Edgar Cervantes / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Gboard beta introduces an “Auto-switch after apostrophe” feature to enhance typing speed.
- Once the feature goes live, the keyboard will return to letters automatically after ‘ is pressed.
- The feature will likely support English, French, German, and several other languages upon launch.
Typing apostrophes on Gboard is about to get a lot less tedious. According to the latest beta version of the app (v16.2.4.815623744), Google is working on a new feature called “Auto-switch after apostrophe”, which aims to make inserting apostrophes smoother and faster while typing.
Currently, using an apostrophe in a word can be unnecessarily cumbersome on Gboard. For instance, if you want to type It’s, you first need to type It, then tap the ?123 key to open the symbols panel, choose the apostrophe (‘), and finally switch back to the letter keyboard to type s. It’s not a huge hassle, but it’s enough to slow down fast typists, especially if you’re someone who regularly types contractions or possessives.
The new feature aims to address this by automatically switching the keyboard back to the letter layout immediately after an apostrophe is inserted. Here’s what the settings toggle would look like:
AssembleDebug / Android Authority
In other words, once you press the ‘ symbol, Gboard will instantly return to the alphabet keyboard so you can continue typing without the extra step. Here’s a demo of the feature in action:
This small but thoughtful change could make everyday typing more fluid, particularly for users who frequently type in languages that use apostrophes.
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Based on the strings spotted in the beta, the “Auto-switch after apostrophe” feature will work across multiple languages, including English, French, German, Dutch, Greek, Finnish, Danish, Norwegian (Bokmål and Nynorsk), Swedish, Albanian, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish, Ukrainian, Polish, Czech, Welsh, Macedonian, Catalan, and Galician.
While the strings refer to the prime (‘) symbol, which is technically different from the typographic apostrophe (’), most users treat them interchangeably. That’s precisely what this tweak seems designed to address. The feature isn’t live for users yet, but it should begin rolling out once testing is complete.
It’s a subtle change, but one that fits perfectly into Gboard’s pattern of small, meaningful updates that refine the typing experience rather than reinvent it. So the next time you type don’t, it’s, or can’t, Gboard might make it feel a little more effortless. Or, I don’t know, maybe just type “dont” and let autocorrect do its job?
⚠️ An APK teardown helps predict features that may arrive on a service in the future based on work-in-progress code. However, it is possible that such predicted features may not make it to a public release.
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