Siine Keyboard – new & innovative Android Keyboard app allows typing with signs, known as Siines
by Paul Wilks
Mar 23, 2012 10:48 AM –
Install
Siine Keyboard is a fresh and innovative keyboard replacement for your Android device. While it includes a normal and typically functional keyboard, it also has built-in ‘siines’. These are essentially phrase shortcuts that post quick words, slang or more formal text phrases in common use. It takes a little getting used to, but for people who type a lot on their Android phone or tablet, this might be a great solution.
Price: Free
Tested on: HTC Desire HD
Content Rating: Everyone
Pros & Cons:
Pros
- Innovative texting solution!
- Great UI!
- Variety of extra sets to download!
- The clock and calender feature is priceless!
Cons
- Takes a bit of getting used to.
- Main keyboard lacks some functionality.
- Currently only available in English.
Features:
Siine Keyboard is undoubtedly refreshing and a new way to look at texting on your Android. Unlike normal keyboards, Siine Keyboard also offers sets of ‘siines’. Siines are groups of commonly used phrases and words which are displayed like tabs at the bottom of the screen. Pressing these phrases, instead of typing them out, can make texting a quicker and simpler way to communicate.
As there are a variety of sets to choose from, you can tailor your usage depending on who you are texting. For example, say you’re messaging a buddy, in three presses using the ‘Nice Guy’ set you can simply text ‘sup bro time to talk?‘. Alternatively if you’re emailing a work colleague or customer you can use the ‘Business’ set and be more formal. There are many sets you can additionally download, some really useful, some more novelty. These include: Booty Call, Brit, Car, El Che, Flirting, Girl Talk, Hip Hop Hello, Sherlock Holmes and Zen. It’s a new and clever way to text and is pretty effective.
I think my favourite element to the whole app is the ability to post times and dates quickly and easily. There is a blue tab to the bottom right of the keyboard which brings up a mini menu which includes a clock and calendar button. By pressing these you can either quickly choose a time or select a date and simply add these to your message. This takes just a few taps and is highly intuitive. There are also plenty of built in stock-phrases such as ‘can’t talk’, ‘sorry’ and ‘running late’ which makes the app very user-friendly.
While this is very innovative and intuitive when you’re using it, it does take a little bit of getting used to. It’s just such a shift away from the way you usually text and thus requires some practice and concentration. The question is whether you have the time and patience to do so. I would certainly recommend people who type a lot on their devices to check it out. If you rarely text/email from your Android it might not seem worth the bother. However, it is pretty funky to use and there’s some pretty cool sets to choose from, so definitely give it a look.
Watch on Mobile
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Siine – Typing with Siines 1
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Siine – Typing with Siines 2
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Siine – Easy to enter time
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Siine – All sets
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Siine – Gallery
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Siine – Tutorial
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Siine – Quick start sarcasm :)
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Siine – now installed
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Siine – Installing set
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Siine – Help
Usefulness:
For someone who texts a lot and likes the idea of saving some time, this is a great solution. The clock and calendar functions stand out for me, but the ability to download a host of phrase sets is pretty cool too. Whether you want to sound like Sherlock Holmes or a Cockney London Geeza (really!) there’s a set for you.
Ease of Use:
The crucial thing here is getting used to using your keyboard in this way. It’s something you need to spend a little bit of time with and some patience to get the most out of the functionality. With practice, I found Siines to become incredibly user friendly in just a short while and sending messages this way becomes very intuitive.
Frequently Used:
This will depend on the individual user and how much they type. Because of the different sets it’s something you can use as default and interact with friends, family and colleagues and use different words and phrases for each very quickly.
Interface:
The interface looks pretty cool and mimics the slick Android 4 (Ice Cream Sandwich) keyboard in terms of appearance. The easily accessed sets and included phrases also looks very smart and feels good to use.