iPhone Adds Support for the 86-Year-Old Keyboard Layout Favored by ‘The Woz’

It may surprise some of you, but the QWERTY keyboard isn’t the only key layout available to those who type in English. Dvorak’s 86-year-old keyboard is now supported by iOS 16! While users previously had to install a third-party app to use the Dvorak keyboard on the iPhone, it is now native to the iOS 16 device. First, some background on Dvorak.

The Dvorak keyboard was an original feature on the Apple IIc . computer

We’d be remiss if we didn’t point out that Wozniak’s use of Dvorak has nothing to do with it appearing as a native feature on the Apple IIc. Woz explains how he learned to use Dvorak. “I was on a trip to Tokyo and played Mavis Beacon Teaching to type in Dvorak mode. I spent 5 hours learning it and never looked at a QWERTY keyboard again. That’s all it took me. My son has already successfully transitioned, learned Dvorak in no time and quickly reached Same speed as he wrote in QWERTY in about a week.”

To switch your iPhone from QWERTY to Dvorak, follow these simple instructions. go to the Settings > general > keyboard > keyboard > English (US) > Click on Dvorak. ArsTechnica points out that any speed that increases when typing on the Dvorak keyboard requires the use of all 10 fingers which is not possible on the iPhone.

How to get the Dvorak keyboard on your iPhone

Returning to The Woz, Steve added, “What I loved most about Dvorak was the feeling of using less power with your fingers. Since the advent of iPhones, I’ve had to resort to QWERTY but it just isn’t on my mind. I’ve been pretty fast typing QWERTY my whole life, but now it’s over I have to look at the letters on my iPhone.”

Woz is excited that the Dvorak keyboard is a native feature in iOS 16

But now that iOS 16 has native support for Dvorak, Wozniak is excited. When informing Ars Technica of this new feature, the humble Apple co-founder said, “OMG! Thank you very much!” Dvorak is supposed to be faster because it puts the most frequently used letters in the house row which reduces the movements your finger has to go through.

Dvorak on Android

To switch to Dvorak on Android, go to the messaging app and tap the search field at the top of the screen to pull up the QWERTY keyboard. Click on the Settings gear, click on Languages, then US English. You will see a carousel with different layouts. Press Dvorak for a checkmark and then on QWERTY to remove the checkmark from that option. Tap Done at the bottom right of the screen. our end! You have changed the keyboard on your Android phone to Dvorak.

To switch back on again, call your keyboard and hit the Settings gear. Click on Languages ​​and English (United States). Press QWERTY until you see a check mark. Tap on Dvorak to remove the check mark and then tap on Done in the lower right corner of the screen. This should return the QWERTY keyboard to your phone.