A Thing to Try: Clicks Keyboard

Look, I was a smartphone physical-keyboard diehard. But after BlackBerry failed and Android phones with slide-out keyboards stopped being a thing, I was forced to get on the touchscreen-typing train. I gave up on hardware keyboards forever. Or maybe not!

The new Clicks Keyboard, starting at $139, is an iPhone case with real keys. Yes, right here in 2024, I’ve been testing a hardware keyboard for phones!

What I like: The case has a built-in USB-C port, so you just slide your iPhone in to start typing. No annoying Bluetooth pairing. Typing on the tiny circular keys takes some getting used to. But once it clicked, it was so satisfying. I don’t necessarily type faster, but it feels better than glass. The unexpected benefit? You don't have a virtual keyboard taking up half the screen. I mean, just look at all that space in the photo above.

What I don’t like: I’ve been testing the $159 iPhone 15 Pro Max version. (The smaller iPhone 15 and 15 Pro cases cost $139.) Because of the large size of the phone it, well, looks ridiculous. Plus, I have the yellow option, so it looks like a giant banana phone. (Sing it with me!) That size also makes one-handed typing nearly impossible. And there’s no MagSafe magnet on the back of the case, so I can’t attach my wallet.

Still, if you miss real phone keyboards, it’s worth a try.