Google has a habit of abandoning its apps after the initial launch. The company makes a big deal about it, and a few months later, it's radio silence. Then, every few years, it remembers one of them and goes all in. That is what happened with Snapseed. After sitting untouched for ages, the photo editor came back to life this year with a full redesign. The same happened with other apps like Google Earth and Fitbit. So, my question to you, Google, is when the Gboard app on iPhone will get its much-needed redemption.
How Far Behind is Gboard on iOS?
Let me help you get familiar with the issue first. When I switched from the OnePlus 12R to the iPhone Air, the first thing I did was install Gboard, expecting the same experience I loved. But I didn't know I was in for a disappointment. The iOS version is a shadow of the Android version. It has not had a meaningful update in close to four years, while the Android app is updated regularly.
So, I was stuck with a keyboard that does the basics and not much else. Meanwhile, Google has thrown everything but the kitchen sink into the Android app, and maybe that's coming in the next update, too. You may think that I might be exaggerating, but let me show you everything iPhone users are missing on Gboard.
- Resize and reposition the keyboard: On Android, you can drag the keyboard's height and width to whatever feels right, anywhere from a third of the screen to full size.
- Floating keyboard: You can detach the keyboard and move it anywhere on the screen. On large displays, this is a real game-changer.
- One-handed mode: A quick tap shifts the keyboard to one side so you can type with a single thumb. Perfect when your other hand is busy.
- Google Translate: Built-in Google Translate works as you type, right inside the keyboard, without jumping between apps.
- Themes and customisation: You can also pick custom photo backgrounds, colour themes, keypress sounds, and more.
- Clipboard History: Gboard also saves recently copied text, links, and passwords and quickly brings up the clipboard in Gboard to paste it in required fields. You can also pin frequently used items (like your email or a home address) so they never expire.
- Emoji Kitchen: When you select two different emojis, Gboard automatically creates custom, merged stickers (e.g., combining a laughing face with a ghost creates a laughing ghost).
- Swipe-to-Delete: Touch the backspace button and swipe left to highlight and delete multiple words at once.
- Spacebar Trackpad: Slide your finger left or right on the space bar to move the text cursor precisely.
- Tone Adjustments: Gboard also gets a smart feature that automatically changes the tone of your text. Like, professional or friendly.
- Gemini-Powered Voice Typing: On Pixel 10 devices, Gboard gets smarter Gemini-powered voice dictation. It understands the context and intent behind full sentences, which heavily limits transcription errors compared to traditional voice typing.
- Gemini Rambler: Google recently announced a new Rambler feature for Gboard designed to clean up your messy dictation. It recognises when you stammer, use filler words (like "um"), or repeat yourself and strips them out for error-free voice typing.
Google Can Fix a Neglected App When It Wants To
And after watching Snapseed get rescued, it is hard not to feel like Gboard on iOS deserves the same treatment. Only a few apps have managed to crawl out of the Google graveyard. Fitbit recently integrated with Google Health. Google Earth and Google Voice are some other examples that come to mind.
But the Snapseed story hits the hardest. For years, the assumption was that Google did not care about its non-core iOS apps. But after Google revived Snapseed, it blew a hole in that theory. Google actually shipped major updates to the iOS version first, leaving Android users waiting before Snapseed 4.0 finally launched there, too.
In fact, Gboard actually first arrived on iPhones and then Android devices. Read that again. That is exactly why Gboard on iOS feels so frustrating. It is not that Google cannot do it. It is that, for whatever reason, it has not.
Apple's Own iOS Keyboard is Not an Excuse
Before any Apple fanboy raises their hand to ask, "Why do you want Gboard on iOS? Just use the default keyboard", I want to say, "No, I don't think I will". Because after spending a year on iOS, it's the iPhone keyboard that drove me back to Android. It is a really barebones experience that doesn't even get the basics right.
The iOS keyboard has improved over the years. But there is still no proper resize option, no floating mode, and nothing close to Gboard's customisation options. One look at online forums like Reddit makes it clear that the demand for a better third-party option is there. Google is just not meeting it.
Over to you, Google
So, now that I have put all my thoughts and points forward, the ball is in your court, Google. The Snapseed comeback was a genuinely nice surprise. It showed that Google can take a forgotten app and make it exciting again, even on iOS.
So reviving Gboard on iOS is a simple ask. Bring over themes, resize the floating keyboard, one-handed mode, and Translate. Give iOS users the keyboard Android users have enjoyed for years. You did it for photos. Now do it for the thing we actually type with all day.
