Could Google’s new Gesture Typing keyboard show up as standalone app in Google Play Store?

Earlier today some folks discovered apk files for Google’s “Gesture Typing” keyboard. As you may recall, Gesture Typing is a new feature included in the Android 4.2 Jelly Bean update. The new functionality provides an input method similar to Swype, letting users glide their fingers from letter to letter on the keyboard instead of having to tap the letters.

According to reports, two different versions methods to install the keyboard were available. One was a plain apk file that could be loaded directly onto a device as long as one was running one of the many manufacturer’s UI layers like TouchWiz or HTC Sense. Those running a device with a plain or stock Android install, had to go through the additional steps of rooting their device then flashing the keyboard onto the device.

Common to both versions of the keyboard was success in installing and using the keyboard on devices running at least Android 4.0 or higher. Since the news broke, Google appears to be in the process of asking anyone providing the files to take them down, claiming the keyboard is unfinished software.

It is not clear whether the keyboard was ever meant to be a standalone app that could be installed outside of Android 4.2. Now that so many people have seen it and unfinished versions are floating in the wild, we may see it show up in the Google Play Store as an app similar to the standalone calendar app that Google recently made available.

source: Android Police