Microsoft's Word Flow Keyboard Makes Texting Faster and Easier on the iPhone
Thumb-typing with both thumbs may now become a thing of the past for iPhone owners. Microsoft's Word Flow keyboard, displayed as a fan-like arc on the smartphone screen, now makes it easier for iPhone users to type messages with just one hand. The new keyboard can be downloaded only through the U.S. App Store for free. It works with predictive text as well as autocorrect features which get better over time with continued usage because it learns the user's texting behavior.
Microsoft's Garage division developed the app which had first appeared on the Windows Phone 8.1 back in 2014. The reviews had been positive then, noting it as providing a faster and easier way to text compared with a traditional phone keyboard.
Options exist on the application to change the arcing keyboard to a more familiar and traditional look while also allowing customization by placing background pictures, a feature not available on the default iOS keyboard. When synced with the contacts list, the predictive feature functions even faster.
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A minor drawback is its lack of voice-to-text entry capability, however, the ease in correcting suggestions made by the app may make up a bit for this lack. The app is 88 megabytes which would necessitate iOS 9.0.
The use of the new keyboard is easy to learn as the app launches into its tutorial mode once installation is done. At the end of the tutorial, Word Flow can be set as the default keyboard by entering the option on the iOS keyboard settings.
The keyboard theme can be personalized from a selection already downloaded with the app. For a wider selection, new themes may be downloaded or photos imported from the images library.
A couple of months back, the feature was tested by Microsoft on iPhone users to provide them a preview of the app as well as gain feedback on the keyboard for improvement purposes. The app is available for both iPhone, iPodTouch, and iPad by Apple.
