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Over the years, the keyboard layout used on phones hasn’t seen a ton of change. While we’ve been introduced to plenty of new features such as swipe-typing, auto-correction, and word prediction, it's not often we see a reinvented keyboard layout. Now Typewise is looking to shake things up by doing something about that.
For years, Swype Keyboard was one of the best third-party keyboards for Android, with a focus on swipe typing and voice dictation. But all good things must come to an end, and Nuance Communications Inc has confirmed that Swype is no longer under development.
Swipe input is great on smartphones, and Swype Keyboard is the one that started it all. You may not remember, but there was a kerfuffle years back when Swype refused to make its app available for download generally. Instead it pursued OEM deals before finally releasing a version on the Play Store in 2013. It hasn't been updated as rapidly as rival SwiftKey or the Google Keyboard (now Gboard), but it's getting a sizable update today.
If you've been using Android for long enough, you might remember the days when the only swiping keyboard in existence was Swype, and you had to sign up for a weird private beta program to use it. Well, it's been in the Play Store for a few years now, and it's getting a big v2.0 update today. It's going where no man has gone before.
Swype, at its core, helps us be lazy. Want to type? Don't bother lifting up your thumb. Don't know how to spell? Just get close. Sure, these are only the byproducts of creating an input method that takes the pain out of using touchscreens, but the end result is the same. And things are only getting easier.
Swype, the keyboard that made gesture-based typing famous, is still alive and kicking. The company has just crammed enough new features into its Android app to bump things up to version 1.8.
Swype's website has come under attack this evening by a group claiming connections to the pro-Palestinian movement. The website was taken down mid-afternoon (Pacific time) on Saturday, and is still showing a message left there by "TeaM System Dz." As you might suspect, the message is highly critical of Israel (under the so-called #OpSaveGaza banner) for its recent military action in the Gaza Strip.
The new placement makes a lot more sense, because keyboard selection isn't a notification, is it? It's also closer to the keyboard and your fingers' position while typing. On the downside, it disturbs the navigation bar's balance by adding a fourth element to those clean geometrical buttons, and you may accidentally tap it when aiming for the Submit/Search/Enter button or Recents.
Swype App Updated To Not Ask Where You Are 4000 Times A Day Because It Probably Shouldn't Do That, Also Fixes Other Stuff
Swype App Updated To Not Ask Where You Are 4000 Times A Day Because It Probably Shouldn't Do That, Also Fixes Other Stuff
After numerous reports that the Swype app was making OCD-level location requests on some users' devices, the company updated the popular 3rd party keyboard to, well, not do that. At least one user claimed the app requested his location nearly 4000 times in a single day, which obviously has some rather unfortunate implications for battery life.
This was just too good of a goof to pass up. "Swype, for all those times you need to make the most ironic typos." Perhaps, installing SwiftKey might be a good idea:
Swype pioneered the use of gestures to enter words into our mobile devices, a feature that competitors have since picked up, including the keyboard that now ships pre-installed on Google's Nexus devices. Yet while Swype remains a champ at forming words out of our illegible squiggles, it hasn't been the fastest option for manually typing out words the old fashioned way. Now the app has received an update that the team promises significantly improves tap input. They've also addressed performance issues when typing out lengthy text entries and moving the cursor around to erase more specific parts of a sentence.
Swype Updated To Version 1.6.2.22328, Gains Split And Mini Keyboard Options For Large Phones, Better Language Support, New Theme, And More
Swype Updated To Version 1.6.2.22328, Gains Split And Mini Keyboard Options For Large Phones, Better Language Support, New Theme, And More
It's often the case that one piece of software will introduce a groundbreaking feature, but others will expand on it, eventually replacing the original. When it comes to Android, Swype and SwiftKey come to mind. But the latter has yet to vanquish the former, nor has the addition of gesture-based typing to the stock keyboard, and Swype has now been updated with a host of new features that show just how much of a heavyweight this contender remains.
It's pretty easy to understand why typing isn't exactly an optimal experience on a smartphone. They are designed to fit in palms and come with virtual keys smaller than the fingertips used to press them. Tablets don't suffer from this problem, but they come with one of their own - a user can type speedily using the significantly larger keys, but resting their fingers on the screen for a mere second is all it takes to turn "superpower" to "sauerkraut," and suddenly that status update about whether America should get involved in Syria accumulates a different flood of Facebook comments than was expected. Dryft, a new start-up founded by a Swype co-founder (note the "y"s in place of the "i"s), looks to free tablet typists from the burden of never resting their wrysts... wrists.
Swype Moves Up To Version 1.5.6, Improves Word Predictions, Fixes Annoying HTC One Bug
Swype is far from an unfamiliar face in the mobile world. It has served some of the finest Android phones as an included keyboard, permitting one-handed
Swype is far from an unfamiliar face in the mobile world. It has served some of the finest Android phones as an included keyboard, permitting one-handed writers to swipe out words rather than peck away with their thumbs. During this time, it was unavailable as a separate download, and using it was somewhat of an exclusive experience. It has since entered the Play Store, and it's now making the jump up to version 1.5.6 less than a month later.
Wednesday App Sales: Strategy & Tactics: WW II, Alien Breed, Swype, And More
Over the past few weeks we've highlighted several Play Store sales that hit at the end of each week. Today, however, looks like a few devs decided to
Over the past few weeks we've highlighted several Play Store sales that hit at the end of each week. Today, however, looks like a few devs decided to try middle-of-the-week sales, and we figured some of those may not make it to the week's end. So here it is – a short list of sales that are happening right now.
Swype Finally Arrives In The Google Play Store For $0.99, Playing Catch-Up In A Race It Invented [Update: Trial Version]
Time for a little history lesson. Way back in the summer of 2010, when smartphone screen sizes were still reasonable and people were still complaining
Time for a little history lesson. Way back in the summer of 2010, when smartphone screen sizes were still reasonable and people were still complaining about how hard it was to type on them, a little company called Swype Inc. thought it had the problem of touchscreen input licked. Android users went crazy trying to get into the beta for their gesture-based software keyboard, and tech blogs threw around words like "innovation" and "miracle" like rice at a wedding. Then the other shoe dropped: Swype was only interested in selling its slidey wares to hardware manufactures, as a tie-in for brand new phones - they had no intention of selling their nifty keyboard directly to end users.
Swype Beta Updated To v1.4.9.13905, Adds Advanced Language Models For Hindi, Belgian Dutch, Tons Of Bug Fixes
Today Swype announced a new version that brings and enhances a few features including adding Advanced Language Models for Hindi and Belgian Dutch
Another day, another beta update from Swype. Today, the company announced a new version that brings a enhances a few features including adding Advanced Language Models for Hindi and Belgian Dutch. The overall tap responsiveness has been improved. The Smart Editor and Word Choice List (in Polaris Office) behaviors have also been refined.
If you're a Swype Beta user, the popular finger-dragging keyboard has received a significant update, to version 1.4.5 today. This new release basically just makes things better: smart editor has been improved, the keyboard launches more quickly in web browsers, advanced language models have been been enhanced, and a handful of smaller fixes and tweaks are in tow.
Who knew that keyboards could be so competitive? After SwiftKey released its new Flow feature, and even included the ability to fly through space, Swype had a pressing need to escalate. Well, how's this for handy: now you no longer need to register in order to download the new Swype beta! In times past, Swype's distribution model has been a little cumbersome. Of course, this will only help people who want in on the beta, but it's still a great thing. Speaking of great things, here's a video of anthropomorphized finger ninjas talking about crowd-sourced dictionaries.
Google has really gotten the stock Android keyboard spruced up in recent versions of the OS. Of course, it's still a limited experience lacking in the bells and whistles of some third-party solutions. Speaking of bells and whistles, the new Kii Keyboard has more tweaks and settings than you'll believe.