Apple released iOS 8 publicly earlier today, after months of beta releases. The update adds a variety of new features to iPhones and iPads, including the long-requested support for third-party keyboards.
In this post, we guide you through the process of downloading and installing a third-party keyboard in iOS 8.
- Download a third-party keyboard. Many popular Android keyboard makers have released their keyboards for iOS as well, including Swype, SwiftKey etc. We’re compiling a list in this post. We’ll be using Swype in this how-to, which you can buy for $.99. Download the keyboard, and open it.
- Once you’ve installed the app, open it once, and then open the Settings app. Navigate to General > Keyboard. And then again tap on Keyboards.
- Tap on the “Add New Keyboard…” row at the bottom.
- You’ll see a list of all keyboards in groups. One of the sections is for Third Party Keyboards, and you should see Swype (or the keyboard you’ve installed) listed here. Tap on it and it should be added to the list of active keyboards.
- Now open an app where you’ll use the Keyboard. I opened Notes. Then long press the globe icon to bring up the selector you see below, and select the custom keyboard. (Swype in this case)
- After you select, you’ll see the custom keyboard active.
We’re compiling a list of third-party keyboards available for iOS 8 in this post.
What’s the best third-party iOS 8 keyboard you’ve used? Let us know in the comments below.
