Putting one on my Christmas list - I've heard the Brookstone one is good, but have been reading some threads on the Zaggmate too. Also saw the Kensington on Amazon for $59 - down from $99 and it looks like the Brookstone one.

A few things that I'm considering...

I want to be able to use the ipad in the case without using the keyboard - may not always use the keyboard, for instance, taking a few min in a Starbucks to read, etc... The Zagg looks like it is just for using it and won't fold back to use without removing the keyboard. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Zagg says they have shortcut ipad keys as does the Kensington and both seem to support using portrait or landscape... Brookstone doesn't mention shortcut keys (i.e. Home button)

Thanks in advance for your feedback.

Originally Posted by juniorgolf18

Putting one on my Christmas list - I've heard the Brookstone one is good, but have been reading some threads on the Zaggmate too. Also saw the Kensington on Amazon for $59 - down from $99 and it looks like the Brookstone one.

A few things that I'm considering...

I want to be able to use the ipad in the case without using the keyboard - may not always use the keyboard, for instance, taking a few min in a Starbucks to read, etc... The Zagg looks like it is just for using it and won't fold back to use without removing the keyboard. Correct me if I'm wrong.

Zagg says they have shortcut ipad keys as does the Kensington and both seem to support using portrait or landscape... Brookstone doesn't mention shortcut keys (i.e. Home button)

Thanks in advance for your feedback.

Just a comment about this sort of issue. Brookstone does not manufacture products. They purchase products, usually from obscure manufacturers and often put their own logo on it (or at least label it as a Brookstone product.) Not sure what the case is for this particular product, but it is entirely possible that you can purchase exactly the same product on Amazon for considerably less money. And I'd suspect you'd have a better return policy, as well. And you may well find that the Kensington and Brookstone products are literally identical.

There are lots of issues to be considered for keyboards and case combos: durability, support for iPad specific keys, size of the keyboard, itself, removability of the keyboard, etc. etc. You might want to search the accessories board for much more specific information about these and other issues.

Originally Posted by jsh1120

Just a comment about this sort of issue. Brookstone does not manufacture products. They purchase products, usually from obscure manufacturers and often put their own logo on it (or at least label it as a Brookstone product.) Not sure what the case is for this particular product, but it is entirely possible that you can purchase exactly the same product on Amazon for considerably less money. And I'd suspect you'd have a better return policy, as well. And you may well find that the Kensington and Brookstone products are literally identical.

There are lots of issues to be considered for keyboards and case combos: durability, support for iPad specific keys, size of the keyboard, itself, removability of the keyboard, etc. etc. You might want to search the accessories board for much more specific information about these and other issues.

Thanks. Agreed.

My main concern I would say is two fold - the keyboard itself, I know its smaller, but I've read some only have one shift key, some have shortcuts specifically for the ipad,etc... and second would be to be able to use just like my case now without a keyboard... I just want it if I need it, but want to retain functionality of case and ipad if I choose not to use it.

I have the Zaggmate and use it nearly every day. Very useable keyboard with excellent battery life. Mine is the original aluminum one-- not a portfolio case. If you do a lot of typing, Zaggmate will serve you well.

Never, never, never give up -- Winston Churchill