The Hapurs Bluetooth 3.0 Wireless Foldable Keyboard is a foldable compact keyboard that you could carry in a largish coat pocket and whisk out at your local Starbucks. There is no shortage of compact keyboards for sale but Hapurs have made one that is very affordable, retailing for just $18.99 on Amazon, which is considerably less than the RRP of $59.99.

Design & Pairing

The Hapurs Bluetooth 3.0 Wireless Foldable Keyboard is constructed from ABS plastic, it's rugged and has a very strong hinge. The keyboard uses magnets to make sure it stays closed, so it doesn't unintentionally open. Rubber grips on the left and right of the keyboard's base keep this lightweight Hapurs Keyboard steady on glossy and matt surfaces. Bluetooth 3.0 is the wireless interface used and is backwards compatible with older versions of Bluetooth. We found that a previously paired device connected to the Hapurs Bluetooth 3.0 Wireless Foldable Keyboard in a matter of seconds when the two were in range of one another. The range varied quite a bit depending on the device being used; generally 15 metres seemed to be the maximum range when using Bluetooth 3.0, so it's a keyboard fit for presentation scenarios. On a full charge the battery can last for an entire 24 hours with constant typing usage, the standby time is rated for 35 days. The keyboard recharges via micro-USB and a cable is supplied within the box.

Typing

Typing on this chiclet styled keyboard is a little bit unusual initially. This is because a gap where the hinge is located divides the keyboard evenly down the middle. It is easy and quick for touch-typists to adjust to this, as this correct typing style divides the keyboard into halves with their left and right hands. Some of us think that the space between each side of the keyboard actually improves typing accuracy. However, those who don't touch-type at the studio felt it actually slowed them down and they couldn't adjust to it quickly. The key placement is, of course, qwerty, and keys such as the enter and arrow keys are scaled well, with all alphabet keys being large with plentiful space between them. However, the backspace key is a little too small for our liking; a 40% size increase would have been perfect. The space bar having a centre gap was also very difficult to get used to, and made us realise that we normally hit it directly in the middle quite a bit when typing. Because the keyboard is foldable, it isn't really usable on any surface other than a flat one - it will sink if you attempt to use it on your lap.

Not Optimised For iOS

All media keys were left redundant for us as they didn't work with iOS devices. We have used Bluetooth keyboards in the past that did enable media functions such as volume controls and jumping to the home screen and they proved to be quite convenient, so it was sad to see this keyboard not optimised for iOS. We presume that Windows devices are compatible as a Microsoft Windows button is featured on the keyboard.

Overall

In summary, the Hapurs Bluetooth 3.0 Wireless Foldable Keyboard may be very cheap at just $18.99, but we found that touch-typists benefited the most from this physical keyboard, and those with different and slower typing styles found their current on-screen keyboards faster and more accurate because of the largish gap caused by the hinge in the middle of the keyboard. Nevertheless this foldable and slim design is quite neat.