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iPad Magic Keyboard Skin | SopiGuard Skin for Protecting the iPad Magic Keyboard

9:29 video

In a previous video, I said the iPad Magic Keyboard can get a little gross: the rubbery material picks up dirt and oils and over time leaves blotchy stains, and it can feel not super durable. I may have a solution. The iPad Pro and Magic Keyboard are my primary device for most things, and it’s frustrating that something this expensive gets gross and worn.

Why a skin

Thanks to a comment on my “How to Clean the iPad Magic Keyboard” video, I bought a SopiGuard skin. I’ve never been a skin person for a phone or device (I’m a case person), but since I can’t put a case on this, I gave it a shot. I had trouble deciding between the 3M Matrix and the Black Honeycomb and chose 3M Matrix because it looked a little less flashy (“I’m not a flashy guy”).

In the package

A SopiGuard microfiber cloth, alcohol pads to clean the case, and three sheets of wrapping material: the front, the back, the top of the keyboard (above the keys), sides for the palm rest, and one for the trackpad. (I wondered how the trackpad piece would work with the texture.) There are no directions, so I just installed it.

Installation

The first piece looked pretty good: I wasn’t perfectly lined up around the camera (it comes in a little too far on one side), but it was easier than I thought overall. My first impression: pretty cool. I like the texture, and I like that the Apple logo shows through on the back. It feels more like a plastic coating and more durable than the rubber. On the inside, I put the one on the trackpad too, and I’m not sure I like it: I like Apple’s glass trackpads, and it feels like the textured trackpads on Dell XPS laptops (later I realized it was HP’s I was thinking of). Overall installation wasn’t difficult, and it feels more durable: I can put it down without worrying about what’s underneath.

After a few days

I really like the texture of the 3M Matrix skin: it feels almost like a basketball or football, but not grippy; you can even spin the keyboard on a table, which you can’t do with a regular rubber case, and I’m not worried it will fall out of my hands. The black Matrix looks amazing, from the fully covered bottom to the split top, as if the keyboard were made this way. The pieces around the keyboard make a nicer palm rest and add contrast to the keys.

I’ll probably remove the skin on the trackpad, because it may have made it less sensitive to tap to click and sometimes gestures (not repeatable, so it could be placebo). If you don’t use tap to click, you may not see an issue; if I continue to have trouble, I’ll remove it.

The skin is easier to clean than the rubber: everything wipes off, from finger grease and oil to something sticky my daughter left on the table, and the vinyl won’t absorb things like rubber does. That’s the biggest thing: it feels sturdier, “and more cheap somehow in a good way”: psychologically, I feel I could throw it around. Before, I wiped down surfaces before placing it and avoided sliding it so it wouldn’t wear; now I just use it.

Cost and install tips

At $20-something, the skin isn’t cheap, but neither were the iPad or keyboard. Installation is much like applying a screen film: take your time aligning it, and if you make a mistake, peel it back slowly so you don’t rip or stretch it, then reapply. I can’t speak for the other colors or textures, but I’m super happy with the Black 3M Matrix skin. If you prefer the Magic Keyboard as is, see my video on cleaning it with dish soap. Do you think you’ll get a skin?

In this video

Some links in this post are affiliate links, which means that if you click on one of the product links, I may receive a small commission. See my ethics statement.

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