Windows 10 includes Windows Phone's predictive text feature for touchscreen keyboards

By John Callaham
published

Windows Phone users who are used to the predictive text feature on its virtual keyboard will be happy to learn that the Windows 10 Technical Preview also offers the same kind of feature, at least in some form.

The feature, as first reported on Neowin, is only available in the Windows 10 preview when the keyboard is used to search for something. We have confirmed this is the case when using the preview build on a Surface Pro 3, with suggestions for words appearing on top as the user types in letters.

old predictive

By comparison, this is the old predictive system that Windows 8.1 users are familiar with. It's more than likely that the feature in Windows 10 will be expanded and improved in future builds before it is officially released sometime in 2015. In the meantime, are you happy that more Windows Phone features are popping up in Windows 10?

Source: Neowin

John Callaham
John Callaham
104 Comments
  • What about swype-style keyboard?
  • I hope they include this. Always go and try to do it and end up feeling like a douche lol
  • Glad I'm not the only one LOL I go to do it on my Surface since I'm so used to it and it upsets me it's missing. I'm guessing they will add it though to continue the single experience vision they're touting.
  • Me too haha
  • Would love to see Word Flow come to Windows 8.1 and Windows 10.
  • yeah, the swipe makes it so that you can be super lazy about accuracy.  even on the big surface pro 2 screen, i miss the keys! but I hope windows 8 feature of showing a number pad shows up more consistently for windows phone.  i hate having to hit the top tiny row of keys for entering numbers.  why not have the full size keypad for number entry???
  • I have a thread on uservoice for windows phone
  • I always do it too. It's shocking how absolutely abysmal the Windows 8.1 keyboard is in comparison to Windows Phone's. Hopefully with Windows 10 being "The OS" for all MS devices brings WP's benefits, rather than Windows 8's negatives.
  • I'd love to see WordFlow come to tablets too... I'm already going to my Toshiba Encore or my SP3 and using the onscreen keyboard start sliding away and surprised that it doesn't work. Much like when you use Windows 8.1 on a desktop and when you want to do something really quick, you reach up and start tapping away on the nontouch monitor - damn I hate being caught doing that (It's one of those Head/Desk moments). The larger screen sized tablets may not be so helpful with WordFlow, but I know I wouldn't mind if the option was there to turn it on. It would definitely become the default setting on my 8" tablet. (Love WordFlow).
  • I'd like to see an option like the split keyboard but where there is a phone-sized keyboard over in the corner. Then you could reach your thumb over and do WordFlow. The split keyboard has it's uses, but I've never been able to get used to it, or type with much speed.
  • All the TIME!!!
  • This^
  • I feel like a douche regardless
  • I don't see swype much useful on tablets or PCs as it is on phones.
  • That may be true in your usage, but I represent another point of view. I have an 8" tablet, and swipe on the keyboard would be great.
  • I am on board with swype too.. I use my Surface Pro 3 in Portrait mode alot.  THis would be huge for me.
  • I need this for my Dell Venue 8 Pro, stat!
  • Couldn't disagree more. Swiftkey would be VERY useful in Surface. It's so annoying to have to pickup your finger between letters.
  • Wow you're lazy if lifting your finger is classed as annoying
  • Hell I want WordFlow on my regular PC keyboard!
  • I wavbnhgt wuikoiuytrdxfghjklopoiuytreww Doesn't work.... :'(
  • I think it would be far more useful on a tablet, so that it's easier and faster to type with one hand.
  • On my SP3 word flow is most welcome when I have the keyboard off and am in tablet mode. Unwieldy how large the screen is to hands for typing. Perfect for one finger swiping
  • you should try swift key on android tablet, yyou can have the keyboard smalla nd to one side, so you can swipe with one finger! if only my yoga laptop had this, it would be great!
  • I was just about to say that I wanted the Swype keyboard too. And yes it is useful.
  • I have been hoping that they implement it into the os. It is great on the phone, would love to have it on my surface.
  • Imagine a small phone sized swipe keyboard on a 12 inch surface. It could be movable on the screen so you could place it on either side near whichever thumb you wanted to use. I think it would come in handy. I often do the split screen thing for the keyboard and type with my thumbs, that's nice but I think the swipe thing could be better. I'm also hoping for speech input too.
  • WordFlow will be awesome on my 82" touchscreen.
  • As long as its only on the on screen keyboard.
  • Haha, how else would they implement it, aside from perhaps the Touch Cover 2?
  • I got (my 1st) Win8 tablet yesterday Can't get used to its keyboard after WP. Its Numpad, no predictions, no swipe.. I know its off topic but i want to edit WPs keyboard dictionary (words I added)
  • SInce you've gone off topic a little I'll add my bit. The very useful swipe up for numerals on Windows 8.1 on the upper row is awesome and that is what I would like to see appear on the top row of the WP keyboard. But since there is going to be a universal OS (functioning in slightly different ways for the device you're using), I'd say MS would be working toward this TYPE (get it), of standardisation across their virtual keyboards, or I hope so.
  • I hope its standardised. Personally I'd like to see all the Windows keyboard layouts come to Windows Phone ... I've been using the Dvorak layout for years on my physical and touch keyboards for my computer and tablet, and it's jarring having to use QWERTY on my phone.
  • I agree, I use to swipe on my phones when I pickup my surface and try to type on the screen it just feels unnatural.
  • First thought that came to my mind when I read this article. HOPE YOU'RE LISTENING MICROSOFT. I too am guilty of swyping on my surface and think it would be super useful when holding the surface with one hand and typing/swyping with the other. Especially if they ever come out with a Surface Mini
  • +1020. Swiping would be wicked to have on my SP2
  • Not only that. It would be nice to be able to snap the entire keyboard to the left or right bottom corner and use swipe.
  • Try TouchPal
  • This! SP3 would be awesome with it!
  • Wow .... Great!!!!
  • Here's hoping for Word flow\ shape writing\ whatever it's called
  • I need the WordFlow keyboard. It would make typing a lot easier and faster on my venue 11 pro.
  • Of course, I've been waiting for this .
  • I'm literally mimicking what's on the screen in that picture verbatim and it's not working. Works with the onscreen keyboard but not surface type cover. Judging by that picture this presumably should be a shot of a device using a physical keyboard. No dice
  • The caps/shift change I've wanted for so long. Add that to windows asap... Plus swipe.
  • The predictive text feature on Windows Phone is top notch. (hah! I typed "top" and the first suggestion was in fact "notch").
    It's one of my favorite things about WP. Best smartphone keyboard out there.
  • That's completely true! I love it and I also think WP keyboard is the best of all. And I love how when you type " I have to" it suggests the poop icon lol
  • Definitely :D
    I personally think that windows 10 should take alot of the beauty and simplicity of windows phone. Im new to windows 8.1 on my surface pro 3 and I find jt very overwhelming so yes. More windows phone please
  • Like
    Looking good
    Love it
  • swype keyboard would be great with surface pro 3 pen
  • You just now noticed this?
  • Wow!!!! If only I could have this ON MY WINDOWS PHONE 8.1 DEVICE PLEASE KTHXBYE! I'm sorry, I got carried away. Actually, I understand You must be busy creating more and more abandonware. Thanks for that. Signed, A future Xperia Z3 Compact owner, as soon as HERE Maps are officially released on Android.  
  • bye
  • You DO have on your WP 8.1 device. It has always been part of the OS...
  • Yeah, well, not if one wants to use a non-english keyboard layout/language. I don't know about other major languages, but mine doesn't have anything. No predictive text, no swype no nothing.
     
  • You need to enable it jeez bro
  • I have Spanish on mine and it works perfectly. The predictions are just as good as the English ones and can use workflow. What language are you using?
  • *wordflow
    (WP won't let edit now for some reason)
  • WP Central app*
    (dammit!)
  • I use Hindi keyboard and still it gives perfect predictions and accuracy using Swype. What language do you use?
  • xperia another phone competing Samsung in blotware.
  • I want the WordFlow keyboard, but i also want system-wide dictation, including support for grammar. I'd like this on windows phone, too.
  • Seems faster..
  • Old Symbian had Serbian/Croatian T9 keyboard. I'm bit disappointed that my Lumia 820 doesn't have Serbian/Croatian predictive text input.
  • Awesome!
  • Not surprising since they already announced that windows 10 will be replacing windows phone.
  • My main concern is the "rush to make WP8.0" will happen again. Remember that many features was primarily supposed to come with WP8.0 just like FM radio?? So they didn't have time enough for rewrite all the code for the features previously contained in WP7.5. Hope that won't happen again.
  • Windows 10 is not close we can expect it after second half of 2015 that's still further away.
  • Needs Swipe!!!!
  • Woohoo! Widows phone is much more consistent and discoverable. When is swipe coming?
  • Hope Wordflow/Swipe is included. Everytime I try typing on my Surface Pro 2 after using my 1520 I always forget there's no Wordflow
  • Yep need word flow.
  • Hallelujah
  • Needs swiping badly.
  • All I can picture now is "This e-mail is message."
  • I have a question. Recently after updating to Cyan I lost my predictive text and flow keyboard features. It's not the first time that something like this has happened, the features eventually come back. Can someone please explain to my why this happens and how I can fix this?
  • Did you see if it's enabled in settings?
  • As more and more WP features are implemented on Windows 10, I still wondering about one particular feature that never mentioned anywhere. Install store apps in other drive/partition. :3
  • This just makes me really wanna see what they will do with Windows 10 ARM
  • i need windows 10. professional verison come soon.
  • In a year +
  • I don't really care for predictive text. I know perfectly well what I want to write. What I hope comes with W10 for tablets is WordFlow. I got used to it on WP, I'm even more used to it on Android and you can't imagine the amount of times I've inadvertently tried to use it on the SP3.
  • This is a very welcome addition. Been asking for it since Windows 8 first came out :)
  • Very happy to see WP features coming to Windows. I hope it's not the other way around. When they changed the text selection style from WP 7 to the Windows style in WP 8, I was worried that more Windows functionality would work it's way into WP than the other way around. To me, WP is better than Windows.
  • Cool. The Windows 8 on screen keyboard kind of sucks, while the WP one is the best I've ever used. Struggling with an Android keyboard right now.
  • This is one of the things that took too long for them to add. It's quite basic for tablets, but better late than never
  • This unfortunately made the keyboard smaller, and I somehow miss the space bar, even though nothing else seems to have changed. Guess I'll get used to it.
  • I want the Swype keyboard.
  • I noticed this when using the Remote Desktop app on my DVP8 to control my PC running Windows 10. Not entirely sure it is due to the tech preview though as I wasn't running Pro prior to this. Can anyone confirm?
  • People test windows 10 and give your feedback with all the ideas you can come with if you want windows to be awesome!
  • Yes! I've wanted this since I discovered WP.
  • nice one, same on all system, phone tablet an pc... 2 wish... cortana on every system, xbox one include, probabely going to apen... and live tile on xbox one... it was a long road but microsoft will finaly have the same dev tool for all there system... cant wait to see win 10 final
  • Thank god I hate the autocorrect on Win8. Can I add bad words to its dictionary too??? Lol
  • Along with word flow it will be great.
  • We need wordflow asap. I dream of it
  • It will be great to have WordFlow in windows tablets and touchscreen laptops a well.
  • Yeah! Please give us word flow on Windows 10!
  • Will it work for DK language? Currently DK word suggestion is not supported in the onscreen keyboard in Win8.1 even though it is supported in WP8.1
  • The keyboard, while good , needs a few features
    * Resizing and floating * Customization of layout, with colour themes, and other options on it like a dedicated number row, arrow keys, shortcut to clipboard etc.
  • Need this on Xbox One.
  • We need Word Flow for Surface, I'm reminded of its lack every time I need to type without the keyboard.
  • Personally, Windows should follow the same conventions as Windows Phone as much as possible. It is very frustrating moving between the two and WP set the standard first.
  •   What about the swipe sharing.
  • I'm a little confused. I had swype and predictive text on my Lumia 925 since Windows Phone 8. It worked on all apps using the stock keyboard. There was even a setting for it. I was surprised and extremely disappointed that the feature is gone. I can't even find any of the old swype/word flow apps in the Store. I know we're still in beta but I don't understand why get rid of it at all.