Typing on a glass smartphone screen is prone to errors. When you realize you made a typo three sentences ago, the natural instinct is to tap your finger directly onto the misspelled word to place the blinking cursor there. Unfortunately, fat-fingering the exact location between two specific letters is frustratingly difficult, often resulting in selecting the wrong word or triggering the magnifying glass. Apple solved this problem years ago, but the feature remains hidden in plain sight.
The Hidden iPhone Trackpad
Instead of stabbing at the screen to place the cursor, iOS allows you to transform the entire virtual keyboard into a smooth, precise trackpad. This trackpad lets you glide the cursor through your text as if you were using a physical mouse on a laptop.
How to Activate the Trackpad
You can use this feature in any app where the standard Apple keyboard is active, whether you are drafting a long email, sending a quick text message, or taking notes.
- Open any app and tap a text field to bring up the iOS keyboard.
- Look at the large Spacebar at the bottom of the keyboard.
- Press and hold your finger down on the spacebar. Do not tap it quickly; press and hold it firmly for about half a second.
You will feel a small haptic vibration, and the letters on all the keys will instantly disappear, leaving a completely blank, grey keyboard. You are now in trackpad mode.
How to Move the Cursor
Without lifting your finger from the glass, slide your finger around the blank keyboard area.
- As you slide your finger left, right, up, or down, the blinking cursor in the text field above will mirror your movements exactly.
- You can glide the cursor smoothly through paragraphs, moving it with pinpoint accuracy to drop it exactly between the two letters you need to edit.
- When the cursor is perfectly positioned, simply lift your finger off the screen. The letters will instantly return to the keys, and you can press backspace to fix your typo.
How to Select Text Using the Trackpad
The hidden trackpad is not just for moving the cursor; it is also the fastest way to highlight blocks of text for copying or deleting.
- Press and hold the spacebar to activate the trackpad mode.
- Slide your finger to place the cursor exactly where you want to begin highlighting.
- While keeping your primary finger pressed on the screen (moving the cursor), use a second finger from your other hand to tap anywhere on the blank keyboard area.
- This second tap acts as a “click and drag” command. Now, as you slide your primary finger, the text will highlight in blue.
- Drag your finger to highlight the desired word, sentence, or paragraph, then lift your finger to finalize the selection.