There was a beta available on the Marketplace a long time ago, but since they've "released" the full version they've decided their business model is akin to OEM
-Deozaan
Swype is still is closed beta, it's not finished last I checked. I hope when it is finished it'll be available to buy and install it. Of course if not there'll always be a hacked version for download, and in spite of other my dislike of pirating software, I for one wouldn't feel guilty if no other source were available.
-Eóin
Swype is definitely finished. I've used it on other phones that come with it. Some of the folks at XDA Developers were porting it to other phones when they got a message from the Swype team (emphasis added):
We see you have re-packaged our software and are distributing it. We are glad to hear that you guys like Swype, but we are obligated to state that we don't condone such activity nor support the result. Naturally those of you asking for new languages and features should wait until we launch a device in your market. Obviously, we won't support unlicensed versions of our software. One might ask why we don't just release the .cab file ourselves and save everyone the hassle. The reason is that we have spent seven years building Swype and we want to try to make a living selling our software. That means someone needs to pay for it. Thus far, our business model is OEM licensing. We do plan to get to direct-to-consumer distribution but it is a different sort of business and thus it is hard to say when. In the meantime, enjoy using Swype and please look out for a better, more integrated, and legal version coming soon to a phone near you.
Regards,
The Swype Team
PS. Our lawyer has asked us to remind everyone about copyright infringement and to inform you that Swype reserves all of its rights.-http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=5127287&postcount=2
Also, note the date. That was a year ago. If it doesn't come as OEM software on your phone, it's probably not coming.
It's the Android version which is still in beta (http://beta.swype.com/).-Eóin
I have personally used Swype on the Droid X and have seen it in use on other Android phones which it comes as OEM, so I guess it being in beta is like Google products which are in beta for years even though they're being used by (nearly) everyone.
From Swype's FAQ:
How can I buy Swype? / When will Swype be on the Android market?
We have considered a direct-download sales model, but there are two challenges to that approach:
- Customer Support. Providing Swype users with the level of professional support they deserve is a priority for us. We're still a small (but quickly growing!) company, and we don't have the resources necessary to support a full end-user sales model. It is much more efficent for us to focus on improving Swype and to partner with large organizations like Samsung and T-Mobile who already have customer support structures in place.
- Device integration. Swype isn't just an app; it's a keyboard - the most widely used piece of software on a device. It interacts with nearly every single application on the phone. As such, it's more like a system component than an application. For each device release we do a tremendous amount of testing and we *always* find issues due to the varying components - the OS version, the device hardware, the OEM UI implementation, etc. In addition, some features can't be implemented without an OEM's engineering assistance. We end up doing a large amount of work on each device to be sure that you have a great experience entering text using Swype.
So, we appreciate your enthusiasm, but we are not ready to do direct-downloads at this time.-http://beta.swype.com/android/faq/
You can actually get the installer by pointing your Android phone's browser here (https://beta.swype.com/android/get/) but you need to login with a beta account to install it. So I guess what I'm saying is that unless you can get into the closed beta I think it's more likely that by the time it's available on the Market you'll have upgraded your phone to a newer model that comes with Swype.