[ad#ad-1]Logitech has made another great keyboard. The Solar Folio should be exactly what you need for productivity, convenience, and protection of your iPad, and environment friendly at that. It fits the iPad 2, 3rd, and 4th generations. The outer material has a textured, rubber feel to it, which means nice and slip proof. It comes in black, grey, pink, and blue. Inside the folio is the flexible plastic casing that holds the iPad, and the keyboard itself. At the center is a brushed metal cylinder that acts as a spine or binder. The keyboard has two sets of notches on either side, to allow for a Media mode and a Typing mode. On the right side of the keyboard are the blue tooth and battery buttons.
Setup was ridiculously easy. Your Solar Folio charges not only by sunlight but also indoor lighting. The brighter the room, the faster it will charge. It should last you 2 years with normal use. The instructions do say to charge fairly often to be sure it is ready to use. Oh but wait! All you have to do to charge it is have light? Fabulous!!! No more running around for a wall socket. Again, this is a crucial feature for those who live off the grid, or are travelling extensively.
The ipad slides into the case quickly, and then it is time for pairing. As soon as you place the ipad and folio at either of the two angles, it is in discovery mode, and will remain discoverable for 15 minutes. Outside of those angles, the keyboard will be disabled. The keys are a matte plastic, and are very easy to type on compared to some that have glossy keys. One of my favorite features however, is the Media mode. When you prop the iPad and Folio in the flatter Media mode, there is one row of keys showing. These now serve as your media and playback controls.
The only two recommendations I have are a coating or different material for the spine of the folio. It tends to scratch a bit, but that is purely cosmetic. The other would be a batter level indicator. The notifications are either red or green. There is no plug in charger, so having an indicator that shows bars or levels of charge would help. Other than that, I love it!
