Back in May, Brazilian teenager Marcel Fernandes Filho used Fleksy's predictive keyboard for Android on a Samsung Galaxy S4 to set a new world record of 18.19 seconds for the fastest typing of a text message on a touch-screen mobile phone. Filho's record was certified by the Guinness Book of World Records and required him to type Guinness' standard test message:

The razor-toothed piranhas of the genera Serrasalmus and Pygocentrus are the most ferocious freshwater fish in the world. In reality they seldom attack a human.

With Fleksy now available for iOS, Filho and Fleksy gave the record another try earlier this month, and Filho came through with a new record of 17.00 seconds using Fleksy on an iPhone 6 Plus.

“We’re very proud of Fleksy’s involvement in helping Marcel achieve this impressive feat,” said Ioannis Verdelis, Fleksy co-founder and COO. “The speed and accuracy Fleksy provides have yet again proven world-class.”

Fleksy is just one of a number of third-party keyboards that have launched for iOS, taking advantage of new APIs in iOS 8 to allow such keyboards. Many of the new keyboards offer predictive word suggestions and gesture support for faster typing, while others have more specialized uses. Apple has also enhanced its own built-in keyboard with QuickType predictive text in iOS 8.

With Fleksy's success on iOS at a $0.99 price point [Direct Link], the company is now seeking to broaden the keyboard's appeal on Android where it first gained traction. As a result, Fleksy is announcing a permanent 50 percent price cut for the Android version of Fleksy, dropping the price from $3.99 to $1.99.

Top Rated Comments

4966246 Avatar
143 months ago
And now, on the 4S, it takes as long just to load it!
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mdelvecchio Avatar
143 months ago
If it wasn't so cold where I am, I think I'd be able to beat that time using the stock keyboard iOS keyboard on an iPhone 6 Plus.

do buildings not exist where you live?
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TsunamiTheClown Avatar
143 months ago
If it wasn't so cold where I am, I think I'd be able to beat that time using the stock keyboard iOS keyboard on an iPhone 6 Plus.

I tried Fleksy, and it seems to get in the way. That, or I'm just not used to it enough.

Is is that cold in Florida? <3
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
odditie Avatar
143 months ago
I downloaded and tried it on iOS and I found it to be better than swiftkey and swype for my tastes. I just got tired of the poor auto-correct and the bugs associated with third party keyboards. For example, the keyboard just refuses to show up sometimes when using spotlight, which I heavily rely on instead of going through folders looking for apps.

I went back to the default iOS keyboard and haven't looked back. I do think Apple should look at some of the gestures that fleksy uses like the swipe to the left to delete whole words and swipe to the left and hold to erase several words at once faster.

FYI - that was an iOS issue from my understanding. I believe Apple is now (as of 8.1.1) allowing the keyboard to live on the RAM once it is opened so doesn't get bumped off and require reloading and the issues like you mentioned as a result.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
foobarbaz Avatar
143 months ago
Wait, doesn't a predictive keyboard kinda defeat the purpose of a typing record?

Not to mention that the software could easily be tweaked (or trained) to predict the entire "standard test message."
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)
saturnotaku Avatar
143 months ago
SwiftKey works better for me. Its swiping is more accurate with my fat fingers. I need to get it back on my phone since 8.1.1 is supposed to fix the issue with 3rd-party keyboards not displaying in certain apps.
Score: 1 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

M5 MacBook Pro

Apple Announces New 14-Inch MacBook Pro With M5 Chip

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:07 am PDT by
Apple today updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with its new M5 chip, which is also available in updated iPad Pro and Vision Pro models. In addition, the base 14-inch MacBook Pro can now be configured with up to 4TB of storage on Apple's online store, whereas the previous model maxed out at 2TB. However, the maximum amount of unified RAM available for this model remains 32GB. Like...
Apple iPad Pro hero M5

Apple Debuts New iPad Pro With M5 Chip, Faster Charging, and More

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:16 am PDT by
Apple today announced the next-generation iPad Pro, featuring the custom-designed M5, C1X, and N1 chips. The M5 chip has up to a 10-core CPU, with four performance cores and six efficiency cores. It features a next-generation GPU with Neural Accelerator in each core, allowing the new iPad Pro to deliver up to 3.5x the AI performance than the previous model, and a third-generation ray-tracing ...
maxresdefault

Here's Everything Apple Announced Today

Wednesday October 15, 2025 3:54 pm PDT by
We didn't get a second fall event this year, but Apple did unveil updated products with a series of press releases that went out today. The M5 chip made an appearance in new MacBook Pro, Vision Pro, and iPad Pro models. Subscribe to the MacRumors YouTube channel for more videos. We've rounded up our coverage and highlighted the main feature changes for each device below. MacBook Pro M5...
iphone air thickness

Apple Said to Cut iPhone Air Production Amid Underwhelming Sales

Friday October 17, 2025 8:29 am PDT by
Apple plans to cut production of the iPhone Air amid underwhelming sales performance, Japan's Mizuho Securities believes (via The Elec). The Japanese investment banking and securities firm claims that the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max are seeing higher sales than their predecessors during the same period last year, while the standard iPhone 17 is a major success, performing...
HomePod mini and Apple TV

Apple's Next Rumored Products: New HomePod Mini, Apple TV, and More

Thursday October 16, 2025 9:13 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro, iPad Pro, and Vision Pro with its next-generation M5 chip, but previous rumors have indicated that the company still plans to announce at least a few additional products before the end of the year. The following Apple products have at one point been rumored to be updated in 2025, although it is unclear if the timeframe for any of them has...
Vision Pro M5 Announcement

Apple Updates Vision Pro With M5 Chip, Dual Knit Band, and 120Hz Support

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:14 am PDT by
Apple today updated the Vision Pro headset with its next-generation M5 chip for faster performance, and a more comfortable Dual Knit Band. The M5 chip has a 10-core CPU, a 10-core GPU with Neural Accelerators, and a 16-core Neural Engine, and we have confirmed the Vision Pro still has 16GB of RAM. With the M5 chip, the Vision Pro offers faster performance and longer battery life compared...
14 inch MacBook Pro Keyboard

New 14-Inch MacBook Pro Has Two Key Upgrades Beyond the M5 Chip

Thursday October 16, 2025 8:31 am PDT by
Apple on Wednesday updated the 14-inch MacBook Pro base model with an M5 chip, and there are two key storage-related upgrades beyond that chip bump. First, Apple says the new 14-inch MacBook Pro offers up to 2× faster SSD performance than the equivalent previous-generation model, so read and write speeds should get a significant boost. Apple says it is using "the latest storage technology," ...
MacBook Pro M5 Screen

New MacBook Pro Does Not Include a Charger in the Box in Europe

Wednesday October 15, 2025 6:59 am PDT by
The new 14-inch MacBook Pro with an M5 chip does not include a charger in the box in European countries, including the U.K., Ireland, Germany, Italy, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, and others, according to Apple's online store. In the U.S. and all other countries outside of Europe, the new MacBook Pro comes with Apple's 70W USB-C Power Adapter, but European customers miss out....
airpods max 2024 colors

AirPods Max 2: Everything We Know So Far

Tuesday October 14, 2025 8:43 am PDT by
Apple's AirPods Max have now been available for almost five years, so what do we know about the second-generation version? According to Apple supply chain analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, the new AirPods Max will be lighter than the current ones, but exactly how much is as yet known. The current AirPods Max weigh 0.85 pounds (386.2 grams), excluding the charging case, making it one of the heavier...
macbook pro blue

Apple's M5 MacBook Pro Imminent: What to Expect

Tuesday October 14, 2025 4:35 pm PDT by
Apple is going to launch a new version of the MacBook Pro as soon as tomorrow, so we thought we'd go over what to expect from Apple's upcoming Mac. M5 Chip The MacBook Pro will be one of the first new devices to use the next-generation M5 chip, which will replace the M4 chip. The M5 is built on TSMC's more advanced 3-nanometer process, and it will bring speed and efficiency improvements. ...