New text ”app” could make typing on touchscreen mobiles 50pc faster

Typing on touchscreen mobiles could soon get fifty percent faster, thanks to a new text and email programme for smartphones.

Mobile technology firm TouchType, has introduced SwiftKey, a text prediction “app”, which could save time for smartphone users.

The innovation works by using language technology that predicts whole words as a person types on the phone.

“The incredible technology underpinning our application completely changes the way mobile users interact with their smartphones,” Sky News quoted Jon Reynolds, chief executive of TouchType, as saying.

The key elements which set it apart from old prediction technology, which relies on word lists, are SwiftKey”s language models that understand how words are combined within sentences.

This new advanced technology adjusts itself by learning the individual writing style and is available in languages such as US/UK English, Spanish, French, German, Dutch and Swedish.

“We’ve analysed over 50 billion words in nine major languages to build the models that drive our prediction engine,” said Ben Medlock, TouchType”s chief technical officer.