We don’t think much about the virtual keyboards on our devices, when in fact it is the thing that we interface with the most if you really think about it. Well if you’re one of those who do think about it and decided to use the Google Keyboard as your default one, then you can now download version 5.0 of the app. The update brings several small but big when put together changes, including a one-handed mode, new gestures to use and the presence of key borders.
In terms of design tweaks, you can now see key borders in material light and dark and if you’re the kind of person who doesn’t like not having borders, then this is good news for you. But if you enjoyed the previous holo themes, sorry, they seem to be gone forever now. Another thing you can do to tweak your keyboard is to adjust the height, because not all fingers are born equal.
Another major new feature with the Google Keyboard is the one-handed mode which you can activate when you long press on the comma located on the search/enter button. This will come in handy during those times when you can only use, well, one hand. You can go back to full screen mode easily, don’t worry. You can also easily access the number pad and emoji keyboard with the new buttons you can see in the alt/number layout.
Lastly, you also now get new typing gestures like deleting entire words when you swipe left from the delete key. The dynamic suggestions will also now be found on the suggestion bar instead of the sometimes annoying floating bubble you see near your finger. The Google Keyboard is slowly rolling out to its users, but you can also install an APK if you don’t feel like waiting for the OTA update.
VIA: Play Store, Android Police
