iPhone users in China rush to download new Chinese keyboards for iOS 8

For iPhone users who found Apple’s default iOS keyboard too finicky, the company’s allowance of third-party keyboards for iOS 8 marked a cause for celebration. But while English speakers (or perhaps more accurately, Romance language speakers) are going gaga over SwiftKey and Fleksy for iPhone, in China, people are flocking to keyboards offered up by domestic giants Baidu and Sogou.

Even the most dedicated Apple fans have complained about the iPhone’s default text-input system, which favors small fingertips and tends to go overkill with autocorrect. But for Chinese iPhone users, it’s even worse. For one thing, typing in Chinese is (and probably always will be) a chore, due to the script’s complexity.  Since language input has always been a drag for Mandarin speakers, internet companies like Baidu and Sogou have offered up their own language-input software since the desktop era.

With data collected since the late nineties, Baidu and Sogou have honed their predictive technology to a degree where they can guess obscure words and slang. They also let users store words for later use (this is more useful than you’d imagine), and allow for deeper customizations for features like handwriting input.

Given the constant headaches one faces when typing Chinese on any device, as well as their longevity on other devices – many young phone owners likely grew up with Baidu and Sogou for PC – it’s not surprising to see how these input apps have shot up the rankings in China’s app store. According to App Annie, Baidu’s language input app currently occupies the top spot in the free apps category, while Sogou’s sits at number three (Plants vs Zombies is sandwiched in the middle). One day after their arrival in China’s App Store, Baidu’s app has more than 1,000 five-star ratings, while Sogou’s has almost 3,000.

Many writers have pointed to the large-screen iPhone 6 plus as an Asia play for Apple. Likewise, the keyboard concession could be interpreted as one too.

Somewhat ironically, Apple might not stand to benefit from Chinese enthusiasm for iOS 8 as early as it hoped. The commercial release of the latest iPhone models has been delayed indefinitely in China, allegedly due to problems Apple has faced obtaining proper licenses from the country’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT).