IT Blog

It won’t be remembered as a major moment in Apple history. But we should pause to note that for the first time this week, Apple announced new MacBook Air and iPad Pro models that look like near twins when viewed from above.

Here’s the new MacBook:

And here’s the new iPad Pro, as ensconced in its optional case:

The physical similarity stems from the fact that with both new devices, a big part of the news is the introduction of the Magic Keyboard. That’s Apple’s name for the nice, comfy, traditional keyboard that’s replacing the flatter, trouble-prone keyboard on the previous MacBook Air. With its optical case, the iPad Pro is getting both a Magic Keyboard and a roomy, MacBook-style trackpad, making the setup much more laptop-like than ever before. (The trackpad is enabled by the new cursor feature that’s coming to all iPads in a software update next week.)

Apple, in other words, has introduced two new laptops—one…