For whatever reason, Apple decided not to allow “landscape mode” on iPhone email. If you want to turn the phone when the web browser is open and get the larger keyboard that makes two thumb typing realistic, no problem. But the email app is portrait only.
Now a new iPhone application called TouchType (iTunes link) fixes the problem. Open the application and you get a landscape mode keypad. type an email, hit the send button and it auto-populates the email application. Type in the email addresses and you’re all set.
The application, which costs $.99, comes from the same developer, Mike Schneider, who created Direct Line (easy phone tree navigation) and Private-I (loJack for your iPhone). I like how this guy thinks.
I’m adding this to my must have iPhone apps list.
God love Apple for realizing that the worldwide talent-base of developers can solve any problem if you give them an adaptable enough “blank slate”. Hopefully, they won’y pull the rug out from under these folks.
Pull the rug out? This is exactly the kind of application that Apple will pull from the App Store! Apple will erroneously claim that this duplicates the functionality of the built-in Mail app, by allowing you to compose email messages.
Furthermore, I know it’s only a dollar, but I wouldn’t pay for this. This is a feature that should have been in the iPhone at launch. This app is a crude workaround for the iPhone’s lack of cut-and-paste. This workaround is useful, only because Apple has crippled the Mail app.
It’s just so frustrating to me that Apple is so wrong-headed about providing basic functionality, and they’ve got the SDK so crippled that developers can’t even provide good solutions for what the iPhone lacks.
I won’t be getting this myself (don’t use email THAT much from the iphone, and I’ve sadly gotten used to the vert keyboard), but I disagree with your logic. You seem to be saying that you won’t be paying for this “on principle” because apple “should have” included it. What? Whether they should have included it or not is completely different from the fact that this is a useful app worth a dollar for peeps who need it.
try big keyboard email .. its much better
why the heck to we have to shell out a buck and a download on this?? That Apple didnt include this in the iPhone 2.0 update is ridiculous – took me 30mins to realise that actually my phone wasnt defective and that landscape was disabled for email.
Thanks to the developer for plugging the gap.
A freaking dollar? You probably buy a coffee and a donut every morning and probably buy some porn here n there. I’m sure you can ’shell out a buck’ from your meager pockets.
that took you 30 minutes to figure out
Here you go: “landscape mode” keyboard without installing anything (free web app)
http://www.mailpls.com
Enjoy!
only Apple Apple no other stuff
i know this off topic but one thing that really bugs me about apple is even though they create great features for their products many standard features such as multimedia messaging and the ability to use songs as ring tones are not included.
You can use songs as ringtones. Edit them in garageband if you’d like to do it for free, or pay 1.99 on iTunes.
Finally, this is one of the features I have been missing from the start. Now is this available for text messages (SMS) as well?
I immediately wondered the exact same thing. I would be a much more efficient typist on my iPhone if it would switch into landscape for texting. My hands are too big!
Jake
NoteScribe: Premier Notes Software
Now if only this worked with Notes as well.
Thank you Mr Schneider.
Wa wa wa apple crippled my phone!!
Anyone with an iphone well knows they will take whatever candy apple feeds them.
yes indeed it makes the application better.
Finally! Allowing 3rd parties to develop apps and fill gaps is a brilliant move. Of course, Apple then gets to cherry-pick and create their own versions downstream…
Not being able to type in landscape mode is one of the major reasons I haven’t gotten an iPhone yet. Does this work for texting as well? That’s a must.
I’ve always thought that landscape mode was harder to type on than portrait mode. The buttons are too far away from each other in landscape mode.
just downloaded it and tested it against my hp12c…works great so far…and yes, you have to switch off the sound (for those of you who haven’t noticed that switch on the left side of the iphone, you should be using that whenever you are at a movie, theater or using the 12c!). Great app
oops, wrong post…damn copying and pasting! was reviewing the great hp12c app. The touchtype works quite well..only disadvantage is of course that you have to “send” it to your email app, so if you add or edit it, you have to do it on the narrow screen. Also, you can’t do “reply” and then use it. I agree that apple should put this in its mail function, along with about 10 other basic things that blackberry has done much better on mail (doesn’t apple realize that millions of people will move from blackberry to iphone if the mail service is simply equivalent??). I assume that will happen soon, but paying 99 cents for a temporary fix is nothing.
Actually, you can use it to write replies. In Mail, hit reply, then close and go to TouchType. Write up your email. Send to Mail. Then your text is inserted in the reply message. Boom.
FWIW. The iPhone email App is the worst piece of software
I have ever used. Reminds me of the late 80’s.
It’s seems as though all the smart people get to work on the
hardware and well, “the other’s”, work on the software.
interesting theory…. especially seeing as a big part of apple’s appeal is their software (interface, ease of use, stability). and, yes, the iphone email software has issues but it isn’t even close to the “worst piece of software”.
I think they definitely hit on just the right price point for this. I’m curious as to how long it will take before Apple just includes this in their updates.
AppVee.com – The definitive source for iPhone app reviews
but this app doesnt change the way to current email works. you have to switch back and forth which kind of sucks
This ap works as advertised! Thanks for a very useful tool. But as others have commented this is badly needed for SMS texting. Will we see this soon?
Thanks!
I wonder if Apple also creates apps for users?
is there/can someone put together an IM app that landscapes?
BeejiveIM allows you to do IM in landscape mode.
AppVee.com – The definitive source for iPhone app reviews
There are FOUR apps that do this .. this one might not be the best. Here’s a full list from MacRumors:
http://www.macr...jection-policy/
why apple doesnot provide this as standard ?
Thank goodness someone developed this! I’ve had an iphone for months now, and I still can’t type on their stupid keyboard. Landscape mode is SO much easier! THANK YOU!
Now this is a good one. Thanks for telling about this Michael.
Thanks for all the great feedback on the app. In response to questions about SMS functionality, there currently isn’t a way to send message content into the SMS application. Programs can initiate an SMS message to a specific number, but for some reason we can’t populate the message field using the existing protocol.
Mike, Thank you profiling the app.
Regards,
Mike Schneider
http://www.thisistech.com
This is a great application for the Iphone. Hope you succeed for SMS too. Let me know if you do
Thanks again
There is an even better application just released which has the same functionality and even better functions to accompany this simple yet brilliant concept for the same price.
An application called “Wide Email” (http://phobos.a...274499&mt=8) provides the following additional features and also only costs $0.99!!!
- Works for replying to emails from Mail, including reply all (this is huge because most of the emails you type on your iphone are replies)
- Automatically saves copies of sent emails
- Automatically saves drafts if program is interrupted (by home button or phone call, etc)
Iphone is without doubt the greatest thing since lsliced bread!
http://www.anonymity.at.tc
The Iphone is still a horrible superfluous piece of bull.
10 reasons why I hate the Iphone – http://quicktop..._an_I-Phone.asp
I am sure we could come up with 10 reasons why we can hate people who write stupid things on websites. dude…
really? Three years ago no one, not even the mighty Nokia would have guessed at how well the iphone has done. It has changed the phone industry, every other brand is bringing out an ‘iphone beater’. Does that not sink in? Design wise and functionality the iphone has left all the others making massive changes.
I don’t want to have to look at the keyboard when I type. Add a speak-n-spell like option to the keyboard and I’ll buy it. Just let it say the letters as they’re typed – and maybe even speak the suggested word and I’ma buyit fast.
I just don’t understand why Apple doesn’t support a landscape keyboard in all landscape applications neither why Mail doesn’t support landscape at all.
we can even read popular magazines through zinio.com/iphone but we need to do some changes in it.i.e we need to add user switcher addon in firefox.
For me, the bigger issue is reading email in portrait mode. I wish this was able to display my emails in portrait mode for easy reading.
If you use the the Gmail iphone client via the browser for emailing, you can already rotate landscape and get the wider keyboard. If you setup gmail using IMAP with the iphone mail client, it then syncs both clients.
I haven’t gotten an Iphone because of the landscape mode issue as well. I got big fingers and the regular mode doesnt work well enough. Sticking 2 my bb until apple fixes this!
It’s cool but it crashes and takes a while to load sometimes.
There are actually four apps like this in the App Store. Wide Email is the best as it has a Subject field and saves drafts of your emails.
See all of them here:
http://www.reel...mail-on-iphone/
The app looks ok, but i followed Francesco.
http://www.mailpls.com
I then just saved it to my home screen and now it acts like an app. great link and FREE
this application is not that good..there is a new one called Big Keyboard Email, its not as buggy as this one!
Not to good app, don´t load it!!
Why can’t I reply to an e-mail using this app? Maybe I just don’t understand how to use it, but it clearly isn’t as simple as hitting “reply” and tilting the iPhone.
Can anyone help me out, my iPhone is about 3 months old and recently has stopped showing the keyboard when I hit reply to my hotmails (so I can’t reply), also it has stopped showing all of the site page of any page that comes up ie it cuts it short? Thanks
Have you tried HorizMail (AppStore)?
Do you have tried iphonemail ??
http://www.iphonemail.net
I love my iphone, but i never use the email app. I cant get it to connect to my mail server. But for hotmail its awesome.
I think its very ‘apple’ to make a 99% application so that they can then make another app that costs money to fix it.
Good work steve jobs.