Hi Everyone.
I am a brand spankin' new owner of my Droid X. I must say I love the phone except I sorta hate the keyboard. My last phone was a blackberry storm- hated that phone but loved its keyboard! Is there a keyboard that anyone would recommend (preferably free but not mandatory at all)? My thumbs, I have come to realize, are sightly bigger than most. I do not care for swype and the other keyboard has the period next to the space bar so most of sentances.look.like.this.
I appreciate any help.
Also. My battery makes it half way through the day before I have to re-charge. Any pointers/suggestions/apps that could help? Again, Thank You for helping me.
Jon
I really like the gingerbread keyboard. You can find it in the market and it is free.
How long did you try swype for? It takes a little while to get used to but it can work very well. If you go the swype settings (under settings - keyboard settings) you can adjust the speed vs accuracy slider...try sliding it towards accuracy. The droid x is pretty fast and doesn't slow easily.
Swiftkey and the gingerbread keyboard are both great alternatives if you don't like swype.
Battery issues - Juice defender. Turns off 3g connection when not in use, and you can adjust the polling interval to sync gmail/facebook/etc. Phone calls and texts are still always on. I think there's an option in it to set brightness to automatic. If there isn't, there is an option in the phone settings. If battery life remains an issue, there are extended batteries, but I think the require a different cover as well that makes the phone thicker.
Did you just get the phone? Every time I get a new phone (or install a new rom) I spend a lot of time playing around with settings and downloading/trying new apps, so I kill the battery quickly.
I really am a huge fan of Swype, but it does take some people a few days to get used to. Remember that you don't HAVE to Swype everything - you can tap out words that are easier to just tap out (short words) and Swype longer words to save time. Overall, I think that once you get used to it you will really like Swype. Play with it for a few more days before you give up!
I really like Smart Keyboard. There is a free version available in the Market.
It has an option to hide the period and the comma. This enlarges your space bar. To get to the period or the comma, you just go to numbers.
If you download it, be sure to explore all the settings. It seems to download with a Iphone default skin, which I don't find appealing. You get to choose such skins as Galaxy, HTC, or maybe Android.
I love it. I used the free version for maybe ten minutes before I bought Pro. I do believe the free version was fully functional. It's use included an extra splash screen that was supposed to be annoying, but actually not annoying at all IMO.
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i try swipe but i prefere other keyboard
i like thumbs keyboad too
I would say SwiftKey is the best, hands down. Make sure you install the language pack for your country and then choose the option to update the language packs.
SwiftKey is fast and smart.
I give it 13 out of 10. I'd give it 14 if it was skinnable/themable.
I tried Swiftkey and I couldn't get the hang of it when I had my Eris (maybe I should have tried a week). Really Smart Keyboard is nice and you will love the Compact QWERTY (which is just like the Storm I believe). Plus as is mentioned it is customizable. It is free minus you get an annoying popup once the first time you use the keyboard in the day and after five seconds you can tap and get rid of it and you're good (A.K.A. free!).
I tried a few other keyboards and Smart is the best for an onscreen keyboard in Android. It's the closest to the iPhone I could find and best second to a BB keyboard.
I couldn't get the hang of SwiftKey either until I installed and updated the language packs. Initially it was taking correctly spelled words and changing them to things completely unrelated. After that It all worked good.
Related
After having the phone for a little over two weeks now, i think i am going to keep it. There are a few things in the software that irritate me, but overall it's a good phone.
1) I'm ready to give up on Kies. It is just not stable. It won't connect unless certain files are not on the Internal SD card and as best as i can determine, those files are generated by the Phone/Apps automatically. Even when it does connect (usually after formatting the SD card), it will randomly swap contacts' first and last names. It will also give me duplicate entries for people's birthdays in outlook Calendar.
2) The Camera on this phone does not seem to be as sharp at the 3.2MP camera on my Fuze. Its colour handling however seems to be superior. The auto White Balance actually corrects for tungsten lights fairly well. It would be nice if the volume buttons could be mapped as shutter buttons. I am also having trouble telling much difference when i set the exposure compensation. I also notice that you can't use exposure compensation and anti-shake at the same time and that is lame.
3) I tried ADW Launcher is it felt slower than TW... yes slower. Things like the phone dialer took longer to load and search. the main thing i liked about it was the sliding dock at the bottom and the ability to use the expose like preview screens. Just which is worked better. Not sure if i'll give Launcher Pro a try or not. Also, if i set ADW or Launcher Pro as my default launcher, how would i set it back w/o uninstalling?
Thanks,
4) tried a few twitter clients, but haven't found one nearly as good as pockettwit on Winmo. I loved the side swiping interface and how it would autofill the handles of people i follow when i type @and the first few letters.
Still love:
1) the screen... it is utterly beautiful
2) the call quality so far has been great
3) i'm getting more used to typing on a touch screen. I have found portrait mode is easier with swype and landscape the android keyboard
I haven't uninstalled KIES yet but will probably soon. Haven't discarded only because I wanted to try to the movie conversion engine and a few little extras. Handbrake does a very good job though.
I too have tried ADW launcer and wasn't impressed. I lost the 3d app drawer capability, which I do like. IF ADW supports it and someone care to share where the settings are, I would appreciate it.
Launcher pro gives me the ability to hide the apps that are not common or everyday use and the 3d app drawer. I have stuck with LP for the time being.
If you go into settings-applications-manage apps-and select ADW, the 4th section is the default one. Tap on clear defaults and next time you hit the home button, it will ask you which launcher to use and give you a default checkbox.
thanks for the reply. i think i might give Launcher Pro a try
You can also try home switcher. Lets you use multiple homes as well as multiple lp's, ect for a work, home, play type profile.
Sent from my AOSP on XDANDROID MSM using XDA App
I found that home switcher program, that should be useful in case i ever want to give Kies a try again. On the overall whole, i love Launcher Pro. It works great. I even paid the extra for the additional widgets.
I've searched throughout XDA and can't seem to find a keyboard that I can install that brings back my beloved T9! Searching the market brings up little as well.
I just recently got CM6.1 + Kernel #43 (+ various other things) but before this i was still using MoDaCo's 1.5 ROM and although I love [almost] EVERYTHING about CM6 - I can't find a way to get the dial-pad keyboard with T9 for texting. I'm assuming it doesn't exist.
I just want to know what keyboard is good and simple and includes a T9 dialpad-style keyboard for portrait view. Preferably free... but not required.
Some keyboards I've heard of, but no verification of T9:
Smart Keyboard Pro
Swift Key
SWYPE
YoshioDuo said:
I've searched throughout XDA and can't seem to find a keyboard that I can install that brings back my beloved T9! Searching the market brings up little as well.
I just recently got CM6.1 + Kernel #43 (+ various other things) but before this i was still using MoDaCo's 1.5 ROM and although I love [almost] EVERYTHING about CM6 - I can't find a way to get the dial-pad keyboard with T9 for texting. I'm assuming it doesn't exist.
I just want to know what keyboard is good and simple and includes a T9 dialpad-style keyboard for portrait view. Preferably free... but not required.
Some keyboards I've heard of, but no verification of T9:
Smart Keyboard Pro
Swift Key
SWYPE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
See my HTC IME thread Has compact QWERTY and T9 modes
THANKYOU!
This is fantastic!
EXACTLY what I was looking for. I can type extremely fast now (even in the car... shhhh) and at first, I was glad to have to T9 back but the keyboard itself looked a bit goofy. Then I saw the 'AOSP generic look'; it is perfect.
Thanks so much!
Follow up
Ok - I had to follow up on this again after using the keyboard for a few days. I don't think I did it much justice.
This keyboard is incredible. Not only is it simple looking (although you can apply other themes if you wish), the customizability (is that a word?) is insane. I spent forever just going through and playing with all the settings. Sometime it takes a while since you have to kill the keyboard and wait a second for it to come back in a typing app to test it, then go back to the settings menu, tweak, rinse & repeat.
I was thrilled to see that there are custom smiles because when I do use the smilies, which isn't often, I don't like them to have the 'dash' noses (ex. ) I prefer the simple but maybe I'm just really picky. Having the customizable smilies is awesome. You could even just replace them with anything you use often. One downside however is if you add too many, they'll just run off the screen and you'll not have access to them.
The custom swipes is a nice feature as well. When you swipe along the keyboard in one of four directions, you can assign custom functions. I have my 'swipe-up' set to 'Shift' so I can get capital letters quickly. I know it doesn't seem quicker than pressing the shift key but it is for me. It just feels more natural too when I'm texting or emailing. You can even set a swipe to change languages , I think this would make multi linqual people very satisfied. Type BOOM Tipo BOOM 类型 BOOM Тип.
There are many other settings including the organization of buttons, word prediction and spelling settings, and much more. You can even save and restore settings!
Best of all... it's FREE!
Edit: Thanks again!
YoshioDuo said:
This is fantastic!
EXACTLY what I was looking for. I can type extremely fast now (even in the car... shhhh) and at first, I was glad to have to T9 back but the keyboard itself looked a bit goofy. Then I saw the 'AOSP generic look'; it is perfect.
Thanks so much!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
YoshioDuo said:
Ok - I had to follow up on this again after using the keyboard for a few days. I don't think I did it much justice.
This keyboard is incredible. Not only is it simple looking (although you can apply other themes if you wish), the customizability (is that a word?) is insane. I spent forever just going through and playing with all the settings. Sometime it takes a while since you have to kill the keyboard and wait a second for it to come back in a typing app to test it, then go back to the settings menu, tweak, rinse & repeat.
I was thrilled to see that there are custom smiles because when I do use the smilies, which isn't often, I don't like them to have the 'dash' noses (ex. ) I prefer the simple but maybe I'm just really picky. Having the customizable smilies is awesome. You could even just replace them with anything you use often. One downside however is if you add too many, they'll just run off the screen and you'll not have access to them.
The custom swipes is a nice feature as well. When you swipe along the keyboard in one of four directions, you can assign custom functions. I have my 'swipe-up' set to 'Shift' so I can get capital letters quickly. I know it doesn't seem quicker than pressing the shift key but it is for me. It just feels more natural too when I'm texting or emailing. You can even set a swipe to change languages , I think this would make multi linqual people very satisfied. Type BOOM Tipo BOOM 类型 BOOM Тип.
There are many other settings including the organization of buttons, word prediction and spelling settings, and much more. You can even save and restore settings!
Best of all... it's FREE!
Edit: Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem man, happy to help out
One more quickie
One last question... I noticed you posted the keyboard in CMDA Hero, but would this also work on my Galaxy S Tab?
YoshioDuo said:
One last question... I noticed you posted the keyboard in CMDA Hero, but would this also work on my Galaxy S Tab?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No this will not
although you are obviously happy already, i found that the keyboard in the above thread doesnt work for my 6.1 setup. for others who run across this, see this thread.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=8050661&postcount=2587
its the same thing, and it doesnt force close.
steve19137 said:
although you are obviously happy already, i found that the keyboard in the above thread doesnt work for my 6.1 setup. for others who run across this, see this thread.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=8050661&postcount=2587
its the same thing, and it doesnt force close.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've never had a FC... are you running the correct version for low res?
theimpaler747 said:
I've never had a FC... are you running the correct version for low res?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
im pretty sure i was. but im not worried about it anymore, i have that link, and it works so yeah.
steve19137 said:
im pretty sure i was. but im not worried about it anymore, i have that link, and it works so yeah.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok, well so long as it works then
So the wife can't live without her stock HTC keyboard. I'm going to flash AOSP's CM7 build for her, but I was wondering if anyone knows of a plain old stock HTC ime that will work with GB and specifically this ROM? Thanks.
The final version has been put up in the market, its my favorite keyboard app but i wish they would make the spacebar bigger, i hit . instead of it A LOT , what do you guys think?
Bought it today and It´s really impressive, worth the 1,42 euros (half price 48 hours offer). -HURRY UP!
I wish the spacebar was wider too.
And that it wouldn't take that much space on landscape.
As I read on their homepage there might be more themes in future, don't like any of re themes much.
Tap-a-talked from my Galaxy Ace
my favorite keyboard so far!
bought mine today as well
Just bought it today. When I hit the 123 to enter in some numbers I wish I could flip it so I can enter the numbers with my right hand instead of having to reach over to the other side.
Not sure if adding in calibration and doing that will make a difference.
Wish I could use the volume up and down keys to move the cursor left or right.
I have smart keyboard pro and this. Smart keyboard pro has more options but I will use swiftkey x for awhile and see if it works better for me.
I like auto correct (as long as it auto corrects to the right word) so I will see how well it works.
I liked this keyboard butt it's not showing predictions when searching or typing URL.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
anyone know how to make it NOT insert a space after a fullstop (period)
In normal typing thats great but my email address [email protected] so its a pain in the ass to keep backspacing.
I type too fast for it to the point it has to catch up, or I have to go back and edit myself.
Searching
Already a thread with same topic
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1098977
I would like to keep the stock keyboard because it offers many things such as easy access to handwriting recognition, clipboard etc. However I find the text prediction maddening.
It clearly does not comprehend basic English usage.
For instance, a common word like "in". If I attempt to type "in" it will default to the much longer and rarely used word "instance". I have to manually select "in" if that is what I want. This is just one example. It seems to always default to the longest possible word. This is counter intuitive. It should default to the shortest possible word and build from there.
It also hasn't a clue as to basic spelling or punctuation.
I'd like to use this keyboard but this is intolerable. Any ideas one how to make this work better? Please no suggestions of other keyboards. I am aware of those. I just wish to make this one work.
Thanks
Sent from my GT-N8013 using Tapatalk 2
I have to admit, this is a real pain in the behind! It can be rather temperamental with things. But, I have a feeling that the way it's made is that it actually adapts to your handwriting. Mine is terrible yet it seems to get it right quite a lot.
From what I'm able to gather, the predictive text for the touch input keyboards does not apply. But, if you go into your keyboard settings > Handwriting. You can see that there are a few options. If you haven't been into this bit at all I recommend you take a look at it. You can change things such as recognition time, pen thickness, colour and the recognition type.
This type of thing is just something you need to keep practising at. I do agree with you that the punctuation is rather awful, though. Trying to put an exclamation mark in and constantly getting "i." is a pain! But, as far as handwriting recognition goes, this is the best I've seen in a long time. It's one of those things where developing something like that is really complex and needs to be incredibly fine tuned.
My handwriting is so horrific it would take a quantum computer a week to decipher. I can barely read it and I wrote it.
I miss the old days where you could change your keyboard in app. Having to go to Settings to change it seems like an odd design choice to me. If it were the old way I would just use Thumb Keyboard most of the time then switch over on the fly when I needed stock features.
** Update: Yes there is a way to change the keyboard in app. Just click the little keyboard icon on the status bar next to the clock. Cool
Sent from my GT-N8013 using Tapatalk 2
I change my keyboard in app all the time.
mitchellvii said:
My handwriting is so horrific it would take a quantum computer a week to decipher. I can barely read it and I wrote it.
I miss the old days where you could change your keyboard in app. Having to go to Settings to change it seems like an odd design choice to me. If it were the old way I would just use Thumb Keyboard most of the time then switch over on the fly when I needed stock features.
Sent from my GT-N8013 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's an 'input method switcher' hot button next to the clock whenever you're typing... it looks like a little keyboard, but you actually press the icon as opposed to it being in notifications like it does on a phone...
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda app-developers app
Lol shockingly I never noticed that. I suppose I was just used to the old way and wasn't looking for it.
Thanks
Sent from my GT-N8013 using Tapatalk 2
So, some of you actually use the predictive text on the stock keyboard? I tried it for a couple of days and found it intolerably bad -- more often than not, I found myself absolutely fighting with the predictive text to actually type what I wanted, and so gave up on it.
I miss having just the word suggestions as I type that I can select so I don't have to finish typing each word -- I don't really need predictive text, as I can actually type pretty fast on the Note 10.1, but the word suggestions would be nice to have without needing to use another keyboard.
I use 7notes with mazec for HWR and Swiftkey for text prediction. Very satisfied with both.
toenail_flicker said:
I use 7notes with mazec for HWR and Swiftkey for text prediction. Very satisfied with both.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Swiftkey has never typed anything but gibberish for me on any device I have tried it.
You mentioned that before. I find that so odd. It does a great job for me. I have a lot of friends who use it, too, and they get excellent results. I doubt SwiftKey would have the sales and ratings they have if everyone had that experience. Have you emailed them about it?
wingzero2085 said:
So, some of you actually use the predictive text on the stock keyboard?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's not the greatest I've used but it's fine. It does seem to learn and gets better over time. In Mitch's example for "in" all you have to do is hit the space bar when "in" is highlighted in blue and it inserts it with a trailing space. Also, you can add words to the custom dictionary yourself which makes things a lot faster and more accurate.
wingzero2085 said:
So, some of you actually use the predictive text on the stock keyboard? I tried it for a couple of days and found it intolerably bad -- more often than not, I found myself absolutely fighting with the predictive text to actually type what I wanted, and so gave up on it.
I miss having just the word suggestions as I type that I can select so I don't have to finish typing each word -- I don't really need predictive text, as I can actually type pretty fast on the Note 10.1, but the word suggestions would be nice to have without needing to use another keyboard.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Exactly! I find it giving me nonsensical predictions and I get kinda mad at it (sounds silly I know) but if you have ever used like for say, an original Asus Tf, you will find the responsiveness of this keyboard a godsend.
But one thing, this keyboard is actively learning our typing habits right? I'm using it as I speak and it seems more tolerable and accurate to my intentions. It's only really bad when I type something slighty off.
the whole GALAXY to NOTE about...counting down from 10 to 1.
BarryH_GEG said:
It's not the greatest I've used but it's fine. It does seem to learn and gets better over time. In Mitch's example for "in" all you have to do is hit the space bar when "in" is highlighted in blue and it inserts it with a trailing space. Also, you can add words to the custom dictionary yourself which makes things a lot faster and more accurate.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My point is that it never highlights "in", it highlights "instance" by default. If I press the spacebar after typing the letters "in" it enters "instance". Very very odd default action to prefer the longer word. If I keep correcting "instance" to be "in" it finally seems to learn in that session. However, if I close the app and re-open it later it has forgotten and goes back to the old way.
Sadly, like so much Samsung software, it seems like they turned it in on the day it was due and not when it was done.
I love Samsung hardware. Like HTC, their software pretty much gets an incomplete.
mitchellvii said:
My point is that it never highlights "in", it highlights "instance" by default.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's wierd. On mine, the box on the far left tracks what I'm typing in blue. In your example I'd see "in" in blue while a bunch of suggested words would appear to the right. If I hit space bar or tap "in" while it's highlighted it inserts (only) what I've typed. The space bar turns blue (on mine) to show it's set up to bypass prediction. It's black normally. Are your settings set up like mine?
I don't know get predictions on my stock board only on SwiftKey
Sent from my GT-N8013
Mine works like Barry's. Confess! What did You change?
BarryH_GEG said:
That's wierd. On mine, the box on the far left tracks what I'm typing in blue. In your example I'd see "in" in blue while a bunch of suggested words would appear to the right. If I hit space bar or tap "in" while it's highlighted it inserts (only) what I've typed. The space bar turns blue (on mine) to show it's set up to bypass prediction. It's black normally. Are your settings set up like mine?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I know, it is bizarre. That's why I said at the start that I don't exclude the idea I have done something wrong here.
For some reason when I type, it is defaulting to the SECOND word on the list instead of the first. I know, right? Weird.
Ok, I just returned all settings to stock and this is what I get.
If I type "the" I get:
the | then | They | they | Then | there
It is highlighting the second word, not the first. Freakin WEIRD.
mitchellvii said:
Yeah I know, it is bizarre. That's why I said at the start that I don't exclude the idea I have done something wrong here.
For some reason when I type, it is defaulting to the SECOND word on the list instead of the first. I know, right? Weird.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have any other keyboards installed? Maybe there's a conflict.
BarryH_GEG said:
Do you have any other keyboards installed? Maybe there's a conflict.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah I have Thumb Keyboard. That is my preferred keyboard anyway. I'll just go with that and switch over to the stock keyboard when I need to use any of the custom features.
We'll just file this one under weird and leave it at that.
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