First look: Logitech Craft keyboard with Creative Input dial for macOS
After a week with Logitech's new Craft advanced keyboard, AppleInsider discusses first impressions of the company's new premium -- and most expensive -- keyboard.
At nearly $200, the Logitech Craft Advanced Keyboard with Creative Input Dial is twice the price of its next closest option. Along with a host of features common to most high-end keyboards, Craft boasts a standout "crown" located on the top-left corner of the device.
This "Creative Input dial" is designed to speed up professional imaging workflows, with initial support for many Adobe apps such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere Pro, and InDesign for macOS and Windows. Microsoft's Office suite is supported in Windows -- but at present there is no support on the Mac.
Our initial impressions of the hardware itself are good. The keyboard feels solid, and the typing experience is excellent, reminiscent of Apple's Retina MacBook Pro.
The dial has sufficient heft and resistance, and automatically switches between clicking and smooth turning based on the application and setting. So far, we are surprised by how intuitive the dial is to use -- in the limited software suite that directly supports it, of course.
So far, the biggest drawback we've seen appears to be software. Beyond severely limited support, we also saw quite a few bugs in general use on macOS.
The Logitech Craft doesn't ship until October, so we're hoping that the core Logitech software will be smoothed out before launch, and we'll be looking for better third-party integrations going forward.
In the coming weeks we will be using the Craft advanced keyboard with multiple applications and will report back with our full review after its release.
At nearly $200, the Logitech Craft Advanced Keyboard with Creative Input Dial is twice the price of its next closest option. Along with a host of features common to most high-end keyboards, Craft boasts a standout "crown" located on the top-left corner of the device.
This "Creative Input dial" is designed to speed up professional imaging workflows, with initial support for many Adobe apps such as Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere Pro, and InDesign for macOS and Windows. Microsoft's Office suite is supported in Windows -- but at present there is no support on the Mac.
Our initial impressions of the hardware itself are good. The keyboard feels solid, and the typing experience is excellent, reminiscent of Apple's Retina MacBook Pro.
The dial has sufficient heft and resistance, and automatically switches between clicking and smooth turning based on the application and setting. So far, we are surprised by how intuitive the dial is to use -- in the limited software suite that directly supports it, of course.
So far, the biggest drawback we've seen appears to be software. Beyond severely limited support, we also saw quite a few bugs in general use on macOS.
The Logitech Craft doesn't ship until October, so we're hoping that the core Logitech software will be smoothed out before launch, and we'll be looking for better third-party integrations going forward.
In the coming weeks we will be using the Craft advanced keyboard with multiple applications and will report back with our full review after its release.
Comments
The software would concern me to, as that hasn't been their strong suit. However, the more recent Logitech Options for the MX Master (mouse) is pretty good compared to previous incarnations, so there is hope.
For any thing where you need some fine-adjustment quickly, especially while doing something else. For example, when editing audio or video, trying to grab some slider or 'virtual knob' with the mouse is pretty sloppy, and then you can't be adjusting something else that's more mouse-appropriate.
That said, my primary interest is having a high-quality keyboard that pairs well with multiple devices. Then, the question becomes.... is that knob and the overall, possibly, higher quality of this make it worth spending another $50-80.
For the same reason many feel a physical pointer device is better for precise pixel editing than a touch pad which relies on finger tracing alone — better fine adjustment and control. For a mouse it’s the whole hand, for a trackball or dial it’s multiple fingers, but in either case you have more finely turned motor control for very precise micro movements.
The key is haptic feedback. A touch control wouldn't offer any resistance to give you a sense of how far you've moved it. This is important for fine control. Especially if you have the fine motor control of a new born chimpanzee, like I do.
Is this the same Retina MacBook Pro that has numerous reviewers complaining about the "awful" keyboard? (Personally, I love it, but I keep hearing from people who don't.)
Yea, the MBP went through so many odd keyboard transitions, that it would be better to have a comparison to some desktop keyboards (or the MBP keyboards before they started experimenting. I can't recall where the Retina MBP keyboard falls in.)