This Viral iPhone Keyboard Case Is The Most Ingenious Accessory I’ve Tested
Source: ZDNet, Matthew Miller
Photo: Matthew Miller/ZDNET
Six months after mounting my iPhone into the Clicks Keyboard, I’m pleased to see my biggest concerns have been resolved in the second generation accessory.
ZDNET’s key takeaways
The Clicks Keyboard for the iPhone 16 Pro/Pro Max is available for $139/$159 in Onyx, Surf, and Spice colorways.
The keyboard now supports data pass-through, is MagSafe compatible, has an improved key design, and incorporates new materials for improved usability.
The case and iPhone are very long, which takes some practice to achieve perfect balance.
In the six months that I used the first-generation Clicks Keyboard with an iPhone 15 Pro Max, a couple of issues forced me to remove my iPhone so often that it made using the keyboard accessory rather inconvenient. Thankfully, these issues have been resolved with the second-generation model, the Clicks Keyboard for Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max, while other improvements have made the accessory perfect for keyboard enthusiasts.
The first element that bothered me was the lack of MagSafe support, since I primarily rest my iPhone down on a wireless charging stand to top it off. I purchased a magnetic ring to attach to the back of the Clicks, but it didn’t work reliably, so I ended up having to remove my iPhone to charge it.
I also enjoy using Apple CarPlay in my truck for navigation, podcasts, and hands-free communications, but the first-generation Clicks didn’t support data pass-through, so I had to take my iPhone out of the case to use CarPlay. The more I drove, the more I was disappointed by this limitation.
After a few weeks of using the new Clicks Keyboard for iPhone 16 Pro Max, I’m pleased to say that the company has resolved both of these issues. MagSafe works perfectly.
My iPhone with Clicks stays securely in place on my dock and charging pad, not to mention my wallet stays on the back of the case. Wired CarPlay now works with a simple combination button press and when you unplug your iPhone, the keyboard functionality returns automatically.
In addition to these two major improvements, the new model’s keys are larger and angled down from the outside toward the center in order to improve your speed and accuracy of text entry. The first-generation keys were excellent and well-designed, so I was surprised by the significantly improved design in such a short period of time.
The Clicks folks also reduced the size of the Enter/Return key while greatly increasing the space bar. In addition, a 37th button was added that serves as the @ and # symbols (since I use those characters a lot, I am pleased with this addition). This extra key also means that % and * are now accessible on the keyboard.