Although I’m a big fan of tactile, I also enjoy the sleekness, quiet keys, and wireless nature of. I wish Apple would make a full-size Magic Keyboard, but that doesn’t seem to be happening any time soon. Thankfully Matias, a computer accessory manufacturer that’s been around since the 90s, is offering its own take on what an Apple-made full-sized wireless keyboard could be like. The end result — the $99 — is an impressive rendition of Apple design principles, coupled with a few bonus features that truly make this keyboard worth considering. Have a look at our full video walkthrough for a hands-on look at the Space Gray version of Matias’ Wireless Aluminum Keyboard. Synology RT2600ac: The AirPort Extreme replacement.

Four keyboard color options The Matias Wireless Aluminum Keyboard is available in four colors — Silver, Space Gray, Gold, or Rose Gold — that allows it to complement any color of MacBook or MacBook Pro. The Space Gray and Gold versions feature black key caps, while the Silver and Rose Gold colors feature white key caps. Needless to say, I think that Matias did a great job of nailing the Space Gray version that I’m currently testing, as it matches the 2016 MacBook Pro about as well as one could reasonably expect. I’m assuming that the other three colors are just as good, but I’ve not yet compared them in person.

Video walkthrough Build quality & performance The surface of the keyboard is machined out of aluminum, while the bottom area of the keyboard is plastic. Fruit wallpaper for mac. If you’ve used any of Apple’s standalone keyboards recently, then you’ll have a general idea of what to expect here. The keys themselves, while not underpinned by the much-improved butterfly switches that are found on the latest MacBook Pro, feature significantly more key travel, and are relatively stable no matter where you press on a key. I found that I could type fast on this keyboard, and didn’t experience any out of the ordinary key input issues.

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The keys on the keyboard are not backlit, but Matias is producing two versions with backlighting that are currently available for pre-order (shipping in June). The will come in two colors, and feature a separate battery dedicated to the backlight. The four rubber feet on the bottom of the keyboard do a good job of keeping the keyboard stable on the desk while typing. However, you won’t find any legs on the bottom to adjust the typing angle. Depending on the way you type, this could pose an issue with adjusting to the keyboard’s angle. It’s been a while since I’ve used Apple’s full wired keyboard with number keys, but if memory serves me correctly, the build quality between it and this keyboard is similar.

The Apple-built keyboard may be slightly superior in overall build quality, as I did notice a little bit of play on the edges of the Matias hardware when pressed, but no one’s going to do that in real world usage, and that’s probably being overly critical. 1-year battery life The most impressive thing about this keyboard is its battery life. Matias includes a 1,600mAh battery, which it claims is 5x to 12x larger than competing hardware. The result is a keyboard that can be used for a year on a single charge. Included in the box is a USB charging cable, which features a full-size USB-A port on one end, and a right-angle micro USB plug on the opposite end. As much as I hate micro USB, I don’t mind it as much considering that I’ll only need to charge the keyboard once a year. The micro USB port for charging is located on the front of the keyboard, along with the unit’s power button.

Charging that keyboard takes around 5 hours, and the Caps Lock key light shines amber while charging. Although there is a power button on the same front panel as the USB port, you’ll rarely need to use it.

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Once the keyboard is on and paired with your devices, you can leave it that way. Because the keyboard features such a large battery, it stays on and stays connected, which means that there should be no delays on the hardware side of things when you sit down for work.

Number pad & full-size arrow keys To anyone who enjoys using full-size keyboards, I don’t have to explain why it’s such a good thing. I don’t have to explain the satisfaction of typing on a full number pad, or having full-size arrow keys to help you navigate. When it comes to a keyboard, having more keys is almost always a better thing in my opinion. But what makes this keyboard special is that it does two things that Apple has quarantined to two separate products. If you want a full-size keyboard in Apple’s world, then you have to live with having a wired connection. But if you want wireless, you have to ditch the number pad, and the rest of the amenities that come with a larger keyboard.

With Matias’ offering, you get the best of both worlds. You get a truly wireless keyboard with a long-lasting battery, and you get a number pad, extra function keys, large arrow keys, etc. You aren’t forced to sacrifice one thing for another. Pair up to four devices You’ll notice four curious-looking keys above the number pad on the right-side of the keyboard. These keys are dedicated to paired-devices, and you can pair up to four devices at once with the keyboard.

Thus, these dedicated keys make switching between an iPad and MacBook, for instance, a painless affair. You can literally press a single button to switch effortlessly between multiple devices, and it works just as advertised. Matias’ keyboard plays nice with macOS, iOS, Android, and Windows machines. Conclusion The Matias Wireless Aluminum Keyboard is probably the keyboard that Apple should be making. It’s a full-size keyboard with Bluetooth wireless connectivity, which is something that Apple doesn’t offer. If you’re in the market for a good-looking wireless keyboard that features Mac-centric keyboard shortcuts, yet can be easily paired and switched between other devices, then give it a look. You can find the Matias Wireless Keyboard for $95, but in all four colors.

John Kheit’s (partial) Keyboard Junk Drawer The Good If I had to guess, Matias found the company that makes Apple’s keyboards, because it feels and looks like an Apple keyboard. The aluminum is the same grade of aluminum as an Apple keyboard. Even the bottom is the same white lucite-like plastic. It also has has the exact same keyboard layout as the Apple Wireless keyboard, and most the same layout as the Apple USB keyboard. Physically, the Matias keyboard really apes the physicality of the Apple USB keyboard—the USB port block propping up the Apple keyboard is instead a housing for a massive battery.

That’s a great thing. No worries about remapping keys, and your muscle memory will transfer to this keyboard without any thought. It has a rechargeable battery that lasts wait for it a whole FREAK’N YEAR! The base that angles the keyboard up seems to be all battery. Sure Apple could have put in a bigger battery in their Magic Keyboard, but why would Apple bother to do anything you might find useful, like spend $0.50 more and put in a larger rechargeable battery in their devices. They’re busy putting out, expensive,. These are busy people.

The keyboard action and feel is very Apple-like, however, it is a touch stiffer than Apple’s Magic Keyboard. This may soften a bit with use, but be prepared to use a touch more force to hit the keys.

But it’s really not bad at all. It’s about the same stiffness as the keyboards you might find in a 2011 MacBook Pro, so well within Apple-ish thresholds.

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The keyboard also seems to instantly connect to the Mac as soon as you touch any of its keys. Many bluetooth keyboards, when they go to sleep to save battery life, become unresponsive with the first few keys you depress. Such keyboards, in effect, don’t register your first few key presses as they wake. Other keyboards will take a while to wake, but will buffer your key presses and still eventually unleash what you typed—a lesser evil. But Apple’s keyboards suffer no such delays, and happily, neither does this Matias. Matias also offers the keyboard in different colors including: aluminum with white keys, a nice space grey with black keys, and aping Apple’s garish poor taste, in gold and rose gold (i.e., Hello Kitty® pink) as well. Matias Wireless Aluminum Keyboards The Meh A little bit more on feel.

First, the keys have a more matte and/or course feel to them than the smooth Apple keys on its keyboards. In addition, as you type, there is a soft reverb that goes through the keyboard, I mean really really soft. I’ve had some people test it and not felt what I feel. This seems to be an effect of the keyboard sitting atop 4 nice rubber feet. Depending on how sensitive your soul is, you might think this is a good thing, meh who cares thing, or bad thing—I personally fall into the ‘meh’ camp. Also, this keyboard is a little taller than the current Magic Keyboard, and about the same height as the previous Apple Wireless Keyboard. Depending on which generation of Apple Keyboard you liked, this may be a good or a bad thing, but I’ve personally grown to like the lower placement of Apple’s new Magic Keyboard.

The height is not the ‘meh’ thing, but rather, the Magic Touchpad now doesn’t perfectly line up with the keyboard. That said, it still looks decently at home next to this Matias keyboard.

But if Matias were to update the look of this keyboard to better ape the new Magic Keyboard dimensions, they would get another sale from me, no doubt. You can see the Matias Keyboard behind the Magic Touchpad in the distant left of the photo, and its about the same height as the old Apple Wireless keyboard to its right. A nice-looking keyboard, thanks for the review. I’m always on the hunt for quality peripherals. If I could humbly submit another contender in the full-size numeric “best Apple keyboard that Apple doesn’t make”, the Logitech K750 for Mac? Particularly as a “value for money” proposition.

It can’t really be compared directly to the Matias (in both good and bad ways) but it has an extremely attractive, Mac-like fit and finish. Forget one-year battery life, how about solar-powered? At first I thought it would be gimmicky but after a long time without cables OR batteries, I’m sold. Pros: – Price! So Bob, I agree with you on both points. First, if you look in the photo of my junk drawer, you will see at least one of my old A1016 keyboards, which is in fact a bluetooth Apple keyboard with a full numeric keypad.

I have 2 problems with that old keyboard, first, it’s clear terrarium plastic collects lots of icky gunk and its white parts turn an icky yellowish color with time. 2nd, I’ve grown to like the more modern shorter throw keyboards from Apple (highly subjective, no doubt)–the Matias key throw is about 2mm btw. Second, I agree, Read more ».