80 of 84 people found the following review helpful
Good concept, but some catches,
March 26, 2011 This review is from: Twelve South (12-1101) MagicWand Connects Magic Track Pad to Wireless Keyboard (Personal Computers)
I like the concept, and if Apple sold a keyboard with the Magic Trackpad permanently attached, I'd have purchased one. So I wanted to be a fan of this solution, but the MagicWand was not all I had hoped it would be.
The MagicWand is plastic, not metal as it might appear in the pictures. As such, it relies on an additional miniature plastic I-beam wedged between the keyboard and the trackpad in order to avoid flexing and to maintain a snug fit. Unfortunately, the beam is too tall and wide. The gap between the edge of the keyboard and the beam is narrower than the gap between keys. This presents a solid barrier right along the keys' edge. My fingers constantly hit the beam when using some of the right-side keys, especially the right arrow, shift and return. I couldn't get used to it after a week and so I took the beam out and periodically re-adjust the keyboard and Magic Trackpad instead.
Aesthetically, the MagicWand beam, the rubber wedge that sits at the top, the Magic Trackpad and the keyboard are all different grays with different textures and glossiness. The whole region between the keyboard and Magic Trackpad looks sloppy. Without the I-beam and wedge, the gap is uneven side-to-side, and the Magic Trackpad often ends up sitting lower than the keyboard.
If the MagicWand had been ten bucks cheaper, I'd have gone with four stars. If there were a more elegant solution than the beam - precision tolerance metal parts or a thinner beam of a material that better matched the keyboard or trackpad - I might have raised the rating as well. As it stands, I regret the purchase. I ultimately went back to leaving the keyboard and trackpad detached.
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Was this review helpful to you? 25 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Very nice, once you learn one minor trick,
May 9, 2011 This review is from: Twelve South (12-1101) MagicWand Connects Magic Track Pad to Wireless Keyboard (Personal Computers)
When I first started using the MagicWand, it was a little disappointing. The i-beam that joins the keyboard and trackpad prevented the trackpad from moving freely, and made the trackpad less responsive to left clicks. Tap to click works just fine, there are times when a regular physical left-click feels more natural (i.e. when dragging). The i-beam connector also makes it difficult to remove the trackpad when it is time to change batteries. And the rubbery gasket that goes above the connector is a different color, and seems destined to pop off at some point and get lost. None of this is a big deal, but rather a little disappointing.
Removing the i-beam connector and rubber gasket (a filler, really) makes all the difference in the world! With about a 1/8 inch gap between the keyboard and trackpad, everything works just as it should. The 'trick' to a 4-star worthy device is to ignore the 'extra' pieces and use only the main channel.
At thirty dollars, the price feels a bit steep for a 16 inch piece of aluminum-colored plastic, but it does what it is designed to do, and does it very well. A price tag would earn it a solid 5-star review from me.
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Was this review helpful to you? 26 of 28 people found the following review helpful
Very good, and about time!,
March 20, 2011 This review is from: Twelve South (12-1101) MagicWand Connects Magic Track Pad to Wireless Keyboard (Personal Computers)
I got my MagicWand direct from Twelve South, and having used it for a few weeks, I'm really impressed.
This product is designed to keep your wireless aluminum keyboard and Magic trackpad connected to each other at all times. That's it. No surprises.
First, for those concerned about scratching your aluminum keyboard and trackpad, the MagicWand is made completely out of plastic. For the sake of this review, I removed and inserted the keyboard and trackpad over and over a number of times, and there are no marks on the aluminum anywhere!
OK, so the setup of this product is VERY simple:
1.) Open packaging.
2.) Take out MagicWand.
3.) Insert keyboard into MagicWand. It basically snaps in there, pretty easily, and then you just align the left edge of the keyboard with the left edge of the MagicWand.
4.) Insert Apple Magic trackpad into the right side, aligning it with the right edge of the MagicWand.
5.) Slide the gap hider in between the keyboard and trackpad.
6.) Push included rubber piece down in between the keyboard and trackpad to hide the gap at the top.
Once you've done all this, you're treated to a very tidy, Apple-like setup. I really wouldn't have been surprised if Apple had made this themselves, really.
Pros:
1.) Keeps keyboard and trackpad together at all time.
2.) You can pick up the whole unit from the trackpad or the keyboard, and there is no flex on either side.
3.) Perfect for HTPC user who use their Macs in front of their TV etc, and don't want a mouse.
Cons:
1.) The very bottom left edge of the trackpad is a little firmer to press where it meets the keyboard. This doesn't bother me since I use tap-to-click, but it's something to bear in mind if you're a heavy clicker on the bottom left edge
2.) Not as cheap as it could be...
Overall, an excellent product, and one I recommend highly!
4.5 stars out of 5.
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