The issue with the holding shortcut is that it costs more time than it saves. If there were a simple gesture, like swiping from a->l or vice versa then I’d do it in a heartbeat. Holding, choosing, occasionally misclicking, missing the button slightly and just losing seconds entirely, etc… it’s just a poor implementation. And I checked both keyboards, and a few others, and none really remedy this. Unless I want to learn how to swipe, I’m stuck. And I can’t balance my phone and swipe. They’re too big and heavy nowadays!
You can make the iOS keyboard narrower by holding the globe icon in the bottom-right and choosing which side you want it to group towards.
The third-party keyboard options in iOS really aren’t just theming; they behave completely differently. Check out TypeWise or SwiftKey.
The issue with the holding shortcut is that it costs more time than it saves. If there were a simple gesture, like swiping from a->l or vice versa then I’d do it in a heartbeat. Holding, choosing, occasionally misclicking, missing the button slightly and just losing seconds entirely, etc… it’s just a poor implementation. And I checked both keyboards, and a few others, and none really remedy this. Unless I want to learn how to swipe, I’m stuck. And I can’t balance my phone and swipe. They’re too big and heavy nowadays!