How do I type using my keyboard on the iphone simulator?

Don't trash the iPhone simulator preference files. There's no need to do this.

Look in the simulator's menu Hardware ➔ Keyboard. The menu options are:

  1. iOS Uses Same Layout as OS X
  2. Connect Hardware Keyboard ⇧⌘K
  3. Toggle Software Keyboard ⌘K

Ensure option 2 is checked.

If it's already checked, uncheck it then check it again (you'll probably want to learn the keyboard shortcuts).

If you find that this hides the on screen keyboard, but you also want this to show, use option 3 to toggle it back on.

If rotating the simulator seems to stop the keyboard working, toggle option two off then back on – this seems to resolve it.


Try trashing the iPhone Simulator preferences file. When my iPhone Simulator stopped responding to keystrokes, this fixed it.

  1. Quit the simulator.
  2. Go to finder and press (command+shift+G) then navigate ~/Library/Preferences.
  3. Move com.apple.iphonesimulator.plist to the trash.
  4. Try launching your iPhone app in the simulator again.

Deleting com.apple.iphonesimulator.plist did not help me under Xcode 6.0.1. Probably, it worked in old Xcode.

But, what works perfectly for me under Xcode 6.0.1, it is new hot Keys in iOS Simulator:

Shift-Command-K   Connect/Disconnect Hardware Keyboard
Command-K         Toggle (Show/Hide) Software Keyboard

And, you know, I really suffered for last 2 months, until found it, and it is very convenient now))