One of the advantages of having soft or virtual keyboards is that they can change depending on a given context. While Android has had this ability since virtual keyboards were introduced in the operating system in early 2009, it was improved with the Android 1.5 release released in mid-2009.

With the release of Android 1.6, the virtual keyboard seems to have a much better touch interface interaction, and keypresses are registered more quickly and reliably without having to tap on the screen very hard. While the iPhone has the same approach to virtual keyboards, Android takes it one step further by allowing third-party virtual keyboards as well. The built-in virtual keyboards can change depending on what type of data you are entering, adding frequently-used keys when needed, such as the @ symbol for email address entry and so on. The Android implementation is reminds me of the intelligence built-in to BlackBerry keyboard entry in fields where spacebar allows entry of an @ symbol and periods when entering in email addresses.

This is most apparent when entering a new contact. There are different virtual keyboards depending on a specific context, including name, phone numbers, and email addresses. In addition, there are other third-party keyboards that can be selected simply by long-pressing in an entry field. A dialog box will allow you to choose a different virtual keyboard. There are also global settings that can be changed per virtual keyboard as well.