You’ll find a lot of interesting options there, letting you control what each function key does plus what you want the crown to do. Everything else – the key mechanism, the keycaps, and the layout are the same.Īll Logitech keyboards come with Logitech’s own config software. It’s a dome-like dial (called the crown) that can be mapped to do all sorts of different things. The Craft and the MX Keys are basically the same keyboards with only one difference.
For example, Logitech offers such software for Mac users, but not all manufacturers do.
In short, make sure that the keyboard you’re thinking of buying does come with full Mac support or the manufacturer’s own software to make the keyboard fully supported. If you’re going to be using a keyboard primarily meant for PC, you’re not going to have the right keycap there – and it’s also going to be in the wrong place (more on that below). If your keyboard doesn’t support these, you might not be able to pick how you like to use the function keys at all. There’s screen brightness control here, Launchpad access, Mission Control, and all sorts of other fun things.Īlso, in the settings, you can choose if you want to use those buttons or switch them to the classic set of F1-Fn function keys. The first thing that your keyboard absolutely needs is support for Mac’s native keyboard layout and features.įor example, Apple’s own keyboards come with these keys:Įach one does a certain thing. What follows is a list of six of the best Mac keyboards, their pros and cons, prices, and overall impressions after using each one for at least a month. This is where the following roundup and comparison comes into play. Unfortunately, the downsides are not something that the manufacturers like to mention on the box.
But, trying to find the best Mac keyboard has been a personal mission of mine ever since I switched from PC to Mac. I quickly found out that getting a keyboard to cooperate with a Mac seamlessly isn’t always as straightforward, and that some keyboards are only partially up to the task. It certainly does have a feel of a premium product. The only downside you can’t configure the function keys.įor $80, this surely is a keyboard for Mac you should consider.įinding ways to improve my Mac’s performance and workflow is my favorite hobby. Manufacturing-wise, it’s made of aluminum and looks very sturdy. The spacing between the keys is similar to Logitech’s products, which further helps avoid accidental key presses. The typing experience is very similar to that of the Magic Keyboard, but there’s slightly more key travel, making it a bit more comfortable.
And then they followed, and the iPad Pro is a clear example of that.At $80, it’s another very interesting keyboard that tries to bring out the best features from Logitech keyboards and from Apple’s very own Magic Keyboard. “We have been learning and perfecting our products in the 2-in-1 category for years now, when Surface initially launched everyone was skeptical, including them. “Think about it, if we had been looking at we wouldn’t have made a product like Surface Pro or Surface Book,” Gavin said. Keyboards aside, Microsoft’s Surface general manager called out Apple this week in an interview with Business Insider for what he describes as the iPad Pro following the Surface. macOS does let Apple Watch unlock Macs which can be more convenient than Touch ID in some instances, but bringing Touch ID to external keyboards would still make sense. You’ll need Windows to enjoy the benefits of having that fingerprint sensor since Apple doesn’t open Touch ID features on macOS, but it’s an interesting product that ships for the same price as Apple’s wireless keyboard with a num pad.Įven Apple’s iMac Pro which comes with a special space gray Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad doesn’t include Touch ID. We iterated relentlessly to improve each layer, making sure they came together to create a flawless typing experience that felt like any other key. Our vision was to blend the Fingerprint reader into a keyboard, so it would appear to be any other key. Microsoft is introducing a new macOS-compatible Modern Keyboard with what it calls a hidden fingerprint reader. Apple finally brought Touch ID to the Mac with the new MacBook Pros last fall, but there’s still no official way to log in to a desktop Mac with your fingerprint.