Shift Keyboard: Watch Keyboard

Add a fully functional keyboard to your Apple Watch with Shift Keyboard.


* As featured on 9to5Mac, Cult of Mac, AppAdvice & iPhon.fr *


Typing messages on your Apple Watch can be chore - Scribble doesn't always work and Voice Dictation isn't great in public spaces. What’s wrong with using a traditional keyboard?

By adding a full QWERTY or AZERTY keyboard to your Apple Watch, you can easily reply to your iMessages quickly and privately.


Get started with these key features:


FULL KEYBOARD

Add a full QWERTY or AZERTY keyboard to your Apple Watch.

Keys are easy to press and there’s support for key previews as you swipe along the keyboard.


SWIPE KEYBOARD

A first on Apple Watch, Shift Keyboard allows you to swipe across the keyboard to create words.

Haptic feedback will confirm you’ve entered a character and you can use the Digital Crown to scroll through possible words.

It’s available in QWERTY or AZERTY layouts too.


PRECISE KEYBOARD

If you’re finding the other keyboard layouts too difficult to use, you can switch to the Precise layout instead.

Available in Alphabetical, QWERTY or AZERTY layouts, you can scroll through a larger set of keys for maximum precision.


SUGGESTIONS

As you’re typing, you can complete words using the Suggestions bar above the keys.

Tap on a suggestion to replace the current typed word with the full suggestion. Great for improving speed on the small screen!

Access all suggestions by tapping the ellipsis icon next to the first two suggestions.


CORRECTION

Whilst typing, if you make a mistake, Shift Keyboard will automatically replace the incorrect word with one it thinks is correct.

If it guesses wrong, just turn the Digital Crown to select another one - or your original typed text.


OTHER CHARACTERS

Shift Keyboard has full support for adding symbols, numbers and other special characters.


EMOJI

Unlike the built-in Messages app, Shift Keyboard supports adding an unlimited amount of emoji to a single message!

Simply select the emoji you’d like to add from the emoji picker and it’ll be appended to your message.

Your top 10 most recent emoji will even be suggested the next time you tap the emoji button.


MESSAGE PREVIEW

Before sending your message, just tap the text field to view a full preview of your message.


SENDING

Shift Keyboard uses the built-in Apple Messages app on your Apple Watch to send messages to your contacts.

Type out your message, tap the send button and you’ll be taken to the Messages app with your message ready to go!


HAPTICS

Choose to receive Haptic Feedback on actions like key presses and button actions.


COMPLICATION

For quick and easy access, you can add the Shift Keyboard Complication to your Apple Watch’s Watch Face. Just tap and the keyboard will launch.


GESTURES

Use a swipe left gesture for backspace or a swipe right for a space for quick typing. Full keys for both of these functions are also available too.


AUTO CLEAR

After typing out your message and sending to a contact, you can choose to automatically clear the keyboard so you don’t have to clear it yourself.

If your message gets cleared, you can easily get it back by accessing the Force Touch menu and choosing Get Last.

CURSOR

Whilst typing on the Full keyboard, you can see exactly where you are with the pulsing blue cursor.


SETTINGS

Customise Shift Keyboard your way.

Access the Settings menu by using Force Touch on the keyboard and you’ll be able to change the layout and toggle auto correct, suggestions & haptic feedback.


APP STORE

No need to install the iPhone app, you can get Shift Keyboard directly from the App Store on your Apple Watch.

Troubleshooting steps are available in the iPhone app.


Get in contact:

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @AdamFootUK
Website: adamfoot.uk


Please note, this app requires an Apple Watch for the majority of functions. Currently, sending messages in the Apple Watch app only supports the built-in Apple Messages app using iMessage or SMS.