Brydge’s iPad keyboard with trackpad is coming next month for $200

Brydge will release an iPad keyboard with a built-in trackpad next month, after Apple added support for trackpads to iPadOS back in September. A $199.99 model will be available for the 11-inch iPad Pro and a $229.99 model will be available for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro, with both models clasping onto the iPad with a hinge that can fold the devices open and closed like a laptop. Initial preorders will ship in late February, with the rest following a month later.

The keyboard, called the Brydge Pro+, was first revealed in October as part of a lawsuit. Byrdge attempted to sue the creator of another iPad keyboard and trackpad for cloning its hinge design, and it included photos of this in-development keyboard as supporting evidence. The competing keyboard, the Libra, eventually had its hinge design changed in an attempt to avoid the lawsuit. The lawsuit has yet to move forward.

Trackpad support on the iPad is still very limited, and the experience isn’t as fluid as you might expect coming from a Mac. But interest still seems to be high: the Libra keyboard received more than $313,000 through crowdfunding and preorders.

In addition to the Brydge Pro+, Brydge is also releasing a standalone trackpad. It doesn’t appear to have a name, price, or release date yet, but Brydge did release a mock-up of it — it looks roughly like a black version of Apple’s Magic Trackpad.

Apple began selling Brydge’s regular iPad keyboards at its stores last month. The keyboards clip onto an iPad and fold shut like a laptop, with the whole package looking a lot like a MacBook Pro.