 Your iPad Air 2 is great, and you can get a lot of work done with it. But when most people think of work, they think of typing. And that means a keyboard. A real one. Most keyboards for the iPad work basically the same way. You charge them every month or so, you pair them over Bluetooth, and you attach them to an iPad somehow. There are a lot of different kinds of iPad keyboards. Some of them make it look like a laptop, some that come with built-in cases, and some that fold up like crazy accordions. But you want a keyboard that strikes a hard balance. It should be good to type on, it should hold your iPad at the right angle, it should work on your lap, and it shouldn't cost too much. That's a lot to expect, but there is one keyboard that managed to do it all. It might surprise you who makes it. Surprise me. Microsoft, yes Microsoft, makes the best Bluetooth keyboard for Apple's iPad Air 2. It's called the Universal Mobile Keyboard. It's not a case, it's just a keyboard with a neat little detachable cover that folds open to reveal the keys inside. That cover also acts as a stand. It keeps the keyboard stable on your lap or on a table, and it has a little slot for holding your iPad. That slot is actually one of the reasons we like it so much. It can hold a caseless iPad Air at two different angles, and it can accommodate most reasonably sized iPad cases. So if you didn't already have a case, you don't need to ditch it to use Microsoft's keyboard. The most important thing about a Bluetooth keyboard is that it feels nice to type on, and Microsoft's Universal Mobile Keyboard does. It's not quite a full-size keyboard, nothing in this category is, but the keys are big and separated, and they have enough resistance and travel to feel good to type on. Microsoft separates a few iPad functions like music controls and home into dedicated buttons, so you don't have to fiddle with the function key to figure out how to use them. There's also a dedicated number row, which is a big deal to me. The other thing that we like is that it's basically future-proof. You can use this keyboard with any iPad, iPhone, Android device, or Windows machine with a quick flick of this tiny switch. But the truth is, our favorite thing is the price. It retails for well under $100. That means you can spend the rest of your money on a case you actually want, instead of whatever happens to work with your keyboard. But if price is no object and you haven't picked out a case yet, our runner-up pick is the creme de la creme of iPad keyboard cases. It's the Belkin Code Ultimate Pro Keyboard Case for the iPad Air 2. This thing has it all. A big, easy-to-type-on keyboard, a nice case to hold the iPad, even if you want to leave the keyboard behind, and the case is compatible with Apple's smart covers. It has magnets to control everything from turning it on to positioning your tablet. You want angles? The code has them. Two for portrait and two for landscape. It has function buttons for damn near everything you could wish for, and the keys are backlit. Really, the only problem here is that it costs nearly twice as much as Microsoft's keyboard. Okay, so what else is out there? A ton, actually. There are more styles of iPad keyboard cases than you could believe. One popular style is to have a keyboard that acts like a kind of cover that the iPad slots into. Logitech's Ultra Thin Magnetic Clip-On Keyboard Cover is the best of these, but it doesn't work if you want to use a case. Then there's the Folio style, which has a case that unfolds to reveal the keyboard. But the problem with these Folio designs is that you're stuck awkwardly flipping the keyboard around if you just want to do tablet things like reading or playing a game. And honestly, a lot of them are really kind of junky. There's also a few keyboards that have really weird ideas for what you'd want to do. Turn your iPad into a laptop? Uh, nope, it's a tablet. Crazy origami folding keyboards? Uh, too fiddly and they feel terrible to type on. Standalone keyboards without a stand? No thanks. You want to be able to use your iPad and keyboard on your lap. Look, you want a keyboard because you want to get work done with your iPad. And you can't get work done if you're fiddling with a bad keyboard case. Microsoft's Universal Mobile Keyboard doesn't make you fiddly. It just helps you type faster and costs less in the competition. And that's the point of a keyboard, to get typing.
 Your iPad Air 2 is great, and you can get a lot of work done with it.
 But when most people think of work, they think of typing.
 And that means a keyboard. A real one.
 Most keyboards for the iPad work basically the same way.
 You charge them every month or so, you pair them over Bluetooth,
 and you attach them to an iPad somehow.
 There are a lot of different kinds of iPad keyboards.
 Some of them make it look like a laptop,
 some that come with built-in cases, and some that fold up like crazy accordions.
 But you want a keyboard that strikes a hard balance.
 It should be good to type on, it should hold your iPad at the right angle,
 it should work on your lap, and it shouldn't cost too much.
 That's a lot to expect, but there is one keyboard that managed to do it all.
 It might surprise you who makes it. Surprise me.
 Microsoft, yes Microsoft, makes the best Bluetooth keyboard for Apple's iPad Air 2.
 It's called the Universal Mobile Keyboard.
 It's not a case, it's just a keyboard with a neat little detachable cover
 that folds open to reveal the keys inside.
 That cover also acts as a stand.
 It keeps the keyboard stable on your lap or on a table,
 and it has a little slot for holding your iPad.
 That slot is actually one of the reasons we like it so much.
 It can hold a caseless iPad Air at two different angles,
 and it can accommodate most reasonably sized iPad cases.
 So if you didn't already have a case,
 you don't need to ditch it to use Microsoft's keyboard.
 The most important thing about a Bluetooth keyboard is that it feels nice to type on,
 and Microsoft's Universal Mobile Keyboard does.
 It's not quite a full-size keyboard, nothing in this category is,
 but the keys are big and separated,
 and they have enough resistance and travel to feel good to type on.
 Microsoft separates a few iPad functions like music controls and home into dedicated buttons,
 so you don't have to fiddle with the function key to figure out how to use them.
 There's also a dedicated number row, which is a big deal to me.
 The other thing that we like is that it's basically future-proof.
 You can use this keyboard with any iPad, iPhone, Android device, or Windows machine
 with a quick flick of this tiny switch.
 But the truth is, our favorite thing is the price.
 It retails for well under $100.
 That means you can spend the rest of your money on a case you actually want,
 instead of whatever happens to work with your keyboard.
 But if price is no object and you haven't picked out a case yet,
 our runner-up pick is the creme de la creme of iPad keyboard cases.
 It's the Belkin Code Ultimate Pro Keyboard Case for the iPad Air 2.
 This thing has it all.
 A big, easy-to-type-on keyboard, a nice case to hold the iPad,
 even if you want to leave the keyboard behind, and the case is compatible with Apple's smart covers.
 It has magnets to control everything from turning it on to positioning your tablet.
 You want angles? The code has them.
 Two for portrait and two for landscape.
 It has function buttons for damn near everything you could wish for, and the keys are backlit.
 Really, the only problem here is that it costs nearly twice as much as Microsoft's keyboard.
 Okay, so what else is out there? A ton, actually.
 There are more styles of iPad keyboard cases than you could believe.
 One popular style is to have a keyboard that acts like a kind of cover that the iPad slots into.
 Logitech's Ultra Thin Magnetic Clip-On Keyboard Cover is the best of these,
 but it doesn't work if you want to use a case.
 Then there's the Folio style, which has a case that unfolds to reveal the keyboard.
 But the problem with these Folio designs is that you're stuck awkwardly flipping the keyboard around
 if you just want to do tablet things like reading or playing a game.
 And honestly, a lot of them are really kind of junky.
 There's also a few keyboards that have really weird ideas for what you'd want to do.
 Turn your iPad into a laptop? Uh, nope, it's a tablet.
 Crazy origami folding keyboards? Uh, too fiddly and they feel terrible to type on.
 Standalone keyboards without a stand? No thanks.
 You want to be able to use your iPad and keyboard on your lap.
 Look, you want a keyboard because you want to get work done with your iPad.
 And you can't get work done if you're fiddling with a bad keyboard case.
 Microsoft's Universal Mobile Keyboard doesn't make you fiddly.
 It just helps you type faster and costs less in the competition.
 And that's the point of a keyboard, to get typing.