Fleksy for iOS Used to Set New World Record for Fastest Touch-Screen Text Message Typing - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Fleksy for iOS Used to Set New World Record for Fastest Touch-Screen Text Message Typing

by

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

4
4966246
153 months ago
And now, on the 4S, it takes as long just to load it!
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mdelvecchio Avatar
mdelvecchio
153 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
TsunamiTheClown
153 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)
O
odditie
153 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)
F
foobarbaz
153 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)
S
saturnotaku
153 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)
Read All Comments

Popular Stories

Four iPhone 18 Pro Colors Mock Feature

iPhone 18 Pro: Pre-Orders and Release Date

Sunday August 16, 2026 8:24 pm PDT by
Apple has yet to reveal when the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone Ultra will be announced and released, but the dates usually follow a familiar pattern. As usual, the event is expected to take place in the first half of September. Labor Day falls on September 7 this year. The last time the holiday was on that day was in 2020, but the iPhone event that year was delayed until October due to the...
Read Full Article
apple camera airpods

Apple's Camera-Equipped AirPods Confirmed: See Them in Action

Monday August 17, 2026 6:21 pm PDT by
Apple is working on camera-equipped AirPods that appear to be nearly ready to launch, based on a video MacRumors found in the macOS Tahoe 26.7 release candidate. In a short demo, a man holds a book up so the camera in the AirPods can see the title. "With Visual Intelligence, your world becomes savable. See something you like? Just ask me to save it for later," says the voiceover text. Here ...
Read Full Article • 314 comments
imac video apple feature

September 1 to Mark the End of an Era at Apple

Tuesday August 18, 2026 9:14 am PDT by
Apple in April announced that Tim Cook will be stepping down as CEO at the end of this month, after 15 years of leading the company. Cook has been Apple's CEO since 2011 Effective September 1, Apple's hardware engineering chief John Ternus will become the company's next CEO, while Cook will become executive chairman of Apple's board of directors. In his new role, Apple said Cook will assist...
Read Full Article