Which keyboard?

[KathyJM]

Google has forced its keyboard onto my Acer tablet and the default keyboard has disappeared.

I'm looking at alternatives and have a couple of queries:

1 Do keyboard apps really need access to location, photos, WiFi information, etc? Why? In-app purchases? Really?
2 I like the keyboard on my Samsung phone; can I get that on my Acer tablet?
3 Alternatively, I would welcome suggestions. I don't use emojis but would like numbers to be on the main keyboard screen. If the predictive language can be set to English (rather than American) that would be nice.

 

[zuben el genub]

Plainest keyboard is Hackers Keyboard. It was still on Google last week. It looks very much like a traditional keyboard.

 

[MLSS]

SwiftKey is a good alternative.
Great text prediction.

 

[tube517]

Check out Chrooma Keyboard. Very similar to Google Keyboard

 

[Thom]

I use SwiftKey. The prediction is great. I have three others installed and always use SwiftKey.

It is now free in Play Store.

... Thom

 

[mikedt]

Google has forced its keyboard onto my Acer tablet and the default keyboard has disappeared.

I'm looking at alternatives and have a couple of queries:

1 Do keyboard apps really need access to location, photos, WiFi information, etc? Why? In-app purchases? Really?

Frankly that doesn't sound like the Google keyboard to me
Which should be:
read your contacts
road contact cards
find accounts
read terms added to dictionary
download files
full network access
view network connections
run at startup
control vibration
add words to user dictionary

It certainly doesn't have in-app purchases, photos and location permissions.

Could be a third-party keyboard that Acer pushed on you as part of their update, NOT Google. In-app purchases could be for premium skins or something, and probably Acer takes an affiliate cut. WiFi information is most likely to determine your internet connection, either WiFi or cellular, because you might not want to be doing optional or updated dictionary downloads or something on cellular data.

 

[sullencab]

Try SwiftKey, my husband highly recommends it.