Google brings 'floating keyboard' to help big-screen smartphone users
What's the story
In a new development, Google's Gboard app has got a 'floating keyboard'.
The feature, as the name suggests, allows the users to drag the keyboard to any part of the screen using a handle placed at its bottom.
This provides enhanced flexibility for single-handed usage and marks an upgrade over 'One-Handed mode'.
Here's how it works.
Advantage
Ease for big-screen users
The new feature enables smartphone users, particularly those with big phones like Galaxy Note 9, to hold seamless conversations from any part of the screen.
More importantly, the keyboard can even be re-sized into a smaller or larger configuration according to the users' needs.
Once the conversation is finished, it can be dragged down and docked at its original position.
Do you know?
Keyboard turns translucent
In addition, when positioned at some place on the screen and left idle for long, the floating Gboard automatically turns translucent, giving users a slight idea of what content lies underneath.
Key things
Before you use it, some important things to note
The floating keyboard can be activated or deactivated by accessing keyboard toolbar from 'G' icon at the top left corner of the app.
The feature is only available to those who have the latest beta, version 7.6, of the Gboard app.
Notably, some users have also reported that the feature can only be used for a few minutes. After that, it vanishes away.
Workaround
Possible way to use the keyboard
As a possible solution, many have suggested the floating keyboard won't disappear if it is used when Wi-Fi and cellular data both are turned off or the phone is on airplane mode.
Either way, the introduction of this feature in beta indicates that Google is testing it out on select users and could be launching the final, bug-free version pretty soon.