Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Returned to iPhone, and the keyboard is still terrible in iOS 5
- Thread starter onthecouchagain
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Agreed. I think the big difference is Apple's far more sophisticated keyboard heuristics. It is better able to resolve user error than anything else on the market.
Swype is quite cool but I find it frustrating to use with longer sentences and punctuation. If you're the kind of person who wants to jot off quick, informal texts or notes then it is amazing. It's telling that most of the promo videos show just this usage.
But the error correction and word resolution steadily goes downhill when writing down complex ideas or composing documents. With that I've found it to be slower then the iPhone/iPad keyboard as you are constantly corrected and clarifying.
Last edited:
Samsung do not use the stock ICS keyboard sadly (even in their ICS releases for the SGSII).
Samsung's soft keyboard is a turd in my opinion.
I guess I'll just continue using this thread to say some of my other thoughts regarding my return to iPhone and iOS...
After using an iPad, I'm really beginning to see how unfit iOS is for the iPhone. iOS is far better realized on the iPad. You might say "duh" but I'm simply pointing out how inherently cumbersome (I was going to say "flawed" but I think that would be too strong of a description) iOS is on the iPhone's small screen.
Besides the keyboard, Mail, Safari (Safari so sorely needs more intuitive controls on the iPhone. It takes at least three steps to switch between tabs), navigating menus in general (especially in Settings), folders, swiping between apps, gesturing to go home, etc., are all so much better handled on the iPad. Even Notifications is a bit nicer because you can see more things in the lock screen.
Again, I know I might be stating the obvious because the iPad has the bigger screen, and you might even say the crux of this post is that the iPhone needs a larger screen, but I really don't think that would necessarily solve some of these inherent issues of iOS on the iPhone.
I think Apple needs to update iOS with specific improvements for the iPhone. Swiping should be introduced to Safari iPhone (I am really resisting trying to draw comparisons, but look to Chrome mobile browser for a brilliant way of swiping between tabs), the keyboard needs improvement, Mail needs to, at least, give you the option to show full threads (not to mention allow attachments; I know this plagues iPad too), ... and so on and so on.
In short, iOS 6 really needs to bring it.
After using an iPad, I'm really beginning to see how unfit iOS is for the iPhone. iOS is far better realized on the iPad. You might say "duh" but I'm simply pointing out how inherently cumbersome (I was going to say "flawed" but I think that would be too strong of a description) iOS is on the iPhone's small screen.
Besides the keyboard, Mail, Safari (Safari so sorely needs more intuitive controls on the iPhone. It takes at least three steps to switch between tabs), navigating menus in general (especially in Settings), folders, swiping between apps, gesturing to go home, etc., are all so much better handled on the iPad. Even Notifications is a bit nicer because you can see more things in the lock screen.
Again, I know I might be stating the obvious because the iPad has the bigger screen, and you might even say the crux of this post is that the iPhone needs a larger screen, but I really don't think that would necessarily solve some of these inherent issues of iOS on the iPhone.
I think Apple needs to update iOS with specific improvements for the iPhone. Swiping should be introduced to Safari iPhone (I am really resisting trying to draw comparisons, but look to Chrome mobile browser for a brilliant way of swiping between tabs), the keyboard needs improvement, Mail needs to, at least, give you the option to show full threads (not to mention allow attachments; I know this plagues iPad too), ... and so on and so on.
In short, iOS 6 really needs to bring it.
Last edited:
The best keyboard in the business is found on the Backberry Bold 9900.
RIM got almost everything wrong in recent years but they got the 9900's keyboard right. if you're a heavy emailer on the go the 9900 can't be beat for comfort, precision and speed.
It's the only thing I miss from my blackberry daze
The best keyboard in the business is found on the Backberry Bold 9900.
RIM got almost everything wrong in recent years but they got the 9900's keyboard right. if you're a heavy emailer on the go the 9900 can't be beat for comfort, precision and speed.
It's the only thing I miss from my blackberry daze
& the notification light.
I'll admit the iPhone keyboard can be pretty crappy at times. Sometimes it refuses to let me type a key (presumably because it thinks I'm trying to type some other word), and the autocorrect is just awful these days. Before it used to correct 99% of my errors; these days it replaces proper words with other words that don't make sense in the context, and half the time if you backspace, it just decides to randomly capitalize the letter. I wish I could get the IOS 3 keyboard back.
As I type "likebthis" right now, iOS is trying to correct it. You should try resetting your iOS keyboard dictionary. It's possible some words got saved to the dictionary erroneously, so the autocorrect ignores them.
Go to Settings -> General -> Reset (at the bottom) -> Reset Keybord Dictionary
See if that helps.
Go to Settings -> General -> Reset (at the bottom) -> Reset Keybord Dictionary
See if that helps.
Just did it. I think apple should do how android does. If you type an error too many times on the iPhone it will remember the error and it will autocorrect to misspelled words! Android makes you click on it to save it if you are purposely spelling a word wrong (inside jokes, nouns, etc)...
There are many things the iOS keyboard should do that the ICS keyboard does. This is certainly one of them.
----------
It's really bizarre. Sometimes the iOS keyboard will be extremely smooth and responsive (though still missing keys, just less frequently) and other times, it'll straight up miss multiple letters and whole words. It feels as if it's "lagging" or loading something in the background that's preventing it from registering taps.
There's no real method of reproducing what I'm talking about consistently. This "extreme" hangup seems to happen when immediately opening a program; like the keyboard isn't ready yet for your taps.
Don't know.
----------
And again, to all the naysayers, I'm not necessarily calling anyone liars. I understand everyone has different typing methods (one hand, landscape vs. portrait, etc.) and everyone types at different speeds, but all one needs to do to point out that this isn't a few isolated incidents is to look at the plethora of iPhone autocorrect websites there are out on the web. "Damn You iPhone Auto Correct" comes to mind. There are many others like it.
The keyboard and auto correction need improving.
Last edited:
wow, just had to respond cause i liked this comment so much. I'm in the 100% same boat, and i have vanilla JB installed on my nexus. they keyboard still isn't as smooth.
The saddest thing is there isn't a hint of improvement coming to the keyboard in iOS 6 (the OP was posted before apple's announcement). No suggestion bar, no user decided dictionary, no better editing features (it's so much faster to edit with the tab and suggestion bar in ICS than it is to always wait for the magnifying glass to come up), nothing.
And to bring in something related... Dictation is so much better on ICS. I notice when dictating longer sentences on my iPad it suffers and gets words wrong or misses them entirely. On ICS however since it types out what you're saying as you're speaking it has no problem handling long sentences. It's also generally better at getting what you're saying correctly. It honestly surprises me every time how accurate it is. I don't get the same level of reliability when dictating on my iPad.
And to bring in something related... Dictation is so much better on ICS. I notice when dictating longer sentences on my iPad it suffers and gets words wrong or misses them entirely. On ICS however since it types out what you're saying as you're speaking it has no problem handling long sentences. It's also generally better at getting what you're saying correctly. It honestly surprises me every time how accurate it is. I don't get the same level of reliability when dictating on my iPad.
Your almost 3 generations behind on Android stock keyboards. Droid X actually had a custom Moto keyboard; it was not stock. And regarding stock you had Froyo, Gingerbread, Ice Cream Sandwich and now Jelly bean. But some consider Swiftkey to be the best, others like SlideIt but you like swype. That's the beauty of Android. You decide what you like.
Swiftkey learns from what you've already typed. Sometimes I can just tap space bar to type an entire sentence.
I also like the Android keyboard(s) much better for their predictive qualities. I also like that on most Android keyboards I can hold down a top key to quickly type a number, and some others to get punctuation.
But the biggest difference (and mystery to me) is that the iOS keyboard labels don't shift between lower and upper case with the shift key. Isn't that one of the points of using an onscreen keyboard instead of fixed physical key labels?
Sometimes it seems like Apple does things differently just to be different, not better.
I can type faster one handed on iOS than I can with Swype on android.
It's all preference. Everything else is conjecture.
It's all preference. Everything else is conjecture.
Personally, I have not experienced the issues you are describing with the iOS keyboard or at least not enough for me to remember. So if they have occured for me they obviously are not much of an inconvenience for me. This is not "intellectually dishonest" or however you want to label it but this is just my experience. Just because this is something that you experience and bothers you does not mean it does the same for others. It's fine to post your experience and wish for change but why the need to get others to agree? The iOS keyboard works fine for me. As far as I'm concerned Apple can leave it as is.
I know someone who has both the S3 and the iPhone 4S, and can't get over how much easier it is to type on the iPhone. "Typing is heaven now" were his words
Sorry Dodge but I call BS. You always come up with these little anecdotes in nearly every thread, and every time these people just happen to agree with your own views about the iPhone.
Okay. Totally missed the point calling for intellectual honesty (hint: not talking about you).
----------
I know someone who has both the S3 and the iPhone 4S, and can't get over how much easier it is to type on the iPhone. "Typing is heaven now" were his words
No doubt.
And I know a keyboard that singlehandedly gave birth to an internet phenomenon that demonstrates just how poor said keyboard is. This phenom, people will argue, can be faked, but it doesn't change the fact that it exists only because of that keyboard, which hasn't been improved in any extraordinary way for the past four or five years.
I'm glad that an a feature of android/iOS has been discussed without turning into a flame war
I'm currently on a Galaxy Nexus - I prefer the iOS keyboard over the stock ICS keyboard but again, I think it is all just down to personal preference. Here's my list of my preferred keyboards in order of preference:
1) iPad keyboard
2) iPhone keyboard / Swype on Android (love them both equally)
3) ICS keyboard
I'm not saying that the ICS keyboard is bad or anything, I just tend to prefer the iOS one.
I'm currently on a Galaxy Nexus - I prefer the iOS keyboard over the stock ICS keyboard but again, I think it is all just down to personal preference. Here's my list of my preferred keyboards in order of preference:
1) iPad keyboard
2) iPhone keyboard / Swype on Android (love them both equally)
3) ICS keyboard
I'm not saying that the ICS keyboard is bad or anything, I just tend to prefer the iOS one.
