Comparison

Black Keys vs ActionPad

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Black Keys

This app provides multilingual keyboards for typing in unsupported languages and the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA). It features a dark mode for eye comfort and supports a wide range of languages, including Arabic, Amharic, and Khmer. Tutorials are available for complex typing methods.

Highlights
  • Multilingual keyboard support
  • IPA typing
  • Dark mode
  • Support for many languages
  • Tutorial videos
  • Long-press for hidden letters
Features
Read full description

Black Keys, multilingual keyboards, for unsupported languages and typing IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet). Black mode is simple but awesome and good for your eyes. Check your language in this list and download: *IPA: IPA full and English IPA (new design and full of letters) *Arabic group: Dari, Pashto,Sorani Kurdish, Uyghur *Need to install font group: Amharic, Burmese, Coptic,N'ko,Tifinagh *Others: Khmer, Inuktitut, Georgian, Armenian, Sinhala, Lao, Kazakh, Nepali, Bangla, Gurmukhi, Malayalam, Gujarati, Kannada, Oriya, Telugu. *NOTE: -Some keyboard have longPress to popup some hidden letters: Amharic, Dari, Pashto, Sorani Kurdish. Please take your time to practice much from beginning to understand how to use or check our video tutorials from app -Burmese and Sinhala use smart combination to help you type faster, please check tutorial video from app. -Deprecated languages: Persian, Syriac (move to swipekeys app) If your keyboard miss some letters, or need to improve or you need to add your languages,please contact us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BlackKeyboards

About

ActionPad

Create custom control panels to remotely operate your computer applications. Simulate keyboard and mouse input, launch programs, open files, and control media. Share and download user-created panels for enhanced productivity and gaming.

Highlights
  • Customizable control panels
  • Simulate keyboard and mouse input
  • Launch applications and files
  • Open websites
  • Media and volume control
  • Create macros
  • Community Panels Hub
Features
Read full description

ActionPad allows you to create your own custom control panels to remote control applications on your computer. This app requires the ActionPad Server desktop software to be installed on your computer for full functionality. For more information on this, visit https://actionpad.co/go. Compatible with macOS and Windows. Panels can contain buttons and other objects, which can be used to simulate keyboard and mouse input, as well as open files and URLs. With grid and dynamic panel types, buttons can be arranged into a grid with customizable rows and columns, or positioned and sized anywhere you would like on your panel for infinite customization possibilities. Customize the appearance of buttons and other panel objects to give them a distinct look. Get ready to make your keyboard and mouse jealous. With ActionPad, you may implement buttons on your panel that: -Execute keystrokes, such as Command C or Ctrl V. -Move your mouse pointer or hold keys as you hold down the button. -Launch applications and open files on your computer. -Open websites in your default browser and interact with them. -Control media and volume on your computer. -Do all of these things with one press! You can have buttons send continuous keyboard and mouse input as you hold them down, or you can combine multiple actions to create simple or complex macros that will run with just one tap of the button! All of this, along with visual elements such as images, text, and containers can all be combined to create unique control panels, each of which with it's own purpose. Don't feel like creating your own panel, or want to use some pre-created panels for some of your favorite desktop apps? ActionPad features the Community Panels Hub, which allows users to upload and share panels they create. It's very easy to share panels and build upon everyone's creations. Along with sharing through the Community Panels Hub, you can also export your panel and send it via E-mail, AirDrop, or a variety of other mediums. No account needed to download user-made panels, only required if you wish to upload to share with other users. Whether it be a panel used to quickly access the most commonly used tools in Photoshop, extra shortcuts for DAW power users, controls for your cockpit in a space simulation game, or a remote control for your streaming setup, there is no limit to what you can create and control with ActionPad.

Screenshots

Black Keys4 screens
ActionPad4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: ActionPad at 4.0 against Black Keys's 3.4. ActionPad also leads on review sentiment (63% vs 54%). Black Keys's advantage is update cadence (fortnightly vs every 3 months) and price ($0.99 vs $3.99). On ratings volume, ads, in-app purchases and monetization model there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Black Keys costs $0.99 and ActionPad $3.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

ActionPad holds the better App Store score, 4.0 against 3.4. Both are backed by a comparable volume of ratings — 27 and 30 respectively. Written reviews point the same way: 54% of Black Keys's written reviews are positive against 63% of ActionPad's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Black Keys ships an update fortnightly, ActionPad every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on September 27, 2026 and October 1, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard5 real differences · 5 level
Black Keys versus ActionPad: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterBlack KeysActionPad
Price$0.99 — better$3.99
Rating3.4 (27 ratings)4.0 (30 ratings) — better
Positive reviews53.6% of reviews63.4% of reviews — better
Number of ratings2730 — better
Update frequencyFortnightly — betterEvery 3 months
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNoNo
MonetizationFreeFree
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPodiPhone, iPad, iPod
Requires iOS8.0 — better15.0
Further details — not scored
Size35 MB29 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperLE SANGAndrew Arpasi

Customer experience

Black Keys

All ratings27 ratings
Positive55.6%
Neutral14.8%
Negative29.6%
Written reviews69 reviews
Positive53.6%
Neutral15.9%
Negative30.4%

ActionPad

All ratings30 ratings
Positive73.3%
Neutral10.0%
Negative16.7%
Written reviews41 reviews
Positive63.4%
Neutral7.3%
Negative29.3%

Bugs and requests

Black Keys

Reported bugs

53 issues
  • Keyboard takes up more space over time
  • Eastern font lost after update
  • Syriac-Eastern font shows as Estrangelo
  • Myanmar Error Unicode and Zawgyi
  • Cannot add vowels on alphabets
Show 48 more
  • Language change button inconsistent
  • App took money, no service
  • Won't do Normal QWERTY
  • Cannot change case, numbers, or common symbols
  • Font typing error in iPhone 6 plus
  • Cannot see Myanmar font on iPhone
  • Typing review of letters falls under finger
  • Semi-shift does not work in Twitter
  • Space between words gets messed up with semi-shift
  • Kazakh missing lowercase 'a'
  • Keyboard appears and disappears when clicking a field
  • Some Sinhala letters missing
  • App closes automatically while typing some letters
  • Font missing for Nepalese language
  • Every time writing something it shows specific characters
  • White mode doesn't work
  • Bug with diacritical markers in Notes/Email apps
  • Keys seem incomplete for Khmer
  • Keys are too small and slow for Khmer
  • Keys show as ... when shifting cases
  • Key layout moves around when switching cases
  • Response when hitting key is slow for Khmer
  • Small additional characters hidden under finger
  • Cannot find '?' and '!' on new keyboard
  • Two keys for Burmese alphabet 'ဘ'
  • Zawgyi update misplaced some characters
  • Shift key button deleted in Burmese (zawgyi) after iOS 8.1 update
  • Cannot see shift key to switch
  • Long pressing not accurate on small keypad
  • Dots at the foot of character vary
  • Cannot find dot to place above characters
  • Cannot use Myanmar font properly after updating
  • Cannot see Myanmar font on YouTube
  • Missing some previous characters in Myanmar Zawgyi font
  • Keyboard theme not beautiful anymore
  • Space button has a delay
  • Keyboard layout not standard for iPad
  • Not all keys included in Burmese Unicode Keyboard
  • Shift key seems left out in Burmese Unicode Keyboard
  • Crashing when attempting to place diacritical markers
  • Black background too dark
  • No space between keys
  • Not working after adding to keyboard list
  • Don't work and show keyboard after adding
  • A bit of delay when first changing to numpad
  • No 'Pa' for word 'Pa'
  • Keyboard size issue
  • Syriac Estrangelo replaced by Serto after iOS 9 update

Requested features

22 requests
  • Fix Nestorian style font
  • Add vowels on alphabets
  • Improve language change button consistency
  • Add custom keyboard creation/customization
  • Add Latin Extended keyboard
Show 17 more
  • Add multiple signs for prenasalization
  • Add original theme option
  • Add Text-To-Speech function for IPA
  • Improve keyboard design and layout
  • Add sound for keys
  • Add space between keys
  • Improve Persian keyboard layout for iPad
  • Add white background option
  • Fix missing characters in Sinhala keyboard
  • Fix missing characters in Nepalese language
  • Fix missing characters in Kazakh keyboard
  • Fix missing characters in Khmer keyboard
  • Fix missing characters in Burmese Unicode Keyboard
  • Fix missing characters in Myanmar Zawgyi font
  • Add IPA characters for 'm, ɱ, ɳ, ɲ, ŋ, and ɴ'
  • Add combining diacritics to Latin Extended keyboard
  • Add IPA characters for 'ⁿ'

ActionPad

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

In-app purchases

None

Black Keys

No in-app purchases

None

ActionPad

No in-app purchases

Questions

Is Black Keys free?
Black Keys costs $0.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is ActionPad free?
ActionPad costs $3.99, with no in-app purchases.
Which has better reviews, Black Keys or ActionPad?
ActionPad is rated higher. Black Keys averages 3.4 out of 5 from 27 ratings, while ActionPad averages 4.0 from 30 ratings.
Do Black Keys or ActionPad have ads?
Neither Black Keys nor ActionPad shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Black Keys or ActionPad?
Black Keys ships an update fortnightly, and ActionPad every 3 months. Most recently, Black Keys was updated on September 27, 2026 and ActionPad on October 1, 2026.

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