I'm holding out to see how good iOS 8 really is, but these news are very encouraging. Will definitely ditch android if I really like iOS 8 in my ipad air.
Swiftkey is terrible IMHO. I cannot configure (disable) punctuation auto-correct and space insertion, which is making typing words it doesn't recognize or websites (host names for DDNS for remote desktop to be specific) a PITA. I type the word I want, press period, auto-correct adjusts it to what it thinks I want, inserts the period, and inserts a space. For example, "blahhhh dot ddns dot net" // I have to type dot instead of period because of the spam filter. gets corrected to "blah. dad's. net"
so at blahhhh I select "blahhhh" from the auto-complete bar, which inserts a space. I don't want the space. Badspace! So I badspace and type a period. The period, next the blahhhh, causes it to correct to "blah. " Same problem with ddns. Select "ddns". It inserts a space so I'm left with "ddns ". Backspace, type period, now it reads "dad's " again.
I literally just jumped back go google keyboard/swype+dragon 5 minutes ago.
This has me pondering the business model of these app makers, and the fact that I can't return apps when they stop supporting me, which is why I never bother buying them in the first place, which is why they never bother trying very hard to make a good product.
soccerballtux, You are so, so right on point and have nailed the frustration with SwiftKey. SwiftKey is about three features away from being a great keyboard. I've tried many Android keyboards, and my hands-down favorite is Smart Keyboard Pro. You can customize the size of the keys, it has the best text prediction engine, and it has the Blackberry-like AutoText (example, type gc and it spells Grand Central Station).
As soccerballtux stated, the automation space after a word is infuriating...and is something that SwiftKey refuses to fix. It's simple code. They give half-assed vague reasons. Thousands of people have addressed this in the forums, yet SwiftKey's power's that be remain numb and dumb. I often use a period before the @ on Twitter. Good luck doing that with SwiftKey. It literally takes a minute to get this .@SwiftKeySucks after SwiftKey forces this on you . @SwiftKeySucks
If Smart Keyboard Pro became available for iOS, I would make the switch from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 to the iPhone 6 Plus. But I regularly type 70 words-per-minute and SwiftKey just doesn't get it done.
I once had an iPhone 4, and the Apple default keyboard and word prediction were--and still are--comical. More than likely I'm getting the Note 4...mostly because of the keyboard, replaceable battery, and microSD expandability. But it really boils down the the crappy iOS keyboard offerings.
I had checked out swiftkey a while ago and laughed, I'm still surprised the editors here [get kickbacks?] are so in love with it. It's completely worthless.
Maybe he'll go work for swiftkey like anand went to Apple....
I know exactly the problem you are talking about. There is a solution for it though. If you select blahhhhh from the suggestions and it puts in the space afterwards and you want there to be a period DO NOT backspace the sapce. Just type period and SwiftKey will realize that the space shouldnt be there and will replace the space with the period.
While I welcome the addition of 3rd party keyboards, I can't help but see this as another example of how far behind Apple had fallen and a somewhat odd shift in focus. When the iPhone was first released (and for its first few iterations) it was always singled out as the gold standard in (virtual) keyboards. Basically every review mentioned how much better the iOS keyboard was than the competition. But instead of keeping focus on this very important aspect of usability and making continuous improvements, they are basically throwing in the towel and leaving it up to 3rd party devs. I've preferred the stock Android keyboard for quite a while, and I use both every day. I do wish they'd gone a bit farther with configurability in iOS 8 and let users pick default apps, especially the browser.
iOS 8 actually has a pretty big update to the stock keyboard with a pretty great predictive type engine. I wouldn't be surprised if they had hardcoded the initial keyboard and took time to rewrite it in a more extensible way, which let them improve it on their end and also open it up for replacement.
I do hope in iOS 9 they finally let user select default apps for browsing, email, etc. Until they do, I'll just have to jailbreak to get that functionality.
We’ve updated our terms. By continuing to use the site and/or by logging into your account, you agree to the Site’s updated Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
15 Comments
Back to Article
A5 - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
I can't wait to finally get Swiftkey on my iPad.hamiltenor - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
Been using Swiftkey for years on Android, knowing it will be available before I actually get an iPhone is going to make my switch to iOS even easier.neswii - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
I'm holding out to see how good iOS 8 really is, but these news are very encouraging. Will definitely ditch android if I really like iOS 8 in my ipad air.Samus - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
wow. mind=blown. iOS turns more and more into Android every generation. Someday it might actually catch up.Pissedoffyouth - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
"Forced closed due to lack of RAM"soccerballtux - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
Swiftkey is terrible IMHO. I cannot configure (disable) punctuation auto-correct and space insertion, which is making typing words it doesn't recognize or websites (host names for DDNS for remote desktop to be specific) a PITA. I type the word I want, press period, auto-correct adjusts it to what it thinks I want, inserts the period, and inserts a space. For example, "blahhhh dot ddns dot net" // I have to type dot instead of period because of the spam filter.gets corrected to
"blah. dad's. net"
so at blahhhh I select "blahhhh" from the auto-complete bar, which inserts a space. I don't want the space. Badspace! So I badspace and type a period. The period, next the blahhhh, causes it to correct to "blah. " Same problem with ddns. Select "ddns". It inserts a space so I'm left with "ddns ". Backspace, type period, now it reads "dad's " again.
I literally just jumped back go google keyboard/swype+dragon 5 minutes ago.
This has me pondering the business model of these app makers, and the fact that I can't return apps when they stop supporting me, which is why I never bother buying them in the first place, which is why they never bother trying very hard to make a good product.
madwolfa - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
This can actually be configured (auto space behavior, etc). Are you sure you've checked the settings??soccerballtux - Friday, September 12, 2014 - link
@madwolfa yes I have, and no it can't. What you can do is tell it to finish a predicted word for you if you press space. That's it~hoppysport - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
soccerballtux, You are so, so right on point and have nailed the frustration with SwiftKey. SwiftKey is about three features away from being a great keyboard. I've tried many Android keyboards, and my hands-down favorite is Smart Keyboard Pro. You can customize the size of the keys, it has the best text prediction engine, and it has the Blackberry-like AutoText (example, type gc and it spells Grand Central Station).As soccerballtux stated, the automation space after a word is infuriating...and is something that SwiftKey refuses to fix. It's simple code. They give half-assed vague reasons. Thousands of people have addressed this in the forums, yet SwiftKey's power's that be remain numb and dumb. I often use a period before the @ on Twitter. Good luck doing that with SwiftKey. It literally takes a minute to get this .@SwiftKeySucks after SwiftKey forces this on you . @SwiftKeySucks
If Smart Keyboard Pro became available for iOS, I would make the switch from my Samsung Galaxy Note 3 to the iPhone 6 Plus. But I regularly type 70 words-per-minute and SwiftKey just doesn't get it done.
I once had an iPhone 4, and the Apple default keyboard and word prediction were--and still are--comical. More than likely I'm getting the Note 4...mostly because of the keyboard, replaceable battery, and microSD expandability. But it really boils down the the crappy iOS keyboard offerings.
soccerballtux - Friday, September 12, 2014 - link
I had checked out swiftkey a while ago and laughed, I'm still surprised the editors here [get kickbacks?] are so in love with it. It's completely worthless.Maybe he'll go work for swiftkey like anand went to Apple....
hawler - Friday, September 19, 2014 - link
I know exactly the problem you are talking about. There is a solution for it though. If you select blahhhhh from the suggestions and it puts in the space afterwards and you want there to be a period DO NOT backspace the sapce. Just type period and SwiftKey will realize that the space shouldnt be there and will replace the space with the period.soccerballtux - Saturday, September 20, 2014 - link
oh, niceBob Todd - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
While I welcome the addition of 3rd party keyboards, I can't help but see this as another example of how far behind Apple had fallen and a somewhat odd shift in focus. When the iPhone was first released (and for its first few iterations) it was always singled out as the gold standard in (virtual) keyboards. Basically every review mentioned how much better the iOS keyboard was than the competition. But instead of keeping focus on this very important aspect of usability and making continuous improvements, they are basically throwing in the towel and leaving it up to 3rd party devs. I've preferred the stock Android keyboard for quite a while, and I use both every day. I do wish they'd gone a bit farther with configurability in iOS 8 and let users pick default apps, especially the browser.BeeksElectric - Wednesday, September 10, 2014 - link
iOS 8 actually has a pretty big update to the stock keyboard with a pretty great predictive type engine. I wouldn't be surprised if they had hardcoded the initial keyboard and took time to rewrite it in a more extensible way, which let them improve it on their end and also open it up for replacement.I do hope in iOS 9 they finally let user select default apps for browsing, email, etc. Until they do, I'll just have to jailbreak to get that functionality.
8lgm - Thursday, September 11, 2014 - link
SwiftKey!? Fleksy!