Tiny type-y laptop – the iPad and the Snugg bluetooth keyboard case

Tiny keyboards and I do not get on. I’m bad enough at typing on big, bobbly keyboards, so the ones that come on iPhones, Samsungs, iPads and the like are way down there in the realms of impossibility. Since I get very little time to sit around and type at home, I’m usually left tapping out emails, texts and blog posts whilst I’m on the go – spending more time deleting typos than actually getting properly constructed sentences on the page. I suspect the same is true of many a busy Mum.

But then, thankfully, some clever person invented predictive text. Then, even better, some cleverer person invented the bluetooth keyboard.

Previously, I’ve always had to lug around my Macbook – and while things have come on a bit since I had my Compaq SLT/286 laptop back in the early nineties which was a bit reminiscent of a breezeblock (albeit a breezeblock with VGA GRAPHICS, oh yeah!) – the Macbook is still a bit heavy to be carrying around in a handbag.

So…the Snugg bluetooth keyboard that doubles as an iPad case…well, that’s ideal for a slimline on-the-go typing solution. Not only does it protect the iPad from all the random crumbs, crusty bibs and odd smelly socks that also seem to line my bag, but it also allows me to type without constantly having to tap that tiny little cross that stops me inserting words of ridiculousness into whatever I’m typing.

It has a little wire to charge it up, but after that it’s wireless and the battery keeps its charge for a nice long time. It was remarkably easy to pair up, too, and although initially it took a bit of getting used to (the enter button is smaller than my usual keyboard, likewise the shift key, and I had a bit of hitting and missing going on for a little while) once I got used to the slightly different layout I could type at my usual speed with no problems at all.

It’s got two little plastic sticky out bits in a wide groove that allow you to stand the iPad at a good typing angle without it falling over, and although it does add a little bit of width to the iPad it’s still much, much thinner than my laptop.

Getting the iPad in and out of the case can be a bit tricky – I suspect with time this will loosen up a bit but at the moment, when it’s in, its IN. On the plus side, I know that the case is pretty sturdy and the iPad is well protected whilst it’s being stored inside it – this I proved by waving it around quite dramatically in my first attempt to get the iPad out of it again!

It’s not just the iPad I can use it with, either. It works with many bluetooth devices, so I can avoid the teeny tiny keyboard on my iPhone or Samsung Galaxy and happily type away on the Snugg keyboard instead.

So, there’s another feather in my multitasking hat. Whatever will they come up with next…