Clicks is a case for iPhone with a built-in physical keyboard. In the past, smartphones had built-in keyboards, but since the iPhone, they’ve gradually disappeared. Clicks believes this was a mistake and brings the physical smartphone keyboard back. Is it worth it, or is the past better left in the past? You’ll find out in our review.
Clicks is a case for the iPhone, available for the iPhone 14, 14 Pro, 14 Pro Max, 15, 15 Pro, and 15 Pro Max. We have the Clicks for the iPhone 15 Pro in gray and the 15 Pro Max in yellow and have been using it for just over a month now. Let me get to the elephant in the room: This thing makes your iPhone really huge. You can’t really tell how big it is from the photos; you only notice it once you put the case on your iPhone.
You connect the Clicks to your iPhone by sliding it in. You need to push the top part of the Clicks down so you can slide your iPhone in horizontally and connect it to the USB-C port of the case. This way, the USB-C port doesn’t get bent. Once connected, you can start typing right away.
The Clicks keyboard has a backlight, which is necessary in the dark. The keyboard layout is the same as on the iPhone. Specifically, this means that Enter, Delete, and Tab are all in the same place as on your virtual keyboard. The same goes for the punctuation marks.
There’s a separate key (123) that lets you switch between letters and punctuation and numbers. Pressing it once allows you to enter a number once, and pressing it twice locks it on numbers and punctuation. However, if you lock your iPhone, this lock remains active. Sometimes, when you unlock your phone at a later point in time, you suddenly start typing numbers, which can be confusing. The 15 Pro Max case has a handy feature where the 123 key is lit up when the keyboard is locked on numbers, which is missing on the iPhone 15 Pro case we have. Additionally, there’s a key to bring up the virtual keyboard, which can sometimes be handy and necessary.
Typing with the Clicks takes some getting used to. It took me about three weeks to get fast enough with it. In my case, it’s not really faster than a virtual keyboard, but if you really put in the effort, it should be achievable. Typing on the Pro Max is a bit easier; the keys are slightly larger, making them easier to hit. On the smaller iPhone, everything feels a bit too cramped. The advantage of a virtual keyboard is that you have autocorrect and autocomplete, where you can see words above your keyboard and tap on them. You can also swipe on many virtual keyboards, which is, of course, faster if it works well.
The makers of Clicks have added some weight to the bottom of the case. This helps balance the weight of your phone, making it easier to hold with your fingers on the keyboard without the phone tipping forward.
Clicks also impacts your battery life. We’ve noticed an estimated consumption that’s about one-fifth greater than normal. That’s something you need to be willing to accept. The Clicks case also has its own USB-C port, but it can only be used to charge your iPhone. For example, Apple CarPlay doesn’t work with it. Another downside is that this first version of the Clicks case doesn’t have MagSafe.
One advantage, however, is extra screen space. You only realize how much space a virtual keyboard takes up when it’s not there. With your physical Clicks keyboard, there’s much more space left. Whether you’re viewing search results in Spotlight or chatting in WhatsApp, the extra space is refreshing. Also handy: shortcuts. For example, Cmd + F to search on a webpage or in a document, Cmd + Spacebar to go to Spotlight, Cmd + H to go home, and the spacebar to scroll in Safari. A good addition to make you more productive.
Clicks has also launched an app for its keyboard. Through the app, you can install firmware updates, control the backlight, and set how long the keyboard stays active to save battery. The latter option is a welcome addition but also annoying. If your keyboard goes to sleep, you must press a few keys to wake it up. But with a physical keyboard, you naturally want to be able to type anytime.
Conclusion
Smartphones with physical keyboards are practically extinct. You’d have to search hard to find one.
After using Clicks for a month, the conclusion, unfortunately, is that the physical keyboard is better left in the past. The advantages don’t outweigh the disadvantages. I wish it were different because I would have loved to see this start-up succeed, but I don’t see it happening. The bottom line is that your phone becomes too large, making it cumbersome to hold and use.
Pros
- A physical keyboard is always nicer than a virtual one
- The case feels comfortable and solid
- Shortcuts
- Good keyboard layout
Cons
- Impact on battery life
- Makes the phone too big
- Requires effort to learn to type on it
- No MagSafe
Informatie
- Website: clicks.tech
- Price: 139 / 159 USD
