Google Messages adds Material 3 slider for voice recordings

Abner Li | Mar 18 2024 - 12:20 pm PT

While we’re waiting for the audio recorder redesign with noise cancellation and Voice Moods to become available, Google Messages has updated the playback UI to make use of the new Material 3 slider.

You get a pill-shaped timeline that is rather thick and a vertical line for the handle, which does not animate when selected/dragged. A dot at the end serves as the inactive track stop indicator. There is also a physical gap between the slider handle and the active/inactive track.

The previous UI was just a thin line and circle for the play head.

This audio preview appears in the text field. After the message is sent, a different UI appears inline. It’s a nice detail and comes as the rest of Google Messages is not overly Material 3 compliant. For example, the old on/off toggle style is in use.

This tweak is rolled out with the latest Google Messages beta (version 20240312_00_RC00).

Google has yet to widely roll out the audio recorder redesign, which allows users to tap the button to get a keyboard-sized recording pane. You no longer have to hold-and-press to record, though that behavior does remain available. Some users have this UI, but we haven’t seen any reports of Voice Moods yet.