.
I keep the iPad in the bookbag and the keyboard on the desk.
When not in use with ipad it goes to the macbook.

I would go with bluetooth but thats just my opinion.
 
Buy it. It's totally worth the price. It's so much easier to type with a real keyboard and the angle it's being set at is perfect for using the touch screen and is angled perfectly. I think it's a must have if you plan on typing long e-mails or writing notes. :)

Also, the Bluetooth keyboard is fine, but the iPad keyboard dock is much more convenient since it's a dock and keyboard.
 
my opinion: I plan on using the Bluetooth Keyboard with the Apple Case. Ill also be lots of use with the keyboard on my mbp. I also plan on getting the Incase Travel Kit Plus to hold it all when I travel, which will fit the iPad in the apple case in the iPad slot, as well as all cables/cords and the wireless keyboard, but read that it doesn't fit the keyboard dock.

just my plan on what im going to do when i get my iPad set up and I like getting the keyboard use on my mbp and iPad
 
I just got it, here are my first impressions:

I like that to wake the iPad from sleep you either hit the space bar or the "Home" button on the keyboard. No swiping to unlock.

No suprise here, but typing is much much faster and easier than using the on screen keyboard.

I was concerned that going back and forth between typing and tapping the screen to navigate would seem clunky and unnatural. I can say that in the limited amount of my time with it, that is a non-issue. The base is very sturdy so swiping and selecting things on the screen is not a wobbly experience. There is some movement of the iPad when you are touching, say, halfway up on the screen or higher but nothing that serves as a distraction. Naturally, the lower on the pad toward the base you tap or swipe, the less you will feel that movement. I would say most folks are going to swipe through pages lower on the pad and doing so feels quite nice.

Overall, I would reccommed this over a bluetooth because of the dedicated buttons specific to the iPad along the top. It is a great way to have your iPad at work or anywhere you will be stationary for extended periods of time. My one gripe would be that you will have to shell out another $29 for a charging cable as this, like the dock alone, does not come with one. I bought a $24 Phillips Dual Port wall charger for the iPhone & iPod. It says it delivers more power for faster charging, so i thought I would give it a try. It has two USB ports so right now I am charging my iPad and Iphone at the same time with the one unit.
 
In regards to the Apple BT Keyboard (both with and without dock), do the arrow keys work? For example, in mail portrait mode, can one scroll up and down through the list of messages with the arrow keys? With my 3rd party BT keyboard I cannot.

Thanks
 
Arran said:
..................

The row of iPad-specific function keys

....................
Click to expand...

This is the main question that brought me to this thread.

Do I go with the iPad specific keyboard or the regular :apple: BT keyboard .............. decision, decisions.

Normally my answer is 'both' but since one is specific, muscle memory becomes a factor in addition to having some cool hotkeys.
 
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