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Split Keyboard for Thumb Typing Coming to iPad with iOS 5

Kevin Purcell —  06/06/2011

Apple’s new iOS 5 will bring a dramatic improvement to the typing experience with something they call “Grab Handles” which is a split keyboard. This will be benefit those who need to type with their thumbs while holding their iPad or iPad 2 with two hands.

Previously, one would have to have pretty large hands with very long thumbs to reach the middle of the keyboard. In fact it was practically impossible to do. With this new update there is a handle button on the keyboard that you grab with your thumb and it will split the keyboard making the keys reachable from the average person while they hold the iPad or iPad 2 with both hands.

iOS 5 Grab Handles for Easier Thumb Typing

This will make the iPad easier to use while standing or sitting somewhere other than at a table or desk. It is also something that should have been available far earlier in iOS. There are already similar keyboards available for other operating systems. Until we saw Microsoft’s early previews of Windows 8, we had not seen one built into a mobile OS for quite some time. But this was available in versions of the ultramobile PC years ago.

Kevin Purcell

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Kevin loves notebooks, tablets, gadgets and photography. He grew up with computers starting out on a Vic 20 and Commodore 64. The first computer he owned himself was an 8086 Compaq Deskpro. His foray into tablet computing began when he bought a Samsung Q1 Ultra. The smartphone market opened up for him with his Palm Treo 600.

10 responses to Split Keyboard for Thumb Typing Coming to iPad with iOS 5

  1. heh. Swiftkey had this on the XOOM months ago. I guess Apple is going to pay them for their idea? ;)

  2. To be honest I was thinking of switching away on the iOS iPad because I do alot of text input with the thumb and the width of the keyboard just makes it impossible for me to type much on it. This to me is the second biggest excitement 

  3. What we really need is something like swype or tengo :-(

  4. If you want to see the reall thumb typing experience on a tablet PC check out SNAPKEYS!….

  5. Lol, I am awesome, I am typing with two thumbs now, in landscape mode. Big hands rule!

  6. I doth care about it!!!! I just want to know how to do it!!!