Google has given its mobile Search experience a major visual redesign for 2021, revealing a “bubblier” Search page that limits distractions.
The company announced the latest mobile revamp on Friday with an interview with Aileen Cheng, the Google designer responsible for leading the redesign.
“We wanted to take a step back to simplify a bit so people could find what they’re looking for faster and more easily,” said Cheng. “I find it really refreshing. To me, it’s a breath of fresh air!”
So, what exactly has changed in Search on your phone?
There are five aspects to the redesign according to Google, the first being bringing information into focus. The design has been simplified to minimise distracting design elements and to allow people to find the information they’re looking for clearly and quickly.
The text is now bigger and bolder, making it easier for users to scan information at a glance. This includes the search results and the section titles. Google has also incorporated more of its own font found in other Google services, such as Android and Gmail.
“Bringing consistency to when and how we use fonts in Search was important, too, which also helps people parse information more efficiently,” said Cheng.
Search now has an edge-to-edge design with fewer shadows for a more spaced-out look. The company experimented with bold colours and muted tones, but found a clean background and using colour to guide the eye to important information was the best way to present search results without creating more distractions.
Finally, the new design will lean onto “that Googley feeling”. This basically means the mobile experience will have the same round, bouncy look as the Google logo
“If you look at the Google logo, you’ll notice there’s a lot of roundness to it, so we’re borrowing from that and bringing it to other places as well,” explained Cheng.
The new design can be seen on Google’s mobile Search in 2021. If you’re more interested in what Google has been up to beyond the design, make sure to check out our guide on how to download your data from Google.
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Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
