Modern Android smartphones often come with pre-installed keyboards that are overloaded with functions, stickers, GIFs and complex themes. For many users, this becomes a real problem, as it distracts them from typing and takes up extra space on the screen. Wanting to “make a regular keyboard” usually means striving for minimalism, the absence of pop-ups and the familiar tactile feedback that was found on older devices.
Fortunately, the Android operating system provides ample opportunities for customizing input. You can not only customize the current keyboard to suit your needs, removing everything unnecessary, but also completely replace it with a simpler analogue. In this article, we will look at step-by-step methods on how to turn your input tool into the most functional and concise one.
Built-in settings for the current keyboard
The first step before installing third-party software should be a deep study of the settings of your current input application. Most often, users use Gboard from Google or a standard Samsung keyboard, which by default have a very “noisy” interface. To make it normal, you need to disable a number of visual and functional elements.
Go to the settings of your device and find the section System → Language and input → On-screen keyboard. Select your active keyboard from the list. Here you will need to turn off features like Emoji Suggestions, GIF Search, and Themes. It is also worth unchecking the “Single-line mode” item, if it is active, to return the usual height of the buttons.
Pay special attention to the predictive input settings. Many users find the word suggestions above the keyboard annoying. It can be disabled in the section Text correctionby unchecking the item Show hint bar. This will instantly free up screen space and create a more streamlined look.
If you're using a Samsung, go to your keyboard settings and turn off "Toolbar" to remove the row of icons above the input buttons.
Don't forget that the interface may vary depending on the version of Android and the manufacturer's shell. What is in one menu on pure Android can be hidden deeper on the MIUI or One UI shell. If you cannot find the switch you need, use the search inside the phone settings.
Installing third-party minimalist keyboards
If the built-in tools do not allow you to achieve the desired minimalism, the best solution is to install a specialized application. There are dozens of options in the Google Play store, but for the task of “making a regular keyboard,” easy and quick solutions are best.
One of the best options is Simple Keyboard. It is an open source application that weighs only a few megabytes and does not require any permissions to access the Internet or contacts. It provides only letters, numbers and basic punctuation, without auto-correction unless you enable it yourself.
- 📱 Simple Keyboard —ideal for old smartphones and asceticists.
- ⌨️ Hacker's Keyboard —offers a PC-like layout with separate Ctrl and Alt buttons.
- 🎨 FlorisBoard —modern open-source keyboard and flexible customization of appearance.
After downloading an application from the store, the system will not switch to it automatically. You need to manually activate the new input method. To do this, go to your phone settings, select Language and input and check the newly installed keyboard box. Then click on it in the list and select the “Select keyboard” option or the switch in the lower right corner of the screen when typing.
☑️ Installing a new keyboard
Setting the size and font buttons
The concept of a “regular keyboard” is subjective for each user: some need large buttons, while others need compact ones so that their fingers do not touch adjacent characters. Most modern keyboards allow you to flexibly adjust the height and width of the input field.
In the settings of the active keyboard, find the section Settings or Preferences. There is often a slider Keyboard heightthere. By moving it, you can make the panel higher for ease of clicking or lower so that it takes up less space and does not overlap the content in instant messengers.
The readability of characters is also important. In some design themes, the font may be too thin or, conversely, bold. Change the theme to "System" or "Classic White/Black" to return the default look of the Roboto font or whatever is used on your system.
⚠️ Warning: Changing the keyboard height may affect how autofill works in some applications. If you notice that the tooltips are overlapping the buttons, return the height to the default value.
For users with poor vision or large fingers, there is a function to change the font size of the letters themselves. This does not affect the size of the button, but makes the characters inside it more contrasting and noticeable. This option is often hidden in the subsection Appearance.
Disable unnecessary functions and gestures
Modern text input is replete with functions that bother many. Swipes for entering words, voice input by pressing a comma and tooltips when long pressing - all this can and should be disabled if you want the classics.
The continuous input function (Glide typing) often works accidentally when you are just typing quickly. To disable it, go to the keyboard settings and find the item Continuous input or Glide typing, then move the switch to the inactive position.
| Function | Where disable | Why disable |
|---|---|---|
| Voice input | Settings → Voice input | So as not to accidentally turn on the microphone |
| Vibration response | Settings → Preferences → Vibration | To save battery power and silence |
| Autocorrect | Settings → Text correction | To prevent the keyboard from changing words itself |
| Emoji panel | Settings → Emoji panel | To remove the extra button with emoticons |
Another annoying feature is pop-up windows with character options when pressed for a long time. For example, when you hold down the letter “e,” the list “é, è, ê” appears. If you rarely use special characters, it is better to deactivate this function in the section Advanced.
Why does the keyboard consume a lot of battery?
Active functions such as constantly checking the Internet to search for GIFs, complex animation of clicks and motion sensors for gestures significantly increase processor power consumption.
Resetting the dictionary and learning history
Often the problem of the “wrong” behavior of the keyboard lies not in its appearance, but in the accumulated dictionary. The algorithms may have remembered your typos or specific slang and are now persistently suggesting them. To make the keyboard “clean”, you need to reset this data.
In the keyboard settings, find the section Additional or Privacy. There should be a button Delete saved data or Reset dictionary. Confirm the action, and the keyboard will forget all your input habits, starting to work as new.
This is especially useful if you have given the phone to another person or if auto-correction has started to fail behave inadequately after updating the system. Resetting will return the standard dictionary provided by the developers.
⚠️ Attention: After resetting the dictionary, the keyboard will no longer suggest your first and last names and frequently used words. It will take some time for it to “learn” your writing style again.
Some users prefer not to reset the entire dictionary, but to delete individual words. To do this, it is usually enough to long press on the word hint in the top line and select “Delete” in the menu that appears.
Compatibility issues and bugs
When installing third-party “regular” keyboards, users may encounter the fact that in some applications they do not work or work incorrectly. This is often due to Android security limitations or version conflicts.
For example, in banking applications or password managers, third-party keyboards may be blocked by the system to protect data. In this case, the system will automatically switch you to the standard keyboard. This is normal behavior, and it is impossible to bypass it without root access.
- 🔒 Security — banks block input through untrusted keyboards.
- 🐛 Bugs —an older version of Android may not support new input methods.
- 📉 Performance —heavy keyboards can slow down on budget smartphones.
If the keyboard disappears or does not appear when you press input field, try clearing the keyboard application cache. Go to Settings → Applications → [Your keyboard] → Storage → Clear cache. This will not delete your settings, but will correct possible operational errors.
If the keyboard is unstable, try rebooting the device after installing it - this will help the system correctly register the new method input.
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions
Is it possible to completely remove the standard Google keyboard?
It is usually impossible to completely remove the Gboard system application without root access, since it is built into the firmware. However, you can disable it in the application settings, making it inactive, and use only a third-party keyboard.
Why did the click sounds disappear after changing the keyboard?
Tap sounds are configured separately for each keyboard. Go to the settings of the new keyboard and enable the option Tap sound. Also check to see if your phone is in silent mode.
Are simple open source keyboards safe to use?
Yes, Open Source keyboards such as Simple Keyboard or FlorisBoard are often even safer proprietary, since their code can be checked by independent experts for the presence of spyware modules.
How to return the old layout if I don’t like the new one?
You can quickly switch between keyboards by swiping down on the spacebar or by clicking on the keyboard icon in the lower right corner of the screen (key icon). Select the one you need from the list.