Can't Disable Handwriting Mode ios10 Iphone6s

Question

Can't Disable Handwriting Mode ios10 Iphone6s

Hi, so I recently picked up a brand new iphone 6s from my phone provider and just finished setting everything up. I was aware of the handwriting feature added in ios10 as I was using it on my iphone 5 prior to upgrading. However, this is where things get confusing. Now I know how handwriting mode works and that you're supposed to be able to disable it and revert back to a regular keyboard by hitting the keyboard button in the lower right of the text window, however this has never worked for me - on my iphone 5 and even now on my brand new iphone 6s. Every time I hit the keyboard button it simply retains portrait orientation. I've tried turning the phone off and back on, I've even tried installing third party keyboards to no avail.

I'm currently in the process of backing up my iphone so that I can try wiping everything, testing landscape texting, and then restoring everything again. I'll post if anything changes but so far nothing has worked. I was curious as to whether or not anyone else has run into this problem. I haven't been able to find much info elsewhere besides a post in the community referrencing the same issue on an iphone 5s with no solution or useful info posted. Help would be immensely appreciated. Thanks.

iPhone 6s, iOS 10.2.1

Posted on Mar 2, 2017 4:56 PM

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Answer 1

Mar 2, 2017 5:06 PM in response to Codex_Astartes

Actually I seem to have fixed the issue. I'll go ahead and leave this here in case anyone else has a similar issue (I was only able to find one other post about this when I searched).

How I fixed it:

I simply backed up my phone and then went into settings > general > reset

I'm going to try and restore everything now and see if the problem stays fixed but at least I've figured out the method of getting it to work again. Whether or not it works after I restore my phone will be another story entirely. Anyways, hope this helps someone else out.

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Answer 2

ChrisJ4203

Level 10

236,297 points

Mar 2, 2017 5:07 PM in response to Codex_Astartes

Actually, if you move the phone from landscape to portrait, it should move from the handwriting page back to the regular keyboard page. Tapping on the keyboard button should only be necessary if you wish to type in the landscape mode.

I've never installed any 3rd party keyboards on my device, but I'm using an iPhone 7 right now. I did use it for a short period of time on an iPhone 6s before getting the 7. I've not experienced a problem. You say that you have restarted the phone and that did not help. The next step is a reset, or as it is called now, a force restart. Hold the sleep/wake and home buttons together until you see the Apple logo and then release. Try that before doing a restore.

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Answer 3

Mar 2, 2017 5:34 PM in response to ChrisJ4203

Well the issue is that I have virtually zero use for the handwriting so I would love a way to disable it completely. I have pretty large hands so it's a night and day difference typing in landscape vs portrait.

I performed a force restart and nothing changed. I managed to get it to work after using the settings > general > reset method but as soon as I restored everything from the backup the problem came back. So I'm guessing it's tied to some issue I had on my previous phone that is being carried over via the backup. This shouldn't be a huge deal I suppose as the reset only wipes phone settings and retains media and the like. It just seems like a really strange problem to be having.

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Answer 4

ChrisJ4203

Level 10

236,297 points

Mar 3, 2017 1:58 PM in response to Codex_Astartes

I agree it seems strange, but as you indicate, it sounds like something that is corrupt in your backup that is causing the problem and your restore is bringing the issue back. As far as turning off the feature, I'm not aware of a method to do that. Good luck with the problem.

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