Kevin BosticGoogle on Wednesday announced a sizable reworking of the interface behind its Gmail web client, one that introduces a new tabbed inbox interface that will soon make its way from the web to iPads and iPhones.
The major change in the new-look Gmail is the much larger focus on sorting mail. The webmail client now organizes mail in up to five tabs. One tab handles emails from friends, family members, and other non-sortable communications, while other tabs are reserved for social network communications, notifications, offers, and forum content.
The redesign may be an outgrowth of Google's acquisition of Sparrow, an Apple-centric developer that had a popular email client for both the iPhone and the Mac platform. Google brought the Sparrow team into the fold last year but didn't specify exactly what part of the Gmail experience they would be working on.
The new features should arrive on the iOS and Android versions of the Gmail app in the coming weeks, according to the Official Gmail Blog.
The search giant will be gradually rolling out the Gmail update in the near future. Users will have the option to return to the old Gmail interface should the new one prove unsatisfactory.
Charles Martin
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14 Comments
Isn't that the whole point of folders? So we now we have folders and tabs in the folders? Seems pointless.
Who uses Gmail? Scanning my emails so they can advertise to me and Jobs knows what else they're doing with the info. I'll pass.
Who uses Gmail? Scanning my emails so they can advertise to me and Jobs knows what else they're doing with the info. I'll pass.
Sadly, that's what Yahoo, OutLook, etc of that kind all do as well. Reading the privacy statement on my (forcibly) upgraded Verizon/Yahoo email account was an eye opener.
whatever
[quote name="Applelunatic" url="/t/157746/google-shows-off-updated-gmail-layout-ios-app-update-to-come-soon#post_2335113"]Isn't that the whole point of folders? So we now we have folders and tabs in the folders? Seems pointless. [/quote] Yes, that's what they essentially are doing, but these are acting like Smart Folders. This is a nice step for the average user. Apple et al. have had Smart Folders for a long time but you do have to set them up which can be daunting for many users. This implementation seems smarter as it's 1) done on the server, not by an individual app, and 2) has automatic setup that will likely cover most user's needs out of the box. I've been using Smart Folders for years but after watching this video I now have some more ideas for how to set them up even more effectively on my Mac. I hope Apple follows suit, but first I'd like to see a decent set server-side Rules implemented.