Wednesday, September 24, 2014

6 Plus iPhone versus Samsung Galaxy Note 3: Battle SwiftKey – CNET Spanish

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Welcome to the second installment of a series of updates to our analysis of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. If you missed the first installment, here it is. And if you’re wondering “why would a Note 3 and Note 4 no?” Because there are several reasons. First, I had a Note 3 during several months, and with it I can provide more substantial comparisons. Second, updates to Note 4 are impressive, but not radically change how you use the device. And finally, the Note 4 is not yet on the market, so it would be a little difficult for me to compare one device to another that I have not yet.

A year ago, after spending some time with the iPhone 5S, I seriously considered replacing the second generation of Samsung Galaxy Note had. The Note 2 was in September, and quite dated and, as often happens with Android phones, sometimes unresponsive due to several months of apps appeared and vanished.

So, then the new device Apple was a temptation: it was tall and thin, made all aluminum, with an updated operating system and fluid performance. Two things, however, they warned that hit its stride. One was that after typing in the Note for so long, the iPhone felt like a toy in my hands. The iPhone 5S was simply too small.



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Josh Miller / CNET

But, the problem was the keyboard. I become attached to both SwiftKey on Android that could not tolerate the iOS keyboard factory. Although it was revolutionary when it was introduced in the first iPhone, the iOS keyboard 2013 seemed archaic. And there was no other option.

That changes with iOS 8 since Apple allowed outside developers to submit their keyboards. SwiftKey was one of the first to sign up to develop a keyboard for iOS 8 and that fact alone made me consider switch to iOS. But it was during my testing of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus I realized that although Apple opened its playing field, the rules were still very strict.



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SwiftKey on Android. Sarah Tew / CNET

iOS SwiftKey is a great improvement over the factory pad. Both can predict the next word, which appear above the keyboard so you can give them a twist. However, SwiftKey syncs with your Facebook and Google, learning how to write better make long-term predictions.

It is certainly quite clever. I’ve been following the progress of the Google Lunar XPrize teams in recent months, and SwiftKey has been paying attention. Now, when I write just “Go” in my Note 3 immediately suggests “Google”. Then all I have to give a touch to the space bar to insert the word, then SwiftKey suggests “Lunar”. After that comes “XPrize”. So, write “Google Lunar XPrize” in an email press buttons only requires a couple of times: “Go”, then “O” and then space, space, space

Unfortunately, it does not work. that way in iOS.

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SwiftKey in Note 3 (left) and the iPhone 6 Plus. Tim Stevens / CNET

click “Go” in iOS, SwiftKey suggests “Google” and pressing the space bar selects that word. And now, after a week, SwiftKey suggests “Lunar” as the second word. However, a second touch to the space bar is only at one point, as does a keyboard factory. You’ll have to stretch the finger and a touch each predicted word that happens to him instead of giving touches to the space bar. Yes, I know, this sounds like a minor difference, but alters the typing rhythm. After getting used to this feature for years on Android, iOS miss. 8

Even more problematic is the elimination of the secondary functions of keys. Holding down the “d” key on Android, for example, results in the “& amp;” sign. In iOS, holding down the “d” key is in the letter “d”. This is particularly annoying when you want to write numbers, which are readily available on Android – and even more if you decide to add an extra row of numbers above the keyboard. But that’s not an option in iOS.

This function, unfortunately, seems to be specifically prohibited in the documents Apple keyboards developed by external companies. This prohibits elements are added on top of the keyboard, thus complicating the implementation of the above function.

I talked to the chief marketing officer Joe Braidwood SwiftKey on this and other functions that do not appear in the iOS version of my favorite keyboard. Although he did not say specifically what functions are not included due to restrictions of the platform itself stated that time constraints were a major factor in the exclusion of these features factor.

While SwiftKey already had an app iOS (Note SwiftKey, now renamed “Note by SwiftKey” to avoid confusion), was not able to be transferred directly here. When did the real development of this? “The day of WWDC [Apple developer conference],” Braidwood said. That means that only had three months to convert a sketch into a product that can be sold. “As you can imagine, it was not a large time frame.”



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Oscar Gutierrez / CNET

So some functions had to be excluded, while others were adjusted to make a little more familiar to users of iOS keyboard – change settings such as double spaced. That said, many of the good things about SwiftKey still remain, including synchronization with the cloud on your preferences click, the ability to write without inserting spaces between words and language change. And there is the hope that many more options and arrive to iOS settings such as the kind of deep customization that Android users are accustomed to.

In fact, while SwiftKey has very good grades that placed as one of the most popular free apps on the App Store, Braidwood was surprised to see how similar comments about the keyboard between the two platforms. Apparently new users who download SwiftKey want the same customization options enjoyed by veterans keyboard users. “Perhaps, after all, iOS users are not so different from those of Android,” Braidwood said.

The executive SwiftKey could not confirm which, if any, improvements arrive for versions future of the app for iOS, but given the popularity of the application, will surely capture attention within the company and within Apple. Does this mean that developers keyboards have a little more power and freedom in the future? “I hope so,” Braidwood said. “It would be wonderful.”

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