What you need to know
- Google's Gboard is finally bringing its split-keyboard layout to Android tablets.
- The feature was reintroduced in 2022 in order to support the rise in popularity for foldable phones.
- With the toolbar, you can easily switch between different keyboard layouts on your various devices.
It shouldn't come as much of a surprise that we're big fans of the Gboard app on both Android and iOS. However, if you've been using any of the best Android tablets with Gboard, then you might have noticed the app did not support a split-keyboard layout.
Thanks to a new update rolling out to the Gboard beta app (via 9to5Google,) Google is bringing its split-keyboard layout to tablets. The option is enabled by default, and you can simply tap the keyboard layout button in the toolbar above the keys.
Google also includes the ability to toggle between showing "duplicated keys" when typing. When enabled, you'll see some of the same keys on both sides of the keyboard, such as the "G" and "V." This is meant to make it easier to type from your devices without needing to stretch or accidentally hit the wrong letter.
Long before foldable phones hit the market, Gboard used to offer a split-keyboard layout. At one time or another, Google decided to remove this before bringing it back in 2022, but only for foldable phones.
Admittedly, it does come as a bit of a surprise that this layout wasn't available for tablets until now. However, with the Pixel Fold and the Pixel Tablet set to launch sometime in June, it seems that Google is continuing its push to give Android tablets more attention.
You can hit the link below to be taken to the Play Store listing if you want to check for an update. But you might want to jump on the Gboard Beta train in order to get new features and updates even faster.
