Google Keep FAB redesign makes new notes a two-step process

Abner Li | Nov 5 2024 - 7:35 am PT

A Google Keep redesign on Android today simplifies the bottom portion of the app by introducing a new FAB (floating action button), much like Google Tasks earlier this year.

Previously, the bottom portion of Google Keep had a bar with buttons for creating a new list, drawing, audio, and photo note. Then there’s the cutout for a new note floating action button at the right. Google Keeps’ Material You redesign in 2021 changed that FAB from a circle to a rounded square, with the cutout feeling pretty out of place in Material 3.

Google Keep now just has a FAB in the bottom-right corner that drops the four-color ‘plus’ sign — another Material Theme remnant — for Dynamic Color theming. Tapping lets you add a new Image, Drawing, List, or Text note, with the last option closest to your finger and everything housed in pill-shaped containers that are also themed.

This is a straightforward simplification that echoes Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides on mobile. Starting an audio recording is available from inside a note.

In removing the old bar, you get to see a little bit more content, which some users might appreciate. That said, starting a list or note is no longer a one-step/tap action. One workaround is setting up the homescreen widgets. Google must have observed that audio uploads aren’t popular actions in the era of apps like Pixel Recorder.

Google Keep previously tested a floating bottom bar before opting for this more conventional design.

This FAB redesign is rolling out as a server-side update with version 5.24.432.x of Google Keep for Android. If you don’t see it yet, Force stop from App info. We’re not seeing this change in the iOS version of the app.