Ginger Keyboard – App Review

One of the reasons I love the Android ecosystem is because of the many varieties of apps that can help customize and personalize my experience. One day, I might like one type of keyboard, another day I might want to change my launcher. Using the Ginger Keyboard from Ginger Software is no exception.

Coming across the Ginger Page keyboard app, I thought, what makes this keyboard app any different from all the other ones that are already out there? There are just tons of them. One of the things that I notice right away is the turquoise neon colors it uses. Already I feel a light cool feeling. After being prompted to sign up for an account, setup commences. One will need to enable the keyboard to use right away. Users are then prompted to setup what language they would like to select as well as which keyboard theme they would like to use. Free is always good and the app has a couple of free dark and light keyboard themes one can pick. There are other themes available for purchase.

A quick tutorial provides a user an inside look at how to use the keyboard. Don’t really need to watch it and want to use it right away? Feel free to press the skip button. A whiteboard screen appears and one can start typing away. I like how you can swipe away. Word prediction is pretty much on target. So to keep testing this out, I typed out “I am having a great day.” I thought well I don’t really like the way it sounds. Simply choose the option to suggest different rephrases. So I don’t have to keep typing this phrase again, I can simply click on favorite (the star button) and voila! It is saved for future use.

Maybe I want to text this particular phrase, “I am having a great day” in German and then post it on my Facebook account. Not a problem. The keyboard uses Google Translate to translate words/phrases into 65 different languages. Spelled something wrong? It will proofread your writing before you send/post it. It seems Ginger Software thought of it all. I haven’t really found anything that bugged me about this app.

I do notice that one moment my default keyboard is set on Ginger. However, a couple hours later, my keyboard default is set to back to Samsung Swype. Not sure if it is something I am doing or it is more of a phone issue. It’s ok. In the app itself, I emailed the developer. When you send feedback, it relays information about your cell phone or device to the developer so they can help pinpoint the issue. I have yet to hear back from them.

Since I have the Galaxy Note 4, I often use my stylus when I am sending out messages or when I post. While it does not outright recognize my scribble, I find it much better to swipe the keyboard with the stylus then to use my fingers. However, Samsung provides a feature for the stylus that no matter what keyboard app you download, you will be able to scribble and the keyboard app will recognize your handwriting anyway.

What I like:

• Easy setup and ease of use.
• Gives the user many options with words and phrases – define a word, translate, rephrase, favorite, copy, find synonyms, build your own dictionary.

While Ginger certainly thought of everything, one thing I have to mention and who knows if it could possibly be in a future update. It does not have voice recognition where someone with a disability can just talk to it. Overall, the app is a pretty great option especially with many other keyboard apps that are already out there or will be coming out. For now, I will happily stay with Ginger!

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