Dryft is a keyboard for tablets from the creator of Swype

Typing on tablets is a pain. The larger display makes the onscreen keyboard cumbersome to operate. And then there are Bluetooth keyboards which are not usable in all situations.

So how do you solve a problem such as this? Randy Marsden knows a thing or two about virtual keyboards. He is, after all, the co-founder of Swype, one of the most widely-used keyboards on Android smartphones and tablets too. Marsden, along with Bridgescale Partners co-founder Rop Chaplinsky, is now taking on typing on tablets with Dryft.

Personalised for everyone

Dryft changes according to your fingers and how you type. Instead of adjusting your fingers according to the keyboard, here the keyboard adjusts itself according to where you place your fingers and their span. You start by placing all your eight typing fingers on the screen and Dryft determines where to place the letters and the gap between each row and column. So every user gets their own keyboard layout and this automatically readjusts itself when you take a break and resume typing.

In the video explaining how Dryft works, Marsden says that we learn to type by resting our fingers on the ‘home row’ that tells us where the other letters are. It isn’t easy to replicate that on a tablet. Dryft uses the accelerometer in the tablet to determine whether your fingers are resting or typing at that moment. It looks beyond using just the touch sensors on the screen. This helps in the natural typing feel, just like a physical keyboard. You might even be able to type without having to look at the keyboard.

The makers of Dryft say that the on-screen keyboard will allow you to type at around 80 words a minute. The keyboard is currently in beta development and the makers hope to release it for Windows Phone, iOS and Android. You can sign up to use the beta version of the keyboard.