Logitech announced a new thin, or as they like to call it ultrathin – everything needs to be “ultra” these days – keyboard case for the iPad in April. Two months later the keyboard case has now gone on sale in the UK.But is the new Ultrathin Keyboard Cover something that you should be coveting, or one to avoid? At £89.99 you don’t want to make a mistake now, do you?Logitech probably didn’t realise this at the time, but the Ultrathin Keyboard Cover now gives iPad users a very similar setup to what Microsoft Surface for Windows RT tablet users will get with the keyboard cover.
The idea is that the cover clips to your iPad and allows you to get to work, typing as you would at your computer, and doubling as a stand at the same time. In the flesh, it’s about the same thickness as the iPad 3 and clips on to the iPad in the same was as Apple’s Smart Cover – using magnets. Like the Smart Cover it won’t protect the back of your iPad, but it will keep the glass nice and safe. Clad in a metal finish, Logitech has done a good job in matching the style of the iPad and at a quick glance you wouldn’t know the two were different. Once the cover is fitted, you end up with something that looks like a baby MacBook Pro.In use the cover is quickly detached, thanks to those magnets, and you are then free to set up the keyboard dock by placing your iPad in the grove that spilts the iPad-sized device in two.
Connected by Bluetooth rather than the dock connector, the groove that the iPad sits in has been designed to hold your iPad vertically or horizontally. That’s really handy if you’re tight for space, or want to be less obvious when typing from your lap. The groove is deep enough for you not to worry about the iPad being unstable and tipping over. It works really well. The keyboard cover suppliers itself is black and glossy and the keys well spaced-out, making it very suitable for typing. One strange aside is that the keyboard letters aren’t printed on to the keys, rather they are stuck on, meaning we were able to feel the transfers as we used the keyboard. We know that’s taking things to the extreme a little bit, but for £90 we wouldn’t have expected Logitech to scrimp. The firm is clearly doing this so it can build one keyboard for all markets and switch around the letters later. Understandable, but still a minor strike for quality. The rest of the build quality is good though.