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Typing on the Xoom

O

Old Member

Android Expert
Has anyone seen in a video or read about entering text on the Xoom. I have to admit that I have no idea how that works on the iPad either. So what I'm asking is, will there be full multi-touch capacity where you can have more than even 2 fingers on the device and still have it recognized? Also, does anyone know (or suspect that) the Xoom will come stock with BlindType? They (Google) acquired BlindType last fall and I would suspect that it was for devices such as tablets and OS's with Honeycomb or later on them. That would be SWEET if it were the case. Opinions? Rumors? Thoughts? :confused:
 
I would have to imagine that it has a multi-touch keyboard, but I haven't seen any confirmation of that. As for BlindType, I'm still crossing my fingers on that one.
 
don't know about blind type but during ces and the tons of interviews more than one motorola spokesman said it was 10 point multi-touch screen, ie it will detect all 10 fingers at one time. there are some videos out there of the keyboard, once nice thing i saw when i started going through the 3.0 sdk preview last night is the keyboard has a "tab" key, something i use all the time so having in on the xoom will be nice.
 
ckeegan said:
Really? I think Swype is decent for one-handed input with your thumb, but I can't imagine using Swype on a 10.1 screen. :confused:
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Ditto. I hope blindtype is there but the stock keyboard will probably be OK, although to get the full experience out of this thing, I think a seperate keyboard will be the best way to go. I plan on using mine (ha, like I have one already and am calling it mine, hahaha) for school and work. Typing everything on the on-screen keyboard would just be heartbreaking.
 
ckeegan said:
Really? I think Swype is decent for one-handed input with your thumb, but I can't imagine using Swype on a 10.1 screen. :confused:
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i agree there, i use and love swype but flip the phone into landscape and swype is pretty useless it just gets turned into an average keyboard. on the xoom it would be the same way. i can't see being able to properly hold the device and "swype" at the same time. however i suppose i could see some people who would take one finger and swype all over the keyboard, i guess i am a little jaded on that i type on regular keyboards fairly quickly.
 
Proph said:
i agree there, i use and love swype but flip the phone into landscape and swype is pretty useless it just gets turned into an average keyboard. on the xoom it would be the same way. i can't see being able to properly hold the device and "swype" at the same time. however i suppose i could see some people who would take one finger and swype all over the keyboard, i guess i am a little jaded on that i type on regular keyboards fairly quickly.
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To me it just seems in landscape the device would be too wide to accurately hold the device and type on a regular keyboard. That being said I've never typed on the iPad's I've played with, so I could be talking out my ass.
 
ckeegan said:
Just for those who don't know what BlindType even is, see the video below. I just think it will make a huge difference in tablet typing, and honestly, probably would replace Swype on my phone as well. Glad Google bought them, but I hope they use it...soon.
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Very, very cool ...
 
ckeegan said:
Just for those who don't know what BlindType even is, see the video below. I just think it will make a huge difference in tablet typing, and honestly, probably would replace Swype on my phone as well. Glad Google bought them, but I hope they use it...soon.
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That is impressive. Looks like it might have a learning curve to it, but I would love to see that on my droid x. The auto correct looks really good
 
I too believe the BlindType is pretty fancy looking.

As far as typing on a Tablet, I don't own one but have used my parent's when visiting and it's actually fairly intuitive. The space is sufficient and I am able to type nearly as efficiently as a normal keyboard.

I would love to see a "Tab" and "Alt"-style key. Something that could be used to quickly flip between open apps. I think that would be extremely useful (especially when used in conjunction with a BT keyboard). It'd be much quicker than the current long-press of the home key.
 
jcash3 said:
That is impressive. Looks like it might have a learning curve to it, but I would love to see that on my droid x. The auto correct looks really good
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I actually think BlindType looks to have less of a learning curve than Swype, but maybe that's just me.
 
ckeegan said:
I actually think BlindType looks to have less of a learning curve than Swype, but maybe that's just me.
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I can agree with that. However, I think there would be a learning curve in that there is no way to visually confirm your typing. Personally, I rarely look at the keyboard when typing, but it's always nice to look down and get your bearing. I suppose in the end, the feedback you got onscreen would suffice, that and the auto correct.

The more I think about it, the more I'm intrigued. It would even be convenient on my phone when I'm filling out those little Website Fields. Not having to completely open a keyboard and then use the top half of my screen to scroll. Better yet, not having to just see a text box when typing in landscape. I hate that sometimes, primarily when just filling a small text box like a username/password entry.
 
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