MIDI ControllerOverreview

Korg microKEY Air 37

The cable-free mini-keyboard reviewers keep recommending for an iPad — and can't quite agree with each other about the wireless.

11 sourcesUpdated
$130Typical US price

Score aggregates reviewer opinions across topics.

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Korg microKEY Air 37

The short version

What to know.

A 37-key, mini-key MIDI controller built around Bluetooth LE wireless, around $130. It's a keys-first, minimalist board: three octaves of velocity-sensitive 'Natural Touch' mini keys, pitch and mod wheels, octave buttons and a damper-pedal jack — no pads, knobs, faders, screen, aftertouch or 5-pin MIDI. Sources broadly agree on what it's for: it's very portable (about a kilo, running ~30 hours on two AA batteries or over USB bus power), the mini keybed is rated among the better ones at the size, it's class-compliant so it just works on Mac and iOS, and it ships with a generous Korg software bundle. Opinion splits on the feature it's named for. Most reviewers and iOS/Mac owners call the Bluetooth latency negligible and the link as good as wired for composing; others report real, noticeable lag and flaky pairing — a split that tracks platform (smooth on Mac/iOS, driver-dependent on Windows) and use (fine for entering notes, exposed by tight or live playing). Korg's own note concedes Bluetooth adds a few to a few tens of milliseconds versus USB. Smaller disagreements follow: the mini keys draw both 'best keybed at the size' praise and 'too small / a bit cheap' complaints, and the plastic build is 'sturdy for its weight' to most but toy-like to a few. Windows setup is the most common gripe, and there's no MIDI DIN, CV or aftertouch — but plugged into USB it sidesteps the latency question entirely.

About this product

The 37-key Bluetooth model of Korg's microKEY Air line (a.k.a. microKEY2 Air) — three octaves of slim 'Natural Touch' mini keys, pitch and mod WHEELS, octave buttons and a damper-pedal jack. Not the 25-key (which swaps the wheels for a joystick + arpeggiator and a sustain button), and not the cheaper WIRED microKEY 37 (no Bluetooth). No pads, knobs, faders, screen, aftertouch or 5-pin MIDI.

Korg's microKEY Air was one of the first Bluetooth MIDI keyboards, arriving in 2016 as the wireless branch of the microKEY2 line. The 37-key model gives three octaves of Korg's slim Natural Touch mini keys, real pitch and mod wheels and a sustain-pedal jack, and runs cordless off a pair of AA batteries — or plugs in over USB.

It has spent years as a default recommendation for iPad and laptop producers who want note entry without a cable, and its reputation is unusually settled on the things it does — the keys, the size, the battery life — while the one feature it's named for, the wireless link, is exactly where opinions still divide.

A good fit for

  • iPad, iPhone and Mac producers who want a wireless, three-octave board that vanishes into a bag
  • Players who value a good mini keybed and real pitch/mod wheels plus a sustain-pedal jack over pads and knobs
  • Anyone tight on desk space who wants cable-free note entry
  • Beginners who'll actually use the bundled Korg software to get started

Think twice if

  • You need pads, knobs/faders, aftertouch or deep DAW auto-mapping — this is a keys-first, class-compliant controller with none of those
  • You play piano seriously or have large hands — mini keys divide people, and full-size boards exist for that
  • You're a Windows user who wants painless Bluetooth — the BLE-driver setup is the most common complaint
  • You do tight or live playing where any wireless latency matters — use USB, or a board with 5-pin MIDI (there's no DIN here)
  • You don't need wireless — the cheaper wired microKEY 37, or a fuller-featured MPK Mini, gives you more for the money

The reviewer consensus

Agreement &
disagreement.

1 / 8topics divide opinion
portabilitykeybedcontrolsintegrationsoftwarebuildvalueconnectivity
1 Strong agreement6 Mostly agree1 Divided opinions

Common ground6

  • Genuinely portable: a thin three-octave slab, about a kilo, running ~30 hours on two AA batteries or over USB bus power — small enough for a laptop bag or an airplane tray
  • The 'Natural Touch' mini keybed is rated among the better mini keys — velocity-sensitive and comfortable, with the curve adjustable in Korg's free editor
  • Real pitch and mod wheels plus a damper-pedal jack — more complete controls than the 25-key's joystick, and unusual on a board this thin

Points of contention4

  • Bluetooth latency and reliability: most call it negligible (especially on iOS/Mac), but others hear real lag and hit flaky pairing — the split tracks platform (smooth on Mac/iOS, driver-dependent on Windows) and use (fine for note entry, exposed by tight or live playing)
  • The mini keys: praised by many as among the best at the size, but a minority find them too small for large hands or fast lines, and a few call them light/cheap with limited velocity variation
  • The build: 'sturdy for its weight' to most, but toy-like — with a flimsy-feeling USB port — to a minority

A closer look.

8 topics · 1 divided
Left: criticalRight: positiveTighter lines: more agreement

Connectivity

Leans positiveDivided opinions
Reviewer sentiment8 supporting sources
CriticalNeutralPositive

Band: opinion spread · Dot: weighted average

The reason to buy it and the one genuinely contested axis. Everyone agrees on the physical I/O — Bluetooth LE (Apple BLE-MIDI), a USB-B port and a damper-pedal jack, but no 5-pin MIDI, no MIDI input, no CV and no aftertouch — and everyone agrees some wireless latency exists. Where they split is whether it matters. Reviewers and most iOS/Mac owners call it negligible and effectively as responsive as wired for composing; a real minority hear noticeable lag, and pairing can be finicky — Amazon owner Michael reports it can take multiple tries to connect and that he felt some lag. The split tracks platform (smooth on Mac/iOS, driver-dependent on Windows), distance, and use (fine for note entry, exposed by tight or live playing). Plugging in over USB removes the question entirely.

Measured

Korg's spec lists Bluetooth Low Energy (Apple BLE-MIDI compliant), a USB Type B port and an assignable switch (damper) jack — but no 5-pin DIN, no MIDI input, no CV/gate and no aftertouch. Korg's own support note states Bluetooth MIDI "has delay ranging from a few millisecond to a few tens of milliseconds in comparison with USB," and that the latency rises as the distance between keyboard and device grows; wired USB avoids it.

vs. listeners — The spec sheet and Korg's note establish that some latency is physically there, but not whether it matters — that depends on your platform, distance and playing. It reads as negligible to most iOS/Mac users composing, and as a real drag to Windows users and anyone playing tight, live parts, which is why the camps stand rather than averaging to a single verdict.

Where it splits
Wireless is effectively as good as wired — latency negligible, especially on iOS/Mac57%

“And while latency – the time it takes between you hitting a key and for you to hear the sound – is usually an issue with Bluetooth devices, we found it not to be too much of a problem, getting particularly low values when playing iOS apps.”

MusicRadar
There's real, noticeable latency — fine for entering notes, a problem for tight or live playing43%

“There IS indeed latency though, and it's the first thing you notice when you press a key for the very first time.”

Eraser · Loopy Pro forum
Link to this topic

The hardware

Specifications.

Checked

Playing surface

Keys
37 mini-size
Pitch / mod
Wheels

Connection

USB
USB-B
Bluetooth MIDI
Yes
Pedal inputs
Footswitch
Power
USB bus power, Battery
Battery
30 h

Physical

Weight
1,000 g
Dimensions
565 × 139 × 54 mm

Manufacturer-published figures, not measurements · from korg.com.

Follow the evidence

Sources 11

1–6 of 11 sources

Read with context

Limitations & method.

As of

What to keep in mind 5

  1. This is a read of where opinion lands as of July 2026. It's an older design — out since 2016 — and newer rivals, firmware and OS versions keep shifting the picture.

  2. The star rating comes from Amazon's listing, which pools reviews across all four Air sizes (25/37/49/61) rather than the 37 alone — and owner ratings skew positive anyway, since they mostly come from people who chose to buy it. Thomann's smaller sample is specific to the 37.

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