Logitech Combo Touch Keyboard Case iPad Air 2024 (M2) 13” Review

There are plenty of 3rd party options out there, and I presume you visiting this page is because you are attempting to see what is worth your budget and time. You will not find many photos because I am writing this on my bed in the middle of the night out of frustration, so you just have to take my word for it. Not sure how credible my words will be to you but know that I have no benefit whatsoever in writing this article merely to warn others. Here we go:

1. Design

Sleek, premium feel, high quality material build overall. Highly minimalistic and clean-looking. The back kickstand is sturdy and when folded close fits snugly to the case body so that’s a plus. Not to be confused with the felt-like texture of the Microsoft Surface Pro keyboard or the fiber fabric texture they had on older models of the Combo Touch i.e. the M1 iPad Pro Combo Touch which I have used.

Downside (here we go!)

Picks up surface grease and sweat easily. I am by no means a heavy sweater or anything but my keyboard and trackpad are covered in thin layers of grease fingerprints all over even after taking a thorough shower. Having to wipe this thing down became a hassle more than a convenience at this point. The last model of their Combo Touch Keyboard case had a working material and the decision to change to this rubbery plastic kinda material is, gee, I don’t know, counter-intuitive maybe?

2. Functionality

A lot of reviews or Reddit threads, which I think you may have seen every now and then, would have mentioned issues such as certain keys not working, trackpad not working, etc. Every now and then there are minor manufacturer’s bugs and nothing a simple firmware update couldn’t fix otherwise you’d send it back to warranty anyway.

My take, however, is the ergonomics of the design and how it impacts the functionality. The trackpad was way too big in general when compared to perhaps the Microsoft Surface Pro’s keyboard case (I am using that as a comparison because I owned that too). Why is that an issue? If you are using a non-mechanical keyboard with low profile buttons, as you should on a portable device keyboard case, having a trackpad that is twice the normal size becomes an irritation. Firstly, it defeats the purpose of having a touch screen device (gee, you don’t say) and there aren’t many software or apps that is optimised for high productivity work but mostly light work and media consumption on an iPad. 

I use this for my blogging, obviously, and as I mentioned earlier, LOW PROFILE KEYBOARD. Why am I capping that line specifically? Because if you are, like me, avidly typing away minding your own business, and your hands are rested, chances are when you get close to the space bar of your keyboard, your palm will likely accidentally feather touch the trackpad. Guess what happens then? Your cursor throws you out of your original typing position, triggers something else within the app, and if it is a pop-up window, closes it, leaving you flabbergasted for 2 seconds then followed by muffled screams in the face of your tablet. How many times had this happened to me? Let’s just say the trackpad is bent and some keys came off and got forced back to their position somehow at this point because I am losing it. It’s only been a little over a week since my ownership of this thing.

Upon reaching out to Logitech on their support and Contact Us page, their reply is that this is how the design was meant to be. No software or settings workaround for this. No “click to wake trackpad” or anything of sorts. It’s pretty much I’m on my own since they have gotten my money anyway.

The lesson of the story is, you’d better learn to type with hawk-like claw fingers or this is not for you. Never have I thought my years of kung fu will serve me this way.

Photo from 倚天屠龙记之魔教教主 Kung Fu Cult Master

Give it a few minutes and you will slowly experience cramps and frozen fingers and wrists before you know it.

I should’ve gone with some other brands. ESR has a few models available and their reviews have been great, even Apple’s own Magic Keyboard sounds pretty good at this point.

You must be asking right now “But Apple Magic Keyboard is not 3rd party and they’re quite costly”.

Well here’s the thing. If I can leave you with a lesson at all from my years of tinkering with many different devices - you got to do it right or you will be doing it twice. With life, and with buying tech products. In my case, I have been doing it twice for more times than I could remember. It’s the price of a few packets of cigarettes versus not having to write an article just to warn people about the grief I’m experiencing. Perhaps I should have taken the Apple Magic Keyboard.

Don’t think I have a point 3 to follow up on this. I think everything else is self-explanatory unless you are taking your iPad underwater then you may need a very different solution than what I am reviewing here.

So take your pick, my fellow readers.