We recently reviewed Inateck’s BK1002E keyboard, which is optimised for iPad and iPhone users with several dedicated hotkeys and a very Apple-esque design. It’s a great keyboard, but this BK1003E is something else altogether. Not just better-looking and featuring an English UK rather than English US layout (you don’t realise how much you use the £ key until it’s gone; and we also appreciate its inclusion of both Delete and Backspace keys), the BK1003E from Inateck features a rechargeable battery that will last up to 60 hours in use, or 100 days in standby. A power saving mode is triggered after 10 minutes of inactivity, and you simply press any key to resume operation. When the battery is depleted it will recharge over Micro-USB in just two hours. The BK1002E, by comparison, requires a pair of AA batteries. As an Android user the Inateck BK1003E is far better suited to my needs than is the BK1002E, but this wireless keyboard is also perfectly serviceable for Windows and iPad owners. Simple to pair over Bluetooth, even with other Bluetooth devices such as speakers connected, the Inateck enables you to control your Android tablet without ever needing to touch the screen. The keyboard’s top row features useful buttons that return you to the home screen, launch Google Now for search, select all, cut, copy and paste text, play, pause and skip music, turn up or down the volume and even take a screenshot. Meanwhile, you can use the arrow keys and Enter button to select an app, then Tab around menus within. If you want to get some work done on the go, you’ll find it significantly easier and faster with this Inateck than you would battling with Android’s awkward copy-and-paste functions and slow finger-prodding touchscreen typing. About an inch longer than our Nexus 10 tablet and two-thirds of its weight, the Inateck BK1003E is perhaps not what you might consider a truly portable keyboard. Yet its wireless (Bluetooth 3.0) operation and ultra-slim design means you could throw it in a bag and take it on the road if required. Ideally, this keyboard is best used to turn your tablet into a makeshift laptop and enhance productivity. When used on the desk it is slightly raised at the rear, allowing for a more comfortable typing position. Follow Marie Brewis on Twitter. Marie is Editor in Chief of Tech Advisor and Macworld. A Journalism graduate from the London College of Printing, she’s worked in tech media for more than 17 years, managing our English language, French and Spanish consumer editorial teams and leading on content strategy through Foundry’s transition from print, to digital, to online - and beyond.
