Apple's latest software update will make one-handed texting much, much easier

Time to give your thumbs a break. Well, one thumb, at least: Apple's latest software update, iOS 11, will include a one-handed keyboard mode. Scheduled to launch in full this fall, iOS 11 made its public debut in beta Monday.

This one-handed typing feature will allow users to nudge the keyboard to either side of the iPhone screen, making it easier for a single thumb to access all of the keys. Users will be able to access the one-handed keyboard by simply holding down the globe icon in the bottom left corner of the keyboard and selecting which side they'd like their keyboard to be shifted to. The keyboard will then stay on that side of the screen until the user moves it back.

Apple is a little behind the times, however: Third-party keyboards have had one-handed modes for years now. Moreover, the one-sided keyboard only works when the iPhone is held vertically, and the function has not yet been developed for the iPad.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up