Writing (collaboratively) the definitive guide to using iPhone with a Bluetooth keyboard.
…but real, lovely iPhone users all over the world prop our phones up on broken, hand-me-down MagSafe docks, ratchet them into terrible homemade tripod/car windshield mount hybrid monstrosities, or simply rest them on the back of our hands so that we may type to them on physical keycaps.
Some of us having been doing so regularly since support for Bluetooth keyboard inputs were first added, (actually at least one of us has actually been using an external hardware keyboard with mobile computers since the 1990s… Oh yes. Now you’re intrigued, right?,) though nobody can tell you exactly when this was done, or what iPhone OS version first included it.
…yes, from the very beginning, the simple abstract truth that Apple’s iPhone supports Bluetooth keyboard inputs has only been acknowledged a handful of times in user-facing documentation, specifically, from Apple.
In fact, here is the entirety of what the current version of Apple’s iPhone User Guide has to say about it:
You can use Magic Keyboard, including Magic Keyboard with Numeric Keypad, to enter text on iPhone. Magic Keyboard connects to iPhone using Bluetooth and is powered by a built-in rechargeable battery. (Magic Keyboard is sold separately.)
Note: For compatibility information about Apple Wireless Keyboard and third-party Bluetooth keyboards, see the Apple Support article Apple Wireless Keyboard and Magic Keyboard compatibility with iOS devices.
Note: If Magic Keyboard is already paired with another device, you must unpair them before you can connect Magic Keyboard to your iPhone. For iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch, see Unpair a Bluetooth device. On Mac, choose Apple menu 🍎 > System Preferences > Bluetooth, select the device, then Control-click its name.
Magic Keyboard disconnects when you turn its switch to Off or when you move it or iPhone out of Bluetooth range—about 33 feet (10 meters).
To reconnect, turn the keyboard switch to On, or bring the keyboard and iPhone back into range, then tap any key.
When Magic Keyboard is reconnected, the onscreen keyboard doesn’t appear.
To show the onscreen keyboard, press ⏏︎ on the external keyboard. To hide the onscreen keyboard, press ⏏︎ again.
Press Command-Space.
You can change how iPhone automatically responds to your typing on an external keyboard.
Go to Settings ⏏︎ > General > Keyboard > Hardware Keyboard, then do any of the following:
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