Swype vs SlideIT vs Shapewriter? All look great (and similar)!

[JonKyu]

This is from a Swypeinc.com thread, by a moderator three days ago:

"Like I mentioned in your other post, we don't currently have any short-term plans to make Swype available for download."

In other words, they are only marketing to be the default typing application for phone systems, as has been their continuing strategy since inception. However, I think SlideIT is about as good, and is available on the market as a normal downloadable app. I've switched to it for good.

After using all three for more than a week now, I find I still prefer Swype. Perhaps it's nothing more than the fact that I accustomed myself to it first and got used to such things as looping for double letters. (I find that intentionally misspelling a word with double letters is problematic and time consuming.) And I have a hard time breaking the habit of swooping up over the top to capitalize a word.

Nevertheless, I've found that SlideIt is nearly as accurate and almost as quick as Swype. (Shapewriter, at least for me, is significantly less accurate. Not sure why.) So I've bitten the bullet and purchased SlideIt and intend to use it exclusively for awhile.

I agree, I really like SlideIT but I just can't get past the $8 dollars, for a keyboard replacement. I wouldn't even pay that much for Swype I think I'll wait for updates and improvements until I shell out the $8.

 

[Phillipsave]

The problem with Dasur's marketing strategy is that it charges in pounds I think, instead of dollars, so the pricing overseas would be equivalent, let's say, to five dollars in the US, but because of the weak dollar/pound, it is more pricey in the States. But, if someone here wants it, they could conceivably pass up a burger and beer one night, and they'd be home free.

 

[jsh1120]

I agree, I really like SlideIT but I just can't get past the $8 dollars, for a keyboard replacement. I wouldn't even pay that much for Swype I think I'll wait for updates and improvements until I shell out the $8.

It's worth two lattes to me, especially considering it's the most frequently used app I have. In addition, I have a long term interest in seeing developers enhance and support their products. "Free" apps that disappear when a developer can no longer afford to support them aren't much of a bargain.

 

[SSHGuru]

I will continue with the free version of Swype which works very well for me. Right now their strategy is to only sell it to phone carriers but eventually if they are smart they will release it to the market. But for free software it does the job just fine. Also I use the real keyboard also.

 

[wingdo]

I will continue with the free version of Swype which works very well for me. Right now their strategy is to only sell it to phone carriers but eventually if they are smart they will release it to the market. But for free software it does the job just fine. Also I use the real keyboard also.

Just as long as you are comfortable with the fact it isn't actually free but as far as Swype is concerned illegal. They have made that fact abundantly clear all over their forums.

 

[fishepa]

I will continue with the free version of Swype which works very well for me. Right now their strategy is to only sell it to phone carriers but eventually if they are smart they will release it to the market. But for free software it does the job just fine. Also I use the real keyboard also.

Just as long as you are comfortable with the fact it isn't actually free but as far as Swype is concerned illegal. They have made that fact abundantly clear all over their forums.

Oh well, they can come find me.

 

[SSHGuru]

I'm completely comfortable - could not be more so. Once they sell it I'll buy it. If they want my money they can put it on the market.

I will continue with the free version of Swype which works very well for me. Right now their strategy is to only sell it to phone carriers but eventually if they are smart they will release it to the market. But for free software it does the job just fine. Also I use the real keyboard also.

Just as long as you are comfortable with the fact it isn't actually free but as far as Swype is concerned illegal. They have made that fact abundantly clear all over their forums.

Oh well, they can come find me.

 

[jsh1120]

I will continue with the free version of Swype which works very well for me. Right now their strategy is to only sell it to phone carriers but eventually if they are smart they will release it to the market. But for free software it does the job just fine. Also I use the real keyboard also.

Just as long as you are comfortable with the fact it isn't actually free but as far as Swype is concerned illegal. They have made that fact abundantly clear all over their forums.

Being in the software biz myself, I'm usually quite sympathetic to the point of view of developers. In this case, however, I'm not especially concerned by the few hundred (or perhaps few thousand) copies of Swype that have found their way into use on unsupported platforms. If, in fact, Swype is truly concerned about the issue, they could easily protect their software in a variety of ways.

In fact, it's a suspicion that they have protected the software that made me seek an alternative. If the pirated version is, as I suspect, an evaluation beta version, I strongly suspect that a timer exists and the software may well stop working some morning. Even if that's not the case, I don't want to rely on software that I cannot be sure wouldn't stop working when the android o/s is updated.

As I've noted in other posts, I understand Swype's reluctance to sell their software directly to consumers. Considering that many consumers would balk at spending $5 for the software, Swype is far better off selling their software to phone manufacturers and allowing someone else to take on the burden of support while Swype gets a license fee for every phone sold.

 

[billyk]

I need to take a look at SlideIt.

There are some excellent points made here in this thread.

 

[billyk]

Well, I explored SlideIt and bought it, b/c:
- It has editing features that smoke Swype
- It's faster on my Droid
- If offers Graffiti, which comes in handy
- It's faster on my Droid!
- It's just a better place to be - a fully supported, fully paid-for app. Hey - we're not talking big dollars here.

I'll need to live with it for some number of days to really know what it's like to live with SlideIt, but on first blush, it's a winner.

Thanks for the info in this thread!

 

[pwjone1]

Well, I explored SlideIt and bought it, b/c:
- It has editing features that smoke Swype
- It's faster on my Droid
- If offers Graffiti, which comes in handy
- It's faster on my Droid!
- It's just a better place to be - a fully supported, fully paid-for app. Hey - we're not talking big dollars here.

I'll need to live with it for some number of days to really know what it's like to live with SlideIt, but on first blush, it's a winner.

Thanks for the info in this thread!

Thanks also for all the info in this thread. I went ahead and bought the SlideIT keyboard, it was a bit tricky to install, but it seems to work, still learning.

I guess the thing about Swype, which actually is what got me looking for a new keyboard in the first place (well, that and fat fingers ), is that if their intent was to leak in order to do a viral marketing campaign, it was brilliant. Name included. And I do wish, having played a bit now with SlideIT, that Verizon or Moto had broken down, and added Swype (or SlideIT) to the Droid. Would have been another nice little "Droid Does!" sort of thing. But ultimately, I made a conscious decision not to install Swype, not that it would have been at all difficult or anything, but it was really a basic principles issue for me. If the Swype intent was to not have it leaked, which is what they're pretty clear on, to install it would be morally and ethically wrong. At least by my standards. I'm kind of OK with others that come to a different interpretation, I'm not trying to impose my will or standards on others, that's something each of us has to find our own way on. But for me, I think it's best to respect Swype's intellectual property and rights, if they didn't want it distributed, well, so be it. Kind of like the "fell off the truck" thing, I know that gets used as a euphemism for "stolen", but indeed, sometimes stuff does just fall off the truck, and when you come across it, you have to decide: (1) Pick it up and say "Finders, keepers!", (2) Try and report it or get it to the legitimate owner, or (3) Drive around it. I've occasionally done (2), but more often (3). So I'm not occupying particularly high morale ground or anything.

Still, I like cool, new products like the Droid, and Android, and I realize that if I'm to see more new cool products, I have to pay a bit so that the developers have incentives to keep working on them and bringing them to market. SlideIT cost me $8.16 (I feel like I'm in arbitrage buying stuff in Euros, it's up, it's down, etc., but that's OK, I do acknowledge that not everything cool originated in the U.S.). A few are carping about the $8+, I cannot get too wound up about it, Android Apps seem to be pretty reasonably priced, as versus Apple, and after paying a couple of hundred $s for the phone and a hundred a month or so for phone/data charges, well, $8+ isn't that much. These phones are little computers, and $8 for a computer app is getting off pretty lightly.

I would encourage Swype to go ahead and bring it's product to the Android market, or cut a deal with someone else that's willing to do so.

 

[pwjone1]

After playing with SlideIT some more, I have to say, it works quite nicely. It does really pretty well at recognizing my slides across the keyboard, and as I've figured out the registration, my speed and accuracy have gone up quite a bit. I've had to do a little saving of some things I key in a lot, and proper names and so forth don't show up, and I actually find it kind of handy to still have the conventional Droid keyboard to slide out and input the tricky stuff (remember, I have fat fingers ), but definitely worth the money.

 

[rayvincent]

Last night I bit the bullet, jumped in the deep end, broke down and purchased SlideIt, I'd been using the free version for a little while and started getting the notice that the sw was expired/expiring or something like that. I uninstalled the free version and re-installed the free version, it seemed to not have a problem with me "Sliding" again, I wanted a bit more time with it before taking the next step in our relationship. So after about another half day using the free app I broke down and PURCHASED my first app. SlideIt, you broke my cherry.
I uninstalled the free version of SlideIt I had and went to the Marketplace, found the SlideIt that was for sale and the transaction went quick and easy, next thing you know I was Sliding away with my shiny new cool App :icon_ banana: No regrets so far.

 

[redrandy]

Dam it you guys!
I was very happy with Swype, well kind of sorta, lots of bugs though.
But now after reading this thread, I now I have purchases SlideIT.
Thanks a lot!
(Good info guys, thanks)

 

[ripstar]

Just got slideit yesterday and it is awesome! Anyone have any helpful hints?