Handwriting Recognition for iOS Apps

Apple fanboys (and fangirls of course) have entered into a state of near hysteria over the release of the third generation iPad. That perhaps overly intense focus however might lead them to overlook some fabuously interesting tech now available for iOS.

Phatware just announced availability of its writePad SDK 3.0, which enables software developers to incorporate handwriting recognition into their iOS apps for iPads, iPhones, and iPod Touch devices. The WritePad SDK now boasts a handwriting recognition engine which is packaged as a single static library for all of its 11 supported languages into a single application.

The WritePad SDK recognizes natural handwritten text in a different handwriting styles including cursive, print and a mix of the two. it also recognizes dictionary and non-dictionary words such as names, numbers and mixed alphanumeric combinations. The best part however is that it does not require a user to train the software to achieve any notable level of accuracy.

WritePad SDK evaluation is free, while commercial redistribution is royalty-based. You can see the tech at work firsthand via Phatware's Writepad app in the video below.