These Tiny Keyboards Make Typing on Your Phone a Cinch

The HB066 (Rating: 8/10, WIRED Recommends) is another three-panel design, where two side panels fold out from the center to form the keyboard surface. It’s on the smaller side; about the size of a typical smartphone when folded up. The letter keys are the same size as the Plugable's keys, but here on the Arteck, the cursor keys are smaller and you don’t get a dedicated row of function keys along the top. That’s an acceptable compromise to make the keyboard more portable, and the rest of it is pretty comfortable to type on.

Unlike some other folding keyboards, the zig-zagging design of the hinge fits around the keys, so all of the letter keys are the same size. That’s a big plus, as you don’t have to retrain your fingers to find and press the different-sized keys found on keyboards with straight hinges. You may remember the unique four-way folding mechanism in the Think Outside Stowaway, a keyboard that enjoyed a cult following back in the Palm Pilot era. The Arteck HB066 isn't quite as elegant as that long-dead device, but it comes awfully close.

The foldable keyboard from Plugable (Rating: 7/10) is the largest mode I tested, measuring about 6.75 by 5 inches inside its fold-out case, and 11.5 by 4.75 inches fully expanded. That makes it somewhat larger than most phones—even a chonker like the Galaxy Note 10+. But on the upside, the case doubles as a nice stand for your phone or iPad, and the keyboard is comfortable to type on. The keys are well separated, although they don’t have much vertical travel: Think of a cheap laptop keyboard and not a fancy mechanical one. There is also a set of cursor keys that are larger than most, plus a row of dedicated function keys, which is a big plus for programmers or fans of keyboard shortcuts. The keyboard turns itself on when you fold out the two side panels, with three LEDs to indicate the battery level, the Bluetooth status, and if Caps Lock is on. It’s a good pick if you are planning on typing a lot or are looking to do some programming on the road, as the larger cursor keys and function keys will make scrolling through longer documents easier.

Imagine if a Microsoft Ergonomic Keyboard went on a crash diet and forgot to stop, and you’d get something like the Moko Universal (Rating: 4/10). It's the smallest of the keyboards I tested, with an unusual angled folding design that results in it being only about 6.4 inches wide and half an inch thick when folded.

In use, this puts your hands at the same comfortable angle as an ergonomic keyboard, just without the palm support. You also forego the comfortable key travel—the keyboard is so thin that there's barely any room for the keys to move up and down, and this makes typing feel like pressing on wet cardboard. Plus, the lightweight construction of the keyboard means that if you're a vigorous typist like me, the whole thing will bounce up and down with each keystroke. So while the ergonomic design is friendlier on the wrists, the thin and flimsy construction make it a poor pick for pounding out pages of prose in a Paris patisserie—post-pandemic, of course.