Whether you’re using a Google Pixel 10 Pro Fold or an older, more compact option like the Google Pixel 8a, you’ll likely use the default keyboard, Gboard. Even though some manufacturers offer their own, like Samsung and Huawei, you can still replace your smartphone’s keyboard by installing the Gboard app.
Aside from providing a clean and friendly user interface, Gboard is a top-rated keyboard app for its features. It has good predictive text, fantastic swipe typing, and useful text editing tools in its arsenal. Plus, it makes sense to stick with the app if you like staying within Google’s ecosystem on your Pixel phone.
As you may already know, one of the awesome perks of being a Pixel user with Google-related apps is that you can try new features when Pixel Drops happen, like the new Gboard AI writing tools during one of the 2025 Pixel Drops. But if you don’t pay attention to all of Google’s release notes, you might miss features hidden in your Gboard settings or hidden in the grid menu. Some of them are very practical, allowing shortcuts or saving a lot of time while you type.
Seamless multilingual typing on the go
If you’re bilingual or use another language while chatting or typing on your smartphone, it’s not really practical to keep changing the keyboard language, especially if you’re in a dynamic, fast-paced chat. This is where you’ll want to add another language to Gboard.
You can do this through your Pixel settings. Then, in the app, you can enable multilingual input in the languages you define, which must be defined in Gboard as available inputs. As you type, Gboard automatically recognizes the language you’re typing in and should be able to provide suggestions without switching to the other language.
Of course, the only limitation of this cool feature is that you can set it to only two languages at a time, which shouldn’t be too bad if you frequently only speak one or two languages. To make sure this setting is enabled, tap the gear icon (settings) in Gboard, choose “Languages,” then tap the language listed under the “Languages & Keyboard Layouts” heading and enable multilingual typing below it.
The clipboard pinning feature of your Gboard
If you accidentally send the wrong link or overwrite the link you were going to send, you definitely want to take advantage of your Gboard’s built-in clipboard manager. The clipboard is built into the app, so you can see what you’ve saved every time you open your keyboard on your Pixel phone.
While this may seem convenient to access, there is a little more you can do to control it. For example, your Gboard’s clipboard has a pinning function. Content pinned to your keyboard isn’t deleted (unless you clear the app’s data or uninstall it), even if you restart your phone or copy something else. This is not limited to text; you can use it to paste images. This is really handy if you want to send something later, but don’t want to lose it, or if you have repetitive text that you find too tedious to paste, like your email address, you’ll want to save it to your Pins for easy access.
To use the pinning feature, you must have copied the text or image and then open the clipboard on your keyboard (the icon must be above your letter entries). From here you should find the items you recently copied, hover over them and hold to open more options. Select “Pin” under “Paste” and you will find the text or image displayed under the “Pinned” heading in your Gboard clipboard.
Adding custom abbreviations to your Gboard’s personal dictionary
You probably know how to add special words, like slang, to your Gboard’s personal dictionary. But instead of adding actual words to the dictionary, you can use it to recognize abbreviations or shortcuts and then let it expand those words for you.
If you want to say your own version of “I’ll talk to you later” or “I’ll talk to you soon”, like “I’ll message you in a moment”, and you don’t want to keep writing it, you can write “IWMYIAB” and let Gboard recognize the short form and automatically expand it for you. It’s quite simple and can save you a lot of time and repetition when you’re on the go or busy.
To start adding entries to your dictionary, open Gboard (use an app that requires typing), select settings, then tap “Dictionary” > “Personal dictionary.” You will then choose the keyboard and can start adding words, including abbreviations (shortcuts). Tap the “Plus” sign in your keyboard’s dictionary menu and you can type a phrase and add its shortcut.
The gesture to enter the symbols
Gboard has a gesture-activated shortcut for entering symbols. When the keyboard is open, you scroll through the letters to open the symbols section. This is ideal if you frequently type numbers or try to use codes that often contain mixed letters and characters. But you can only do this if you have enabled the feature in your Gboard settings in the preferences menu. However, if swipe typing is already enabled, you may accidentally enable it instead of accessing the symbols on your keyboard.
The easiest way to correct this problem is to experiment with the film sensitivity so that it matches a more natural looking film than a longer scan. Flick input sensitivity can be adjusted under the “Flick keys to input symbols” toggle in the preferences menu.
Although it may look like a slider, you can only adjust the sensitivity up to five notches: the lower the sensitivity, the harder and longer you may have to press for the movie to record, but the higher the sensitivity, the faster you need to be. You may need to play with the sensitivity to match your natural input. Start with a lower sensitivity and increase it if necessary.
One-Handed Friendly Options on Gboard
One-handed mode on Gboard is really handy when you don’t want to use both hands to send a quick reply. This ensures that your thumb can comfortably reach the keyboard. Enabling one-handed mode can be done while Gboard is open (you don’t need to do this in your Pixel settings). In the upper left corner, above the letters, there should be a grid button. Tap the grid and select One Hand. This will shrink the on-screen keyboard slightly, which in theory will allow your thumb to press keys and type prompts. Pressing the four arrows next to your keys will return you to full-screen mode, disabling the one-handed option.
If you are left-handed, you can set this in your Gboard settings under preferences. Choosing “One-Handed Keyboard” and choosing “Left-Handed” will change the layout to suit left-handed typing. Or if you’re ambidextrous, you can press the arrow in one-handed mode to switch sides. You can also resize the keyboard once one-handed mode is enabled.
Another option that might work well if you like the accessibility features of one-handed typing is the floating window option. Tapping on the grid will take you to the “Floating” button, which should be right below the one-handed option. This will shrink your keyboard and create an overlay on your apps without being too intrusive or taking up too much space. By tapping the grid icon and selecting “Floating”, the keyboard will return to its normal size. This is a great alternative to keep in your back pocket for larger Pixel devices like the Pixel Pro Fold or even the Pro XL variants to resize your keyboard appropriately.