If you want a keyboard that ships with Mac key configurations, your options are very limited. And the newest Magic Keyboard, which comes with the M1 iMac, has a TouchID button that has no equivalent on a Windows keyboard. The Option key is a more direct parallel to the Alt key on Windows. It's used very differently from the Windows key. The one you probably know best is the Command key, which is used for many popular keyboard shortcuts. On any keyboard not specifically made for Mac, the roles are reversed: F1–F12 are the primary uses for those top-row keys, and the system-level tasks require some sort of shortcut.Ī last consideration: Macs have a few unique keys. They can be used as classic F1–F12 function keys, but you'll need to press the Fn key for that.

The keys in the top row of an Apple keyboard are assigned to system-level tasks such as screen brightness and volume controls.

Some omit arrow keys, function keys, and more to get as small as 60% or 65%, often with a very compact layout.

You may also see keyboards referred to in percentage terms-that's not a percentage of a full-size keyboard's length and width, but a percentage of keys, based on the 104-key standard. If you like a smaller keyboard, a useful term to look for is tenkeyless or TKL, referring to a keyboard that lacks the 10-key number pad. Apple also makes a full-size Magic Keyboard with a number pad, but Apple treats that more like an XL model, whereas most keyboard manufacturers see the full-size 104-key layout as the default. Very few other keyboards, even small ones, use this kind of layout. The default Magic Keyboard has a compact, 78-key design that crunches all of its keys, including the arrows, into the smallest possible typing block. That said, if you're used to a Mac and especially if you've been using Apple’s Magic Keyboard, you've grown accustomed to certain keys and features that you'll want in any new keyboard you buy. Plug it in (possibly with the aid of a USB-A-to-C adapter) or pair it over Bluetooth, and its basic typing functions will just work. Technically, you can use any keyboard with your Mac.

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