Apple Explores Smart Keyboard With Siri, Share, and Emoji Keys
 

Apple recently filed a patent application containing drawings of a Smart Keyboard with "Share" and "Emoji" keys, and a key that can be used to both search and invoke Siri, suggesting it may be exploring a new version of the iPad Pro accessory to be sold alongside next-generation models.

http://cdn.macrumors.com/article-new...ard-patent.jpg
The drawings show that pressing the "Share" key would bring up a share sheet on the iPad Pro with options to share through apps such as Facebook, Mail, and Messages. There is ** description of how the "Emoji" key would function, but pressing it would presumably bring up the on-screen Emoji keyboard on the iPad Pro.

The current Smart Keyboard already has a globe key in the bottom left corner that can bring up the on-screen Emoji keyboard, but this key is **t visualized in the patent drawings. There is a **n-existent "Fn" key in its place.

The third key, labeled with a magnifying glass, would serve multiple purposes. A single press, for example, could bring up a search field for searching within apps. A double press could bring up shortcuts for Messages, Photos, Calendar, Camera, **tes, Settings, and other apps. Long-pressing the key would invoke Siri.

Since this is **t a design patent, Apple's drawings are **t entirely accurate, but rather just basic visualizations. The "Share" key is located where the right-side Command and Option keys would **rmally be, for example, while the "Emoji" key is included in lieu of Caps Lock, which is an essential key.

Nevertheless, we roughed up a quick mockup of what the new Smart Keyboard could look like based on the same layout of the new keys as Apple's drawings.

http://cdn.macrumors.com/article-new...ard-mockup.jpg
Apple is rumored to launch a trio of new iPads as early as March, but possibly **t until later this year, including an all-new 10-inch range iPad Pro with an edge-to-edge display. The other models are expected to be updated 9.7-inch and 12.9-inch iPad Pro models with faster A10X processors.

A so-called "Smart Keyboard 2" could accompany the new iPads and perhaps the so-called "Apple Pencil 2" rumored to launch this year.

The current Smart Keyboard was released in **vember 2015 and costs $149 and $169 for the 9.7-inch iPad Pro and 12.9-inch iPad Pro respectively. International versions such as British English, Dutch, Korean, Spanish, Italian, German, Swedish, French, and Arabic were released in August 2016.

Tags: patent, Smart Keyboard

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