iOs Keyboard Update News: Google’s launches GBoard an iOS Keyboard

Google working out on an iOs thing? Take a look! Google this morning have launched a new application for iOS devices called Gboard that puts the power of Google's search index directly into your mobile device's keyboard.

This keyboard had been rumored to be in development earlier this year, and it appears the original reports were accurate. Not only does the app allow for an easy way to use Google search, it also offers swipe-based typing and access to GIFs, as previously reported. And it includes easy access to common keyboard functions, like emojis and word predictions.

Of course, the most interesting feature of this keyboard is its direct integration with Google's services. By tapping the included "G" icon, you're able to immediately search directly on Google without exiting your keyboard and launching a browser or the Google app. The allows you to easily search for things like flight times, news articles, restaurant and business listings, weather and more right from your keyboard, then just tap to paste that information into your chat. (You'll need to give the app access to your location the first time you launch this feature.)

This information is presented to you at the bottom of the screen in a card-style layout, where each listing has its own card.When tapped, the information from the card immediately appears in your conversation, email, notepad or wherever else may be on your phone at the time. This is pasted as hyperlinked text, so you can do things like pull up the listing in Google Maps, phone a business or perform a web search for the item in question, among other things. However, you can also just tap on the "Paste" button from iOS's "Edit" menu in order to copy the actual card. "We wanted to bring the best of Google to Gboard, so you'll see Maps, Translate, image and video search, News and others," says Rajan Patel, the head of the product team that developed Gboard.