{"id":9629,"date":"2011-12-12T17:11:45","date_gmt":"2011-12-12T17:11:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.tmcnet.com\/blog\/rich-tehrani\/e-commerce\/touchfire_keyboard_the_ideal_ipad_2_companion.html"},"modified":"2011-12-12T17:11:45","modified_gmt":"2011-12-12T17:11:45","slug":"touchfire-keyboard-the-ideal-ipad-2-companion","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.tmcnet.com\/blog\/rich-tehrani\/technology\/touchfire-keyboard-the-ideal-ipad-2-companion.html","title":{"rendered":"TouchFire Keyboard the Ideal iPad 2 Companion?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Last week while up in Boston shooting videos of a number of tech and telecom companies in the area, I realized I left my laptop power cord \"ipad-keyboard-dock.jpg\"at home. Thankfully I took my clunky “luggable” Apple iPad keyboard with me and used it and the iPad to approximate the functionality laptop. It wasn’t the same due to some challenges I had with blogging software<\/a> but I hope this annoyance gets resolved soon.<\/p>\n

But what the experience showed me is the iPad can be even better with a solid keyboard. Sure, not really breaking news but I was pretty surprised at how much more productive it made me.<\/p>\n

The challenge is I like the iPad the way it is with the Smart Cover and if I get a new case with a keyboard in it I then have to give up the Smart Cover. If I get an external bluetooth keyboard then I have to take that with me.<\/p>\n

Interestingly I read about<\/a> the ZAGG\/Logitech keyboard case for the iPad 2 and it intrigued me. Coincidentally as I finished the article my next interviewee actually had the case. He swore by it… Loved it and told me to go to the Apple store immediately and purchase it. I didn’t. \"logitech-zagg-ipad-keyboard.jpg\"<\/a>Partly because I didn’t want to – once again, give up the smart cover for something which wasn’t as easy and convenient to use. After all, there are many times I use this device where I don’t want a keyboard which makes all sorts of clicking noises.<\/p>\n

So I searched more and found another keyboard<\/a> by ZAGG. This one was a portfolio type but the same issue remained.<\/p>\n

I also read about a new type of keyboard<\/a> the TouchFire being featured by Kickstarter labs. I finally spent some time digesting what the keyboard can do today and am intrigued. It is ultra-thin, light and transparent and actually “lives” within the Smart Cover. In sort, it is a hybrid approach – not an external keyboard but it takes the onscreen keyboard and adds tactile feel. Moreover it uses the magnets on the iPad 2 to align itself. It also works with the original iPad so don’t jettison your old tablet just yet.<\/p>\n

The downside to this solution is you don’t get the benefit of moving the iPad farther away – like you can do utilizing a bluetooth device. But then again, you really can’t move the tablet that far away since you still need to touch it to delete emails, etc.\"Kensington-KeyFolio.jpg\"<\/a><\/p>\n

At $45 the keyboard is pricey but then again something possessed me to spend $69<\/a> on an iPad cover. But then again, right now I can spend $49.99 on a Kensington KeyFolio<\/a> bluetooth keyboard and case – a 50% savings from Buy.com. I suppose it all boils down to how good this new translucent keyboard is. Should you pay that much for it I wonder? In addition, is it the ideal iPad 2 companion?<\/p>\n

By the way, Kickstarter Labs is a community-based gadget organization – allowing users to fund and prepurchase projects they believe in and\/or want to purchase. I just purchased the TouchFire and will be sure to share more once it arrives.<\/p>\n

See more below:<\/p>\n

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