Review: Logitech Combo Touch is like the Magic Keyboard for iPad Air & 10.5-inch iPad Pro

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 33
    With the case and the keyboard attached it does get rather thick

    You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

    StrangeDays
  • Reply 22 of 33
    MplsPMplsP Posts: 3,911member
    MplsP said:
    “Apple's Magic Keyboard. The gold standard for iPad Pro accessories” - have you actually used one? All I’ve seen is Apple announcements, no actual hands-on reviews. It’s hard to call something a gold standard if you haven’t used it.

    Nice Review!  Thank you!

    From what I see here, this is consistent with comparisons of earlier Apple vs Logitech cases:  Both are very well made, reliable, dependable and fully functional.   But, the Logitech cases tend to be thicker and heavier -- but very protective.   Also however, the new Apple keyboard offers another advantage:  being able to tilt the iPad & its screen the way you like and change it as needed.

    Both seem to be great cases that not only greatly enhance the functionality of iPad but are something anybody would be happy with.
    I have an earlier Logitech iPad Pro case and it is exactly as you describe. In addition, Logitech gives you a row of function keys that come in quite handy. As you say, the ability to elevate the screen is the key difference for the Apple case. Whether it’s worth an extra $150 is open to debate.

    Also, I completely agree with the convenience of the smart connector - it’s an instant reliable connection. No need to charge, ever. No extra cord to worry about bringing with on vacation. No wireless connection to troubleshoot when it doesn’t work or that will disconnect when you put it in airplane mode.

    True!  Although, at least with my grandson's iPad, we have not had any problem with BlueTooth connection.   But admittedly, the iPad doesn't get used a lot -- especially for school work -- which is why I bought it for him.  (Although he is in one of the top school districts in PA and a well-to-do one at that, they still rely on paper & pencil.  And, even their cyber school is paper and pencil based!   Friday evening he sent me text messages of 10 math papers that he needed help filling out!   LOL...)
    *Most* of the time BT works fine but my wife's BT keyboard for her iPad will have problems if there are a lot of other devices in the vicinity and we have several Macs at work with BT Magic mice and keyboards and intermittently have connection problems with them. It's very rare that a wireless connection is more reliable than a wired one.
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 23 of 33
    imatimat Posts: 208member
    I would prefer to see something made with "nobler" materials, such as metal. Something more elegant and along the lines of the iPad material combination itself.
    StrangeDays
  • Reply 24 of 33
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    dewme said:
    dewme said:
    Shipped and arriving Monday for my 10.5” Pro. All specs are available via the embedded link, but the weight is 21.52 oz. The iPad Mini case from Logitech had the same textured covering and keeping it clean was never a problem for me. In fact, my previous Logitech case outlasted my Mini, which is effectively deceased due to the dreaded Lithium Ion battery bloat and one too many iOS updates.
    Sorry to burst your bubble this case is not compatible with 10.5” ipad pro only with the slightly thicker ipad 7th gen. Check the Logitech website 
    Apple, Logitech, AppleInsider, and all other sites who have reviewed this product say that it is fully compatible with the iPad Pro 10.5”. But I will let you know if my bubble is burst, along with a row of the corresponding emoji. 

    As far as the case adding thickness to the iPad, that’s a legitimate concern and falls into the category of “trade-off.” Life is full of these little nasties. When I removed the current protective case from my iPad in anticipation of the new case’s arrival I was shocked by how thin and light the naked IPad Pro 10.5” really is. It’s amazing. However in this instance and all others, there is simply no way to “attach” an external peripheral to the iPad without adding mass and bulk. If someone can come up with a mass-less, or better yet, negative mass physical keyboard/trackpad case I’d be all over it in a heartbeat. Maybe on the other side of black holes these problems will be resolved?

    One question I have is: how well does the Logitech software work? I’ve had nothing but problems with Logitech's software on every platform they support. If the functionality of the Logitech device requires their software it’s usually a non-starter. I see the Logitech app have less than 2 stars on the App Store which lads me to believe that they've flubbed it yeast again.
    Their software for their trackballs, numerous versions over the years that I have had, is horrible. I use USB Overdrive for them. Though, right now, none of my third party prefers panels are working in Catalina.
  • Reply 25 of 33
    dewmedewme Posts: 5,328member
    Got it, and it fits the 10.5” iPad Pro perfectly, including speaker cutouts. Zero configuration required, the cursor & keyboard started working as soon as I connected the keyboard-trackpad via the magnetic strip at the smart connector. Didn’t even have to change anything in Settings. There is a Logitech app that you can install but it’s not required. It gives you some control over the lighted keyboard timeouts and will supposedly support firmware updates as needed.

    Yeah, it is heavy so you have to decide whether the added weight is worth it for your usage scenarios. The good news is that it’s easy to get the iPad in and out of the case if you want to swap your iPad over to a lighter case/cover or no case at all for whatever reason. I hear that Apple’s new keyboard-trackpad accessory is also quite heavy.

    I’m most impressed with the smoothness of the glass trackpad. I wasn’t expecting such a nice trackpad in a detachable accessory. 

    One issue I discovered: because the both the cover-and-iPad and the keyboard are so heavy, you cannot pick up the connected pair without supporting the other half. If you lift the cover-and-iPad part the keyboard will fall off, and vice versa. This is a different behavior than Apple's smart keyboard, which will stay attached if you life the connected pair from the iPad. So be careful so you don't drop the keyboard/trackpad or your iPad when picking up the magnetically connected assembly. The magnet's simply not strong enough to keep everything together.

    Other than that, it's looking good so far, although some iOS apps like Excel aren't fully compatible with a trackpad pointer driven interaction yet. For example, the shift+click cell selection does not work in Excel but it does work in Numbers. Some apps put up a context menu  (Cut | Copy | Paste ... above selection) automatically when you select a block of text while other apps require you to double-tap on the selection to get the context menu to appear, while still others require that you double-tap on the selection and slightly move the cursor to get the context menu to appear. It kind of reminds me of what using a mouse was like in early days of DOS. 
    edited April 2020 bill.creechwatto_cobra
  • Reply 26 of 33
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    MplsP said:
    “Apple's Magic Keyboard. The gold standard for iPad Pro accessories” - have you actually used one? All I’ve seen is Apple announcements, no actual hands-on reviews. It’s hard to call something a gold standard if you haven’t used it.
    The reviews are out. Justine said she was able to produce content with it and is quite enamored with it:


    edited April 2020 watto_cobra
  • Reply 27 of 33
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    imat said:
    I would prefer to see something made with "nobler" materials, such as metal. Something more elegant and along the lines of the iPad material combination itself.
    Yeah I'm not into this fad of fabric coverings for my gear. It's not a couch.
  • Reply 28 of 33
    StrangeDaysStrangeDays Posts: 12,834member
    Daring Fireball review is out — he sings very high praise for it, and Gruber is a keyboard nut. 

    https://daringfireball.net/2020/04/the_ipad_magic_keyboard


    watto_cobra
  • Reply 29 of 33
    Sorry to burst your bubble this case is not compatible with 10.5” ipad pro only with the slightly thicker ipad 7th gen. Check the Logitech website 
    That's not what I'm seeing.
    Then check again: 


  • Reply 30 of 33
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member
    imat said:
    I would prefer to see something made with "nobler" materials, such as metal. Something more elegant and along the lines of the iPad material combination itself.
    The heavier the better, right?
    watto_cobra
  • Reply 31 of 33
    melgrossmelgross Posts: 33,510member

    dewme said:
    Got it, and it fits the 10.5” iPad Pro perfectly, including speaker cutouts. Zero configuration required, the cursor & keyboard started working as soon as I connected the keyboard-trackpad via the magnetic strip at the smart connector. Didn’t even have to change anything in Settings. There is a Logitech app that you can install but it’s not required. It gives you some control over the lighted keyboard timeouts and will supposedly support firmware updates as needed.

    Yeah, it is heavy so you have to decide whether the added weight is worth it for your usage scenarios. The good news is that it’s easy to get the iPad in and out of the case if you want to swap your iPad over to a lighter case/cover or no case at all for whatever reason. I hear that Apple’s new keyboard-trackpad accessory is also quite heavy.

    I’m most impressed with the smoothness of the glass trackpad. I wasn’t expecting such a nice trackpad in a detachable accessory. 

    One issue I discovered: because the both the cover-and-iPad and the keyboard are so heavy, you cannot pick up the connected pair without supporting the other half. If you lift the cover-and-iPad part the keyboard will fall off, and vice versa. This is a different behavior than Apple's smart keyboard, which will stay attached if you life the connected pair from the iPad. So be careful so you don't drop the keyboard/trackpad or your iPad when picking up the magnetically connected assembly. The magnet's simply not strong enough to keep everything together.

    Other than that, it's looking good so far, although some iOS apps like Excel aren't fully compatible with a trackpad pointer driven interaction yet. For example, the shift+click cell selection does not work in Excel but it does work in Numbers. Some apps put up a context menu  (Cut | Copy | Paste ... above selection) automatically when you select a block of text while other apps require you to double-tap on the selection to get the context menu to appear, while still others require that you double-tap on the selection and slightly move the cursor to get the context menu to appear. It kind of reminds me of what using a mouse was like in early days of DOS. 
    Imagine how much heavier it would be if it was for the 12.9”.
  • Reply 32 of 33
    dewme said:
    Shipped and arriving Monday for my 10.5” Pro. All specs are available via the embedded link, but the weight is 21.52 oz. The iPad Mini case from Logitech had the same textured covering and keeping it clean was never a problem for me. In fact, my previous Logitech case outlasted my Mini, which is effectively deceased due to the dreaded Lithium Ion battery bloat and one too many iOS updates.
    Sorry to burst your bubble this case is not compatible with 10.5” ipad pro only with the slightly thicker ipad 7th gen. Check the Logitech website 
    Typing this on my iPad Pro 10.5 and the Logitech Combo Touch. I guess Logitech didn’t get your memo, since it fits just fine. It also helps to read the specs, including what iPads are supported, before shooting off ‘advice’.
    edited April 2020
  • Reply 33 of 33
    jrcjrc Posts: 817member
    I have been loving my iPad Pro 10.5 with this thing. 
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