If trying to type long emails and texts on your tablet or smart phone drives you up the wall, the Voix Genie Wireless Tablet Keyboard may be of interest. Connecting to your portable devices over Bluetooth, it aims to let you bash out missives at speed, and in comfort. Also compatible with Macs and PCs, it's available now in black, black or black for around £40.
Slap it in your satchel
Keyboards designed for use with portable devices need to be lightweight, sturdy and small enough to fit in a bag, while also being large enough to accommodate sausage fingers. The Genie ticks all of those boxes.
At 284mm wide, the Genie is roughly the width of the keyboard you'd expect to find on a 15-inch laptop, while also being very slender. Weighing only 310g, the Genie won't weigh you down when chucked in a backpack. Its build quality is fairly good, and we reckon it'll withstand the odd knock.
The Genie lacks a dock of any kind, so it can't support your tablet or phone at an angle to the screen. That's a shame, since balancing both a keyboard and a tablet on your lap at the same time isn't easy, or particularly comfortable.
On the back, you'll find a minuscule power switch and an equally minuscule button for connecting the device over Bluetooth. You'll probably need to use your fingernails on these buttons.
Smooth operator
Pairing the Genie with your portable gadget is a simple and painless task. We found it connected to our iPhone 4 in a couple of seconds.
Typing on the Genie is a smooth and comfortable experience. There's no noticeable delay between tapping on the keyboard and seeing the letters appear on the screen. The sensitive keys allow your fingers to zoom across them at lightning speed, which is sure to impress the attractive stranger sat opposite you on the train. We hear attractive strangers love fast typing.
If you decide to use this keyboard as a media tool with your PC, you may be irked by the lack of dedicated media buttons -- you'll have to use the secondary functions of the F keys instead. We can't complain too much though, since more buttons would mean a bigger keyboard.
The Genie's battery life is impressive. According to Voix, it will keep going for an impressive 60 days of use before it needs to be recharged.
Conclusion
The Voix Genie Wireless Tablet Keyboard could be a good investment. Small, light and sturdy, we reckon avid typists will find it a useful travelling companion.
Edited by Charles Kloet
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