RadChat has an InputAreaBackgroundColor property, but it would be nice to be able to have full control over the UI of the entire input area. For example, I have the following UI from my designers that I cannot currently implement using RadChat:
Adding an InputAreaControlTemplate would be much appreciated.
Hi Dev,
You can do this by overriding the ControlTemplate of the RadChat. I understand extracting the default Style for the control is not as easy in Xamairn.Forms as it is for other XAML platforms (i.e. WPF or UWP).
Therefore, I've put together a demo for you that has the default ControlTemplate for RadChat. Inside the ControlTemplate, you will find a Grid containing a ChatEntry control. This is the input area at the bottom.
To use it, you set the ControlTemplate property of RadChat:
<telerikConversationalUI:RadChat ControlTemplate="{StaticResource ORIGINAL_RadChatControlTemplate}"/>Important Note
When you change the ControlTemplate, you'll be changing the base functionality of the control. This means any changes you make to the control are no longer supported by Progress Support as it is not the same control we shipped with UI for Xamarin. For more information about this, see the scope of support article.
If you do want to get custom development or design help to extend the control, we do have partners that you can connect with that will add as many features or design to the control. Contact them here: Professional Services - Feature Customization.
Wrapping Up
I hope this helps you move forward while the team reviews the feature request for future support of adding other templates.
Regards,
Lance | Team Lead - US DevTools Support
Progress Telerik