Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Gboard VS Vim

Compare Gboard VS Vim and see what are their differences

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Gboard logo Gboard

Google-powered keyboard with search, GIFs, emojis and more!

Vim logo Vim

Highly configurable text editor built to enable efficient text editing
  • Gboard Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-18
  • Vim Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-10-23

Gboard features and specs

  • Multi-language support
    Gboard supports typing in multiple languages, allowing users to switch between languages seamlessly.
  • Google Search integration
    The keyboard includes a built-in Google Search feature, enabling users to perform searches directly from the keyboard.
  • Glide Typing
    Gboard offers Glide Typing, allowing users to type words by sliding their fingers from letter to letter instead of tapping each key.
  • Voice Typing
    Users can input text via voice commands, making it easier to type hands-free or when speaking is more convenient.
  • Emoji and GIF search
    The keyboard includes a comprehensive search tool for emojis and GIFs, making it easy to find and insert them into messages.
  • Google Translate integration
    Gboard features built-in Google Translate functionality, allowing users to translate text in real-time.
  • Customizable themes
    Users can customize the keyboard's appearance with various themes and colors to suit their personal taste.

Possible disadvantages of Gboard

  • Privacy concerns
    As a product of Google, some users may be concerned about data privacy and the extent to which their keystrokes and information are being collected.
  • Resource consumption
    Gboard can consume more system resources (CPU, RAM) compared to other keyboard apps, potentially slowing down the device.
  • Occasional lag
    Some users may experience lag or delays when using Gboard, particularly on older or less powerful devices.
  • Complexity
    With its numerous features and options, Gboard can be overwhelming or difficult to navigate for some users.
  • Intrusive suggestions
    The predictive text and autocorrect features can sometimes be overly aggressive or intrusive, leading to incorrect suggestions and auto-corrections.
  • Frequent updates
    While updates can bring new features and improvements, frequent updates may also result in bugs, changes to user interface, or require re-learning certain functionalities.

Vim features and specs

  • Efficiency
    Once learned, Vim can significantly speed up text editing with its modal editing, keyboard shortcuts, and commands that allow for quick navigation and manipulation of text.
  • Lightweight
    Vim is a very lightweight editor, consuming minimal system resources, making it highly performant even on systems with lower specifications.
  • Customizability
    Vim is highly configurable and extensible through plugins and user-defined settings, allowing users to tailor the editor to their specific needs.
  • Ubiquity
    Vim is available on almost every Unix-like system and even on Windows, making it a ubiquitous tool that you can rely on being available in most environments.
  • Support for Multiple Programming Languages
    Vim supports a wide range of programming languages out of the box and offers syntax highlighting, which can be enhanced through plugins.
  • Powerful Search and Replace
    Vim offers robust searching and replacing functionalities, including support for regular expressions, which can be a powerful tool for developers.

Possible disadvantages of Vim

  • Steep Learning Curve
    Vim's modal editing and extensive set of commands can be daunting for new users, requiring significant time and effort to master.
  • Minimal Default Config
    The default configuration of Vim is quite minimalistic, which may necessitate additional setup and customization to meet modern development needs.
  • Limited GUI
    Vim primarily operates in a terminal, and while there are graphical variants like GVim, they are not as feature-rich or user-friendly as modern GUI editors.
  • Plugin Management
    While Vim is highly extensible, managing and configuring plugins can be cumbersome compared to more modern editors that offer integrated plugin management.
  • Inconsistent Behavior Across Platforms
    There may be inconsistencies in behavior or available features of Vim across different operating systems, which can complicate its use in certain environments.
  • Lack of Integrated Modern Features
    Vim lacks some modern IDE features like integrated debugging, advanced code introspection, and refined autocompletion, which often require third-party plugins to achieve.

Analysis of Gboard

Overall verdict

  • Gboard is generally well-received by users for its robust features and ease of use. It is frequently updated by Google, which helps maintain its performance and security. Overall, Gboard is a reliable and versatile choice for anyone looking for a high-quality keyboard app.

Why this product is good

  • Gboard is considered a good virtual keyboard app because it offers a wide range of features including swipe typing, voice typing, multi-language support, and Google Search integrated directly into the keyboard. These features offer convenience and enhance productivity for users. Additionally, its predictive text and autocorrect capabilities are quite advanced, making typing easier and more efficient.

Recommended for

    Gboard is recommended for users who need a versatile and feature-rich keyboard app. It's ideal for those who frequently switch between different languages, use emojis often, or perform web searches directly from their keyboard. It's also suitable for users who value customization and want a keyboard that integrates seamlessly with other Google services.

Analysis of Vim

Overall verdict

  • Yes, Vim is a good text editor, especially for users who invest the time to learn its powerful commands and features. Its steep learning curve may be challenging initially, but once mastered, it significantly enhances productivity.

Why this product is good

  • Vim is considered a powerful text editor because of its efficiency and versatility. It offers extensive features, such as syntax highlighting, a robust plugin system, and support for numerous programming languages. Vim is highly configurable, enabling users to customize its environment to fit their needs. It is particularly appreciated for its speed and the ability to perform complex text manipulations using simple commands.

Recommended for

    Vim is recommended for programmers, developers, and system administrators who require a highly efficient and customizable text editing experience. It is especially useful for those who work extensively in terminal environments or need a quick, resource-light text editor for remote systems.

Gboard videos

Gboard VS Samsung Keyboard - Which Is Better?

More videos:

  • Review - SwiftKey vs Gboard | Which is Best Keyboard App for You | Guiding Tech
  • Review - Google GBoard Review ๐Ÿ˜ ! Is It Better Than Swiftkey ?

Vim videos

What Vim Is and Why You Should Learn It

More videos:

  • Review - JAC Vapour VIM Review - JAC does a side by side mod...
  • Review - Jac Vapour VIM - Quick Look

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Gboard and Vim)
iPhone
100 100%
0% 0
Text Editors
0 0%
100% 100
iOS Tools
100 100%
0% 0
IDE
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

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Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare Gboard and Vim

Gboard Reviews

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Vim Reviews

Boost Your Productivity with These Top Text Editors and IDEs
Vim offers a variety of features like split windows, macros, and extensive customization options. It has a steep learning curve, but once you master it, youโ€™ll be amazed at the speed and productivity it brings to your coding workflow. Vim is a favorite among experienced developers who value speed and efficiency above all else.
Source: convesio.com
13 Best Text Editors to Speed up Your Workflow
Itโ€™s tough to say which developers would enjoy Vim as a text editor. Itโ€™s an old system with an outdated interface. Yet, it still has the charm and powerful feature-set that the average developer needs. I would recommend it to more advanced developers who enjoy using open source software and being a part of a communityโ€“like the one you can find behind Vim.
Source: kinsta.com
12 Best LaTeX Editors You Should Use
The entire installation process is perfectly documented on their Sourceforge page, which you must definitely pay a visit. There is another standalone Vim software, known as the gVim that brings a GUI-based interface to the Vim document editor. Vim-LaTeX has been developed specifically for the programmers and it is so highly configurable that it can function anyway, ranging...
Source: beebom.com
The Top 7 Notepad++ Alternatives for You
Vim is a totally free Notepad++ alternative. It is available to use on Windows, Mac and Linux computers and it is very powerful. I was able to customize Vim to get it to look and function just how I want it. There is really good help support with Vim so if you are new to programming it will get you through most issues.
10 Best Notepad++ Alternatives in 2020
Vim is an advanced text editor open source tool which is also considered to be an IDE in its way. This tool allows managing your text editing activities with vim editors and UNIX System which can be used on-premise or online.
Source: www.guru99.com

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Vim should be more popular than Gboard. It has been mentiond 10 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Gboard mentions (2)

  • [Round 124516] Please give me step-by-step instructions on how to make this appear on a brand new iphone (of course without searching the pic online and sharing)
    Install the gboard app Make it the main keyboard, by following the steps here: https://support.google.com/gboard/answer/6380730?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DiOS#zippy=%2Cmake-gboard-your-main-keyboard Open a web browser Click the emoji symbol Type in ๐Ÿช„๐Ÿง€ Select the first sticker. Source: over 3 years ago
  • The name of things , you probably didnโ€™t know
    At least in Gboard, for me, it is available when long press for symbols is enabled in the settings and you hold the ? After switching to the numbers and symbols layout (?123). Source: about 5 years ago

Vim mentions (10)

  • regular Vim has lua?!
    Lua is quite small, encouraging distros to include it. The ubuntu gvim has, and the gvim AppImage linked from vim.org does. The default Makefile from github is set up to not include it, but you can uncomment one line there to get it. Source: over 3 years ago
  • is there a way to make highlighted text persistent after quit when using something like [match Search /\%'.line('.').'l/] ?
    I've not used vimwiki locally (tho I'm old enough to remember the Vim wiki on vim.org :), but I think what you are wanting to do is extend vimwiki's syntax file. I presume it installs one at $VIMRUNTIM/syntax or or ~/.vim/syntax. If this sounds right, then create a ~/.vim/after/syntax/vimwiki.vim file and place your match command in there. Then everytime you open a vimwiki file it should apply your... Source: over 3 years ago
  • vim.org - Is there a reason for this 1800s-esque design?
    Vim.org has 242k total visitors, tailwindcss.com has 4.4m, planetscale.com has 412k, jpl.nasa.gov has 2.6m, all built with Tailwind, all several years younger than Vim's website. Unnecessary comparison, unnecessary defence. It's a valuable tool, fine, but a complete disregard for anyone who doesn't love a crappy website and would like to navigate a website like a normal human is not something to be defended. Maybe... Source: over 3 years ago
  • What is YOUR process of writing ?
    I write in Vim with some customizations in my vimrc to gear it more towards prose writing than code editing. It's not pretty, but Normal Mode and Ex commands are the most powerful text editing tools out there, so that means I spend less time on making corrections and other edits. Source: over 4 years ago
  • Why developers need to know about Vim
    If you are open minded and would like to try it out, click me for more information! Cheers. - Source: dev.to / over 4 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing Gboard and Vim, you can also consider the following products

AnySoftKeyboard - Android (f/w 1.5+) on-screen keyboard for multiple languages.

Sublime Text - Sublime Text is a sophisticated text editor for code, html and prose - any kind of text file. You'll love the slick user interface and extraordinary features. Fully customizable with macros, and syntax highlighting for most major languages.

Hacker's Keyboard - Are you missing the key layout you're used to from your computer when using an Android device?

VS Code - Build and debug modern web and cloud applications, by Microsoft

Keyboard for Phone X - Keyboard for Phone X is a free to use application that allows you to enjoy Phone X like chatting experience and bring your phone a new look.

GNU Emacs - GNU Emacs is an extensible, customizable text editorโ€”and more.