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Qt component

bsdk Keyboard: the on-screen keyboard for your Qt application

An on-screen keyboard for touchscreen devices that is equally at home in QtQuick and QtWidgets and runs straight on EGLFS or LinuxFB, with no window system. You get the complete source code under a simple company licence – no per-developer subscription and no per-device fees.

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Qt 5 and Qt 6 · QtQuick and QtWidgets · EGLFS, LinuxFB, desktop

The QtQuick demo that ships with the bsdk Keyboard, in the dark design: a form with the fields name, e-mail, PIN and password at the top, with “Anlage Süd” typed into the name field; below it a complete German keyboard with umlauts, special keys and arrow keys.
The QtQuick frontend in the bundled demo, keyboard at desktop size.

The licensing question, answered simply

Anyone who needs an on-screen keyboard in a closed product runs into the licensing question with Qt Virtual Keyboard: the module is not under the same terms as most of Qt. What that means is covered in our article on Qt Virtual Keyboard.

The bsdk Keyboard answers it with a single agreement: one licence for your company, with complete source code. No per-developer subscriptions, no unit counts, no fees per device shipped.

What's inside

  • Two frontends

    QtQuick and QtWidgets, with Qt 5 and Qt 6. Input goes through Qt's input method system – your input fields stay as they are.

  • No window system

    The keyboard runs directly on the target device on EGLFS or LinuxFB, without X11 or Wayland – and just the same on the desktop.

  • Pinyin and Cangjie

    Alongside classic input, the keyboard supports the Chinese input methods Pinyin and Cangjie. Pinyin offers whole words – “nihao” becomes 你好 – and sorts the characters by frequency.

  • Layouts and languages

    German and English ship with it, Chinese through Pinyin and Cangjie. Another language is a new layout: a QML file for QtQuick, a UI layout for QtWidgets.

  • Suggestions and accents

    A suggestion bar offers words, including from a word list of your own application. Accents appear when a key is held down.

  • Fits the field

    The keyboard reports what the active input field expects – digits, e-mail, hidden input. Your application then shows the matching layout, such as a number pad for a quantity field.

  • Source code included

    You get the complete source code, plus ready-made layouts and designs – as a reference or to use as they are.

  • CMake and qmake

    Both build systems are supported. All four combinations of build system and Qt version are built and tested on every change.

One keyboard, many faces

All captures show layouts and designs that ship with the keyboard.

The bsdk Keyboard in the light design: the same form and German keyboard as in the dark design, with light keys on a pale grey background.
Light design – only the colours have changed.
The bsdk Keyboard with round keys at touch size on a dark blue background: the keys are circles and rounded pills, clearly larger than at desktop size.
Round keys at touch size: how a key is drawn can be replaced, not just recoloured.
The QtWidgets frontend of the bsdk Keyboard: a form “Ersatzteil erfassen” with the fields description, e-mail, quantity and password, with “Magnetventil 24 V” in the description field; below it a keyboard with shift, 123, DE/EN and space keys.
The QtWidgets frontend in a form application, styled with stylesheets.
The bsdk Keyboard with the Chinese Pinyin layout on an 800 × 480 pixel screen: the field “Gerätename” holds 你好, below it the suggestion bar with the typed syllables z to zhong and the candidates 中国, 中古, 中, 种 and more, below that the keyboard.
Pinyin at 800 × 480: whole words such as 中国 first, the characters by frequency.

Licence

The licensing model is deliberately simple: one licence for your company, with no per-developer subscription and no per-device fees.

The licence does not expire. Updates and support for further years can be added at any time before the support period ends – for 20 % of the licence price, i.e. €540 per year.

Company licence

€2,700

net, excl. VAT

  • Perpetual use
  • Complete source code
  • Ready-made layouts and designs
  • 1 year of support and updates included
  • No fees per developer or per device
Request a licence

Your design, built by us – at a fixed price

Already have a design for your device's keyboard, from Figma for instance? We build it with the bsdk Keyboard – from your own look to an entirely custom keyboard.

  • S – Branding

    €1,900

    The bundled keyboard in your colours, your typeface and with your icons.

  • M – Design from template

    €5,900

    Your design template fully implemented, with every key state.

  • L – Custom keyboard

    €9,900

    Your own key arrangement and pages, such as a number pad or a device keyboard.

Packages, options and scope →

What you should know

  • The pressed-key preview and the accents on a held key are available in the QtQuick frontend only.
  • Further languages in Latin script are a new layout. A language that needs an input method of its own – another non-Latin script, for instance – is development work and available on request.
  • The keyboard is built for Qt applications. Running it standalone with applications outside Qt is currently possible on macOS – for Qt applications and on embedded targets it is not needed. Injectors for further platforms we build on request.

Frequently asked questions

Is the licence per developer or per device?
Neither. It is a company licence: your company acquires it, with no per-developer subscription and no fees per device shipped.
What does the licence cost, and what is included?
A new licence costs €2,700 net. It includes the complete source code, ready-made layouts and designs, and one year of support and updates.
What happens after the first year of support?
The licence continues indefinitely: you keep using the keyboard in the last version you received. After that you no longer receive updates or included support – unless you extend by further years at any time before the support period ends, for 20 % of the licence price per year, currently €540.
Which Qt versions are supported?
Qt 5 and Qt 6, each with CMake or qmake. All four combinations are built and tested automatically on every change.
Will the keyboard run on my embedded device?
The bsdk Keyboard needs no window system and runs directly with EGLFS or LinuxFB. With the option “commissioning on your target hardware” from our design offer, we check it on your device itself.
How is a new language added?
If it needs no input method of its own, it is a new layout – a QML file for QtQuick or a UI layout for QtWidgets. You can do that yourself with the source code or commission us.
Is the bsdk Keyboard Qt Virtual Keyboard?
No. The bsdk Keyboard is an independent product of bitshift dynamics GmbH. It uses Qt's input method system, but not the Qt Virtual Keyboard module.

Questions about the bsdk Keyboard?

Whether the keyboard fits your platform, what the licence covers or how your design could be built – get in touch.

Contact us

The bsdk Keyboard is a product of bitshift dynamics GmbH and is not affiliated with The Qt Company. Qt is a trademark of The Qt Company Ltd.