Tips

How to install the HTC Android soft keyboard without rooting your phone

August 25, 2009 | by Andrew Kameka

Android Tricks, Featured post, Tips

How to install the HTC Android soft keyboard without rooting your phone

One of the perks of rooting my phone was that it included the HTC version of the on-screen keyboard. I flat out didn’t like the default keyboard and was content switching between Better Keyboard or Touchpal, but the HTC version has momentarily subdued my ADD and become my input method of choice.

Want to have this keyboard but don’t feel like rooting your phone? Well, be happy that you can. Follow these steps and you’ll get the better looking, text-predicting, finger-tickling HTC keyboard, courtesy of a resourceful reader at Lifehacker.

UPDATE: 1. Download HTC_IME.apk from this location. You should also download the Clicker.apk if you want to improve typing experience through calibration.
2. Mount your SD card to your computer and copy the downloaded files to the SD card

3. Eject/unmount your SD card

4. From your phone, install the HTC_IME.apk and Clicker.apk. You will need an app installer or file explorer to do this. There are several available, but I prefer Astro.

  • Open your file explorer and browse the SD card for HTC_IME.apk
  • Press HTC_IME.apk and then press “Install” (allow installation from unknown sources if asked)
  • Do the same for Clicker.apk and then launch it to calibrate

The keyboard is installed! Now you need to enable it.

Go to Menu > Settings > Locale & text
Check the “Touch Input” radio button and press back.

htckeyboard02 htckeyboard


The next time you select a text entry field, you should see the Android keyboard appear. If it doesn’t, long press on the field and select the new input method.

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