> The newer magnetic keyboards are actually pretty good

What I think I would really like is a detachable keyboard with laptop-style hinges (and maybe a secondary battery). There seem to be a few devices from about a decade ago with that kind of design but they died out in favor of flexible connectors and kickstands.

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ghaff 2 days ago | parent [-]

The newish Apple magnetic keyboards seem pretty good for using on your lap at a conference which was one of my showstoppers for a lot of earlier tablet designs. Though I haven't had a lot of opportunity to try it in practice. And I'm just so used to laptop multi-window that I probably would need to just spend some time adapting.

A more hybrid design seems to make a lot of sense but it just seems to involve compromises on both the laptop and tablet ends. Even the Apple tablets with keyboards probably don't have a lot of advantages over the Air unless you're watching a movie or reading a book on a flight or train.

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Zak 2 days ago | parent [-]

I'm not imagining much compromise on the tablet side - at least not more than Microsoft's Surface keyboard connector. I'm thinking of thin tabs attached to the hinges slotting into the tablet body.

It would still be pretty compromised as a laptop, but better in that role than current tablet keyboard solutions.

	▲	ghaff 2 days ago \| parent [-]
		As I say, software differences aside, my experience with the current magnetic Apple keyboard and the touchpad seem pretty good. I'm not sure a probably relatively weak mechanical coupling would be better.