Hi, Rob
The two annoyances you mention can both be quite easily fixed!
For the home / fingerprint sensor, you simply need to alter the setting for it to require a double-tap to go Home. Sorts the problem completely and permanently, and you get to appreciate fully a fingerprint sensor that in my view is the best I've come across (even works with a damp thumb!).
To get a fully-featured keyboard with all sorts of extended characters, proper multilanguage support and all sorts of useful extra features, all you need do is download the Blackberry keyboard software: it completely