Google redesign simplifies ‘Collections’ homepage of bookmarks

Abner Li | Dec 6 2022 - 8:55 pm PT

Back in June, we noted that Google is no longer developing “Assistant Memory,” and the Collections feature that it would have presumably replaced is now seeing a redesign.

Collections is Google’s integrated bookmarking feature that surfaces saves from Search, Discover, and Maps. It was updated last September to be slightly more automated.

The latest redesign significantly simplifies Google Collections. It starts with an “All saved items” card that shows six saves. Tapping the button at the bottom takes you to a grid that notes what Collection or Maps list something is saved to in addition to showing a cover image, name, rating, and URL.

Back on the main screen, the only other thing here is just a grid of “Your collections.” You just see four by default but can expand to scroll through more.

It’s faster to “Create” a new collection thanks to the FAB that lets you “Create collection from” a Link, All saved items, or Blank. The middle option shows all your items and lets you select them to start a new board.

This redesign is much simpler than the 2021 versions where Google highlighted everything from “Shows & movies” to “Shopping” and “Recipes.” There was a heavy emphasis on recommendations based on your browsing activity. This included highlighting price drops and things to “Keep researching.”

With “Assistant Memory” deprecated, the likelihood of Collections sticking around grows. As with all previous iterations, Collections is still not a native experience and therefore feels sluggish. If Google is serious about keeping this capability, it should be entirely rebuilt with various UI redesigns not mattering until then.

This latest redesign of Google Collections is widely rolled out on Android, iOS, and the web, which offers the most fluid experience.