Combined Weight of a 12.9-inch iPad Pro and a Magic Keyboard Is Heavier Than a 13-inch MacBook Air

Apple hasn't specified the weight of its new Magic Keyboard, but a MacRumors reader who received their unit early has weighed the larger model for the 12.9-inch iPad Pro and found it to be 710 grams. That makes the Magic Keyboard heavier than the ‌iPad Pro‌, which weighs 641 grams.

EBC4B2D2 E53F 4CFC AA99 12E3605F206B

Image by OzMoon

It's not surprising that the keyboard has to have some heft to counterbalance a connected ‌iPad Pro‌ and provide a sturdy base for working on. But that makes their combined weight 1,351 grams, which is heavier than a 13-inch MacBook Air (1,290 grams) and closer to the weight of a 13-inch MacBook Pro (1,370 grams).

So if you were expecting a 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ and Magic Keyboard to be a lighter option than using a laptop when you're on the road, then it's worth being aware that that's not necessarily going to be the case. On the other hand, 9to5Mac claims the Magic Keyboard for the 11-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ weighs 601 grams, which would mean that their combined weight would be 1,072 grams. That's lighter than any MacBook that Apple currently sells.

In our upcoming review of the new Magic Keyboard, we'll look at weight considerations, portability, and more. Apple's Magic Keyboard includes a floating cantilevered design for viewing angles, a backlit keyboard with scissor-switch keys, and an integrated trackpad. You can order one for the 11-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ for $299, and for the 12.9-inch ‌iPad Pro‌ for $349 on Apple.com.

Related Roundup: iPad Pro
Buyer's Guide: iPad Pro (Don't Buy)

Popular Stories

iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Feature 1

iPhone 17 Pro Coming Soon With These 14 New Features

Monday June 30, 2025 1:08 pm PDT by
Apple's next-generation iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are less than three months away, and there are plenty of rumors about the devices. Apple is expected to launch the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and iPhone 17 Pro Max in September this year. Below, we recap key changes rumored for the iPhone 17 Pro models:Aluminum frame: iPhone 17 Pro models are rumored to have an...
A18 Pro Chip

New MacBook With A18 Pro Chip Spotted in Apple Code

Monday June 30, 2025 8:05 am PDT by
Apple is developing a MacBook with the A18 Pro chip, according to findings in backend code uncovered by MacRumors. Earlier today, Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo reported that Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip. The machine is expected to feature a 13-inch display, the A18 Pro chip, and color options that include silver, blue, pink, and yellow. MacRumors...
iPhone 17 Pro Lower Logo Magsafe

iPhone 17 Pro's New MagSafe Design Revealed in Leaked Photo

Wednesday July 2, 2025 8:37 am PDT by
The upcoming iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are rumored to have a slightly different MagSafe magnet layout compared to existing iPhone models, and a leaked photo has offered a closer look at the supposed new design. The leaker Majin Bu today shared a photo of alleged MagSafe magnet arrays for third-party iPhone 17 Pro cases. On existing iPhone models with MagSafe, the magnets form a...
macbook air spacegray purple

Apple Planning to Launch Low-Cost MacBook Powered By iPhone Chip

Monday June 30, 2025 3:20 am PDT by
Apple is planning to launch a low-cost MacBook powered by an iPhone chip, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. In an article published on X, Kuo explained that the device will feature a 13-inch display and the A18 Pro chip, making it the first Mac powered by an iPhone chip. The A18 Pro chip debuted in the iPhone 16 Pro last year. To date, all Apple silicon Macs have contained M-series...
Apple Watch Ultra Night Mode Screen

Apple Watch Ultra 3 Launching Later This Year With Two Key Upgrades

Wednesday July 2, 2025 1:13 pm PDT by
The long wait for an Apple Watch Ultra 3 appears to be nearly over, and it is rumored to feature both satellite connectivity and 5G support. Apple Watch Ultra's existing Night Mode In his latest Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that the Apple Watch Ultra 3 is on track to launch this year with "significant" new features, including satellite connectivity, which would let you...
iOS 18

Apple Releases Second iOS 18.6 Public Beta

Tuesday July 1, 2025 10:19 am PDT by
Apple today seeded the second betas of upcoming iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 updates to public beta testers, with the betas coming just a day after Apple provided the betas to developers. Apple has also released a second beta of macOS Sequoia 15.6. Testers who have signed up for beta updates through Apple's beta site can download iOS 18.6 and iPadOS 18.6 from the Settings app on a compatible...
Wi Fi WiFi General Feature

iOS 26 Adds a Useful New Wi-Fi Feature to Your iPhone

Wednesday July 2, 2025 6:36 am PDT by
iOS 26 and iPadOS 26 add a smaller yet useful Wi-Fi feature to iPhones and iPads. As spotted by Creative Strategies analyst Max Weinbach, sign-in details for captive Wi-Fi networks are now synced across iPhones and iPads running iOS 26 and iPadOS 26. For example, while Weinbach was staying at a Hilton hotel, his iPhone prompted him to fill in Wi-Fi details from his iPad that was already...
maxresdefault

Five Features Coming to AirPods Pro 3

Friday June 27, 2025 10:52 am PDT by
Apple hasn't updated the AirPods Pro since 2022, and the earbuds are due for a refresh. We're counting on a new model this year, and we've seen several hints of new AirPods tucked away in Apple's code. Rumors suggest that Apple has some exciting new features planned that will make it worthwhile to upgrade to the latest model. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. Heal...
replay all time playlist apple music

Apple Music Debuts All-New Personalized Playlist

Monday June 30, 2025 7:16 am PDT by
As part of its 10-year celebrations of Apple Music, Apple today released an all-new personalized playlist that collates your entire listening history. The playlist, called "Replay All Time," expands on Apple Music's existing Replay features. Previously, users could only see their top songs for each individual calendar year that they've been subscribed to Apple Music, but now, Replay All...

Top Rated Comments

TPALTony Avatar
68 months ago
And the combined weight of an SUV and a trailer is more than that of a pick up truck... But just like I can drive the SUV without the trailer, I can use the iPad without the keyboard...

So the use cases are still very much there for this combination. Take the keyboard when you need it...

How does the weight compare to a Surface with a keyboard?
Score: 33 Votes (Like | Disagree)
unchecked Avatar
68 months ago

This is a perfect example of today's empty "news" business.

Modularity has always had a penalty in size. That's not even remotely news in a design perspective.

Further the point of the keyboard is to provide tablet users with a desktop option for those who might want it . Most likely at their desk, not on the go. That said, you might occasionally take it on the go, not regularly.

If you always or regularly need a keyboard on the go, well.....the concept of a laptop such as.....the MacBook Air exists.

No sugar Sherlock. Actual news please. Not click-chasing to nowhere...
This IS actual news. We're only learning about the weight of the keyboard today. The specs aren't listed on the Apple store either.
Score: 22 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jessemcgoldrick Avatar
68 months ago
Honestly I’m gutted they got rid of the 12” Macbook it was the ultimate portable work device for 90% of people. I bought the last fully upgraded model with mobile i7 processor, 16gb ram etc, honestly it is still hands down the best portable device for work when partnered with a larger screen iPhone. I also have a 2018 iPad Pro and a 2019 iPad Mini and I can tell you I reach for the 12” Macbook every single time if I have to get any work done on the move. The iPad pro performance just isn’t made good use of when combined with all the workflow shortcomings of iOS. An example; I’ve been doing some work editing huge 100mp+ image files in Affinity with multiple layers. On the 12” Macbook everything works great, no lag. On a iPad Pro it crashes often and it just can’t deal with the image files which are like 1gb or larger.

In iOS something as simple as wanting to crop an image file stored in Files is a headache. Markdown and Shortcuts no longer includes a crop interface so I have to either copy in to the Photos app, edit, save back to files, delete from Photos App, or I have to use a third party app which will first usually duplicate the file to it’s own file type for editing etc. On the 12” Macbook Preview does everything I need quickly and easily. There are countless examples of simple tasks that are still too cumbersome in iOS.
Score: 19 Votes (Like | Disagree)
phenste Avatar
68 months ago
Genuinely very happy about this. Anyone who uses a Smart Keyboard Folio knows that they are WAY too susceptible to falling backward because virtually all of the weight is in the iPad. Seems like the added heft on the bottom will balance that out and make this (typing on my 11” Pro, waiting on a Smart pre-order) feel much more genuinely like a laptop replacement.

Also, cannot WAIT for backlit keys

(one more thing: if people are worried about this weighing too much…just remember, Apple laptops weighed 7+ lbs once upon a time ;-)
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
supertiffany Avatar
68 months ago
well the iPad Pro

offers

better performance
better battery
better screen
better speakers



than the macbook air

if anything it is the macbook air that is overweight compared to the performance it offers and just lighter by a few grams compared to the macbook pro and ipad pro.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
AppleTO Avatar
68 months ago
In Canada, the Magic Keyboard for the 12.9 inch costs $449, and the regular iPad costs $429. How does this even remotely make sense?
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)