It seems we are one step closer to seeing a wireless iPad Pro keyboard accessory, judging by a new Apple patent. There have been hints recently that Apple was going to go with a touch keyboard accessory at some point, but now things are going into a new direction.
The new wireless keyboard is both meant for a Mac, but also an iPad Pro. The US Patent and Trademark Office has already granted the patent for this invention to the Cupertino giant. Patently Apple discovered it, as being registered in the database of the USPTO. Keyboards for tablets aren’t anything new, since they’ve been present for as long as tablets have. Even the first Surface Tablet from 2013 had one.
I have to admit that it took Apple a bit longer to come up with that. They’ve also heard probably that tablet sales are dropping, but detachables and convertibles are doing fine. This means that keyboards may just bring tablets back. Apple launched its first tablet with keyboard in 2015, the iPad Pro 12.9. It had a Smart Connector for that purpose and people weren’t exactly fans of it. That’s why a wireless keyboard makes sense.
The documents associated to the new patent even mention new things, like a touch bar similar to the MacBook one, Force Touch or 3D Touch technology. It could end up as a wireless touch keyboard, which to me sounds a lot like an extra separate tablet to attach to your… tablet.
