Keyboard

[ShinyTop]

Come on, Motorola/Lenovo, let's get real with keyboards. Saw on the demo video that keyboard does not have a row for numbers. Is it that difficult to understand that numbers are used almost as often as letters? When keyboards have numbers and letters I don't need to go looking for 3rd party keyboards.

 

[Javier P]

As far as I know Moto devices come with Google keyboard as default, so not their fault exactly. There are different options on the Play Store to get keyboards with different layouts and some of them, like Swiftkey, are even free. I'm not sure how the lack of some specific feature could be a problem.

 

[Laura Knotek]

That's because Moto is pretty much stock Android, so it doesn't have its own keyboard like Samsung or other OEMs. You won't get anything beside Google Keyboard pre-installed on a Nexus device either.

 

[Jaycemiskel]

It's not like finding a 3rd party keyboard is difficult. You can find one in no time.

 

[ShinyTop]

I am well aware I can find third party keyboards to suit my needs. I have owned two Nexus phones and stay away from them because I find the skins of other manufacturers provide more of what I want without customizing. Keyboards without numbers made sense when the first 3.5 inch phones came out. They continue out of laziness, nothing more.

 

[Javier P]

That's nothing to do with laziness. Different keyboards, different options and layouts, as simple as that. My wife's got a Moto device and loves the number row, so she uses Swiftkey. And I have to say that she's very happy with it. I've got a different Moto device and I use Google keyboard. I don't like the number row, well, actually I hate watching all those numbers sitting there all the time. When I have to type an occasional number I just swipe after holding on the ’?1emoji’ key. And for a long string I just quickly switch to the number's pad (not the row) that I find more helpful.

Anyway, maybe you should join the specific Google forum and ask them to add the number row in the next update. Not a big deal.

 

[Ry]

I am well aware I can find third party keyboards to suit my needs. I have owned two Nexus phones and stay away from them because I find the skins of other manufacturers provide more of what I want without customizing. Keyboards without numbers made sense when the first 3.5 inch phones came out. They continue out of laziness, nothing more.

Not sure where the laziness is though.

Motorola markets their devices and experience as "a bloatware-free version of Android with no unnecessary software to slow you down or uninstall".

Posted via the Android Central App on the Moto X Pure Edition

 

[ShinyTop]

Maybe different priorities is better than laziness. But numbers on a keyboard keep you from accessing another screen of the keyboard and should speed entry for more people.

 

[Ry]

Maybe different priorities is better than laziness. But numbers on a keyboard keep you from accessing another screen of the keyboard and should speed entry for more people.

These Keyboard software makers likely have data on how often numbers are used with letters. A recent Google Keyword update enabled an additional row of numbers when typing into most password fields.

Posted via the Android Central App on the Moto X Pure Edition

 

[benjamminh]

Keyboards? You're talking about keyboards? Keyboards? Keyboards? Keyboards? See if anyone gets the reference.

 

[Jaycemiskel]

#3. Allen Iverson was my boy. Practice?!

 

[YAYTech]

You're saying the manufacturers are lazy, but with this and the Nexus phones that come without added stuff, you can set them up however you want with different launchers and keyboards. It seems like perhaps it's you that doesn't want to go to the effort of finding the apps & settings that make it just how you like it. I personally prefer the manufacturer NOT make those decisions for me, as it leads to a lot of bloatware that takes up space, computing power, and delays & complicates updates. To each their own.

Also, the Google Keyboard is getting better about providing a number row at times when it might be useful. It would be nice if they'd give the option to have it always there, though. I love the Google keyboard overall, and there's no reason I'm aware of not to provide that as an option.