The Galaxy Nexus is almost here, but even if you're not in the market for a new phone you can sate your Ice Cream Sandwich appetite a little thanks to an XDA developers user, who extracted the keyboard application from Android 4.0 and made it available as a free download for Android 2.2 and 2.3. It's not the full 4.0 experience — voice input isn't working, and not all languages were ported over — but the keyboard's improved autocorrection, new look and feel, and a few other features came over in the transfer. We installed the keyboard on a Droid X2 running Gingerbread, and it activated and worked seamlessly.
Android 4.0 keyboard now available for older versions
An XDA Developers user has extracted the Android 4.0 keyboard application, and made it available to phones running 2.2 and 2.3.
An XDA Developers user has extracted the Android 4.0 keyboard application, and made it available to phones running 2.2 and 2.3.
is editor-at-large and Vergecast co-host with over a decade of experience covering consumer tech. Previously, at Protocol, The Wall Street Journal, and Wired.
Check out the demo video below, and hit the source to get the keyboard for yourself. Keep your eyes peeled, too — now that the Android 4.0 source code is open source, we expect to see hackers bring more of its best features to other phones.
Thanks, Randy!
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