Google Maps for Android testing rounded search bar UI with centered logo

Abner Li | Mar 20 2018 - 7:35 pm PT

Search bars are an important part of Google’s apps given that many of its services deal with lookup and finding information. Google Maps for Android is now A/B testing a revamped search box that features a new centered logo.

So far, we have only received one example of this new search box on a Pixel 2 XL running the current stable version (9.73.3). It features significant rounded corners and a centered “Google Maps” logo. The navigation drawer icon remains at the left, with voice search to the right. Our tipster also noticed a brief animation involving Google’s four colored dots and the use of Product Sans for searched text.

For most users, that box currently has more squarish corners though we’ve noticed some variance in whether the box says “Where to?” or “Search here.”

However, in terms of logos within the search bar, this new design is not too drastic a departure from Google’s other apps. Google Photos has the most similar logo with a colorful “Google” and the name of the service in regular text, but is left aligned. Play Music flips the color scheme, while Google Play uses regular text for the entire name.

What’s more notable is the rounded search box that’s similar in shape to what’s currently live in the Google app. This A/B test comes as we earlier today spotted YouTube testing a full-width search bar in its Android app.