You may not think about it, but Android also has a clipboard like Windows has. With the clipboard you can easily copy text from one application to another, for example. But how do you get access to that clipboard, and thus to the content in it?
It is a basic functionality of an operating system: being able to copy and paste text and other data from a central location. This is of course also possible on Android. You can just copy text or images and immediately paste them into another app or tab. But you can also get more out of the operating system clipboard. Everything you copy will stay there for a while. So if you have lost something, want to get something back or just look up what you have ever copied, you can do that by just opening the clipboard.
Keep in mind that many Android smartphones often offer a different method than you may be used to for reaching the clipboard. It also sometimes just depends on what kind of Android skin you have on your smartphone. For example, Samsung and LG devices have their own version of the clipboard, while other Android devices can only grant access by using a specific keyboard. To keep it simple, we therefore look at one method. You need a specific keyboard application for this, though.
Clipboard within keyboard apps
First, it is important to find a keyboard application that offers clipboard functionality. Think for example Gboard from Google or Swiftkey from Microsoft. The clipboard functions within those two applications work almost the same, so you have the choice. First, you download and install the app and then set it up as a standard keyboard.
Setting up your keyboard works as follows. Within the settings of your Android you search in the search field, which is often at the top, for ‘keyboard’. A list of search results will then appear on the screen. One of those results allows you to customize the standard keyboard. Tap on that. Now click on the first option at the top and select Gboard or Swiftkey. It may be that the interface on your Android smartphone is slightly different. You can of course also choose a different keyboard with access to the clipboard; then select the app you just downloaded.
Copy and paste text
The clipboard (often) only supports text. Now copy a piece of text that you want to transfer to another application. For example, open WhatsApp and choose a chat. You can now hold down the text field and paste the copied text immediately, but you can also tap the clipboard icon. That icon is below the text field and above the keys.
If you don’t see the clipboard, you probably see the suggestion for pasting the last piece of text you copied. If so, press left on the white circle with an arrow pointing to the right. Then the missing options all come up.
Under the heading Recent you will see your recently copied pieces of text. Simply tap one of those options and the word, or phrase or link, will be copied into the new text field. Please note that the keyboard or Android does not store the copied texts forever. Over time, the list will become empty or replaced. If you often copy something, you can sometimes pin an item. This is possible with both Gboard and Swiftkey. You do this by pressing and holding an item and then selecting that option.
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