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iPhone 11 Pro Max How is the keyboard situation so bad?

H

h.gilbert

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Original poster
Nov 17, 2022
745
1,311
Bordeaux
I'm trying out an older 11 Pro Max (on iOS 17.3) for a while to see if I want to switch back to iPhone. Last time I had an iPhone was the 7 Plus in Jet Black - I miss that color. There are quite a few things I like, for example how smoothly FaceID works and integration with my Air. But unfortunately there are more things I don't like which at the moment isn't swaying me back to iOS.

One of them is the keyboard, and I'm struggling to find a solution. It's the lack of features and customizability - mainly clipboard history.

I tried GBoard but it was missing a dedicated number row, symbols shown next to letters, and most importantly the clipboard history.

I tried Swiftkey and it seems to have a clipboard history but every time I use it doesn’t seem to work, just asks every time to “allow paste” even when using it in the same app. Also, despite re-ordering the keyboards in settings so that Swiftkey is at the top, in some apps the Apple keyboard opens by default so I have to switch, and in other apps like Reddit Swiftkey just isn't even available.

Another thing is the big empty space below the keyboard. Any way to remove it? Makes the keyboard take up a lot of space. I have a gap on my android, but it's much smaller - you can choose the height of the keyboard and the gap at the bottom.

Any ideas appreciated, thanks.
 
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h.gilbert said:
I'm trying out an older 11 Pro Max (on iOS 17.3) for a while to see if I want to switch back to iPhone. Last time I had an iPhone was the 7 Plus in Jet Black - I miss that color. There are quite a few things I like, for example how smoothly FaceID works and integration with my Air. But unfortunately there are more things I don't like which at the moment isn't swaying me back to iOS.

One of them is the keyboard, and I'm struggling to find a solution. It's the lack of features and customizability - mainly clipboard history.

I tried GBoard but it was missing a dedicated number row, symbols shown next to letters, and most importantly the clipboard history.

I tried Swiftkey and it seems to have a clipboard history but every time I use it doesn’t seem to work, just asks every time to “allow paste” even when using it in the same app. Also, despite re-ordering the keyboards in settings so that Swiftkey is at the top, in some apps the Apple keyboard opens by default so I have to switch, and in other apps like Reddit Swiftkey just isn't even available.

Another thing is the big empty space below the keyboard. Any way to remove it? Makes the keyboard take up a lot of space. I have a gap on my android, but it's much smaller - you can choose the height of the keyboard and the gap at the bottom.

Any ideas appreciated, thanks.
Click to expand...
Your 11 Pro Max may be at fault. You're 4 years behind.
 
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The native iPhone keyboard is definitely lacking a few features, like a dedicated number row and long press options for the letters rows. Android has had these options for years, on all levels of phones. And, the 3rd party keyboard alternatives don’t work well on iPhone devices either. I’ve used flagship android phones for years. The iPhone keyboard is a weakness but I have to live with it. Maybe one day soon, Apple will join the real world with more keyboard options. Using an iPhone 15 Pro Max.
 
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Jackbequickly said:
I find my 15 PM keyboard to be fine.
Click to expand...

The 15 PM doesn't have any of the issues I mentioned?

aj_niner said:
Your 11 Pro Max may be at fault. You're 4 years behind.
Click to expand...

I assumed because it can still run the latest iOS it shouldn't really be different to a newer iPhone. But given your post and the quote above, maybe that's not the case?
 
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kmf1 said:
The native iPhone keyboard is definitely lacking a few features, like a dedicated number row and long press options for the letters rows. Android has had these options for years, on all levels of phones. And, the 3rd party keyboard alternatives don’t work well on iPhone devices either. I’ve used flagship android phones for years. The iPhone keyboard is a weakness but I have to live with it. Maybe one day soon, Apple will join the real world with more keyboard options. Using an iPhone 15 Pro Max.
Click to expand...

Can you clarify if the 15 Pro Max has the problems I mentioned in my post?

It seems others are suggesting my issues are due to the 11PM being an older model. I don't really understand that because it's running the same iOS version as the new models.
 
h.gilbert said:
I assumed because it can still run the latest iOS it shouldn't really be different to a newer iPhone. But given your post and the quote above, maybe that's not the case?
Click to expand...
It isn't the iOS at fault. I was pointing out possible hardware failure.
 
My iPhone 11 Pro Max is fine on iOS 16.7

iOS 17 should have been limited to A14 Bionic and newer...

As for how it looks and functions, it's pretty much the same keyboard for many years now...
 
aj_niner said:
It isn't the iOS at fault. I was pointing out possible hardware failure.
Click to expand...

Hardware failure causing things like lack of clipboard history and gap under the keyboard? I don't think that's likely.

I want to know if the issues I mentioned can be fixed with a different keyboard or changing some settings. I haven't used iOS in a while so perhaps I'm overlooking something.
 
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I don’t ever check the clipboard history to know if it’s an issue or not. I shouldn’t have chimed in earlier. My apologies!
 
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h.gilbert said:
I'm trying out an older 11 Pro Max (on iOS 17.3) for a while to see if I want to switch back to iPhone. Last time I had an iPhone was the 7 Plus in Jet Black - I miss that color. There are quite a few things I like, for example how smoothly FaceID works and integration with my Air. But unfortunately there are more things I don't like which at the moment isn't swaying me back to iOS.

One of them is the keyboard, and I'm struggling to find a solution. It's the lack of features and customizability - mainly clipboard history.

I tried GBoard but it was missing a dedicated number row, symbols shown next to letters, and most importantly the clipboard history.

I tried Swiftkey and it seems to have a clipboard history but every time I use it doesn’t seem to work, just asks every time to “allow paste” even when using it in the same app. Also, despite re-ordering the keyboards in settings so that Swiftkey is at the top, in some apps the Apple keyboard opens by default so I have to switch, and in other apps like Reddit Swiftkey just isn't even available.

Another thing is the big empty space below the keyboard. Any way to remove it? Makes the keyboard take up a lot of space. I have a gap on my android, but it's much smaller - you can choose the height of the keyboard and the gap at the bottom.

Any ideas appreciated, thanks.
Click to expand...
You should be able to select for gboard to have a number row it's in the options
 
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h.gilbert said:
I'm trying out an older 11 Pro Max (on iOS 17.3) for a while to see if I want to switch back to iPhone. Last time I had an iPhone was the 7 Plus in Jet Black - I miss that color. There are quite a few things I like, for example how smoothly FaceID works and integration with my Air. But unfortunately there are more things I don't like which at the moment isn't swaying me back to iOS.

One of them is the keyboard, and I'm struggling to find a solution. It's the lack of features and customizability - mainly clipboard history.

I tried GBoard but it was missing a dedicated number row, symbols shown next to letters, and most importantly the clipboard history.

I tried Swiftkey and it seems to have a clipboard history but every time I use it doesn’t seem to work, just asks every time to “allow paste” even when using it in the same app. Also, despite re-ordering the keyboards in settings so that Swiftkey is at the top, in some apps the Apple keyboard opens by default so I have to switch, and in other apps like Reddit Swiftkey just isn't even available.

Another thing is the big empty space below the keyboard. Any way to remove it? Makes the keyboard take up a lot of space. I have a gap on my android, but it's much smaller - you can choose the height of the keyboard and the gap at the bottom.

Any ideas appreciated, thanks.
Click to expand...
There are something like 1.5 billion people that have absolutely no problem with the keyboard. I think you might need to do some introspection.
 
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carriebeary said:
You should be able to select for gboard to have a number row it's in the options
Click to expand...

It has a number row but it's shared with the QWERTY row. Can't see a way to change it.

Swiftkey so far is the best. Just annoying with the constant pop up asking to "allow paste". You can save copied text the the clipboard, but still doesn't give you a history of what you've copied. It also doesn't show symbols next to each letter like Gboard on Android - another thing I miss. Either way it's the best I've tried so far compared to native and Gboard.
 
AlastorKatriona said:
There are something like 1.5 billion people that have absolutely no problem with the keyboard. I think you might need to do some introspection.
Click to expand...

That's a fair point to make in any other situation. Except this is a forum specifically discussing expensive technology products that most of the world can't afford. That kind of comment here is frankly pointless.
 
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h.gilbert said:
That's a fair point to make in any other situation. Except this is a forum specifically discussing expensive technology products that most of the world can't afford. That kind of comment here is frankly pointless.
Click to expand...
I'm sorry that you think the comment is pointless, but it could not be any more on point. The comment is meant to point out that a mass of people larger than either of us can even comprehend use the keyboard every single without issue. You've tried to make a case for not even using the device at all because of the keyboard. What more is there really to say about that?
 
AlastorKatriona said:
I'm sorry that you think the comment is pointless, but it could not be any more on point. The comment is meant to point out that a mass of people larger than either of us can even comprehend use the keyboard every single without issue. You've tried to make a case for not even using the device at all because of the keyboard. What more is there really to say about that?
Click to expand...

It's pointless because it's such a poor argument to make.

I'm not making a case, I'm asking for help. If you re-read my original comment the keyboard is only one factor that's pushing me away from iPhone. If it was the only factor, I'd agree with your comment that I should just use it because it's not that bad.
 
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