Google Search is perhaps the most-used tool on the internet, and the company is always looking for ways to improve it. We’ve seen several UI tests in Search over the past couple of years, including the recent rollout of dark mode, and now Google Search is adding some slick new animations to its UI.
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While YouTube Rewind has been retired, Google still has its Year in Search recap, and the 2021 edition is focused on the theme of healing.
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Over the past few days, you might have noticed that Google.com looks slightly different when searching for news. Google’s “Top stories” carousel on the desktop website has been revamped with a new grid-based organization structure.
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In addition to a bottom field, the Google app is testing a Search bar that appears at the very top of your screen. It matches other first-party apps, but it is a departure from what Google Search has looked like on mobile for the past several years.
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Over the past year, Google listings have gained more attributes and details to better let potential customers learn about a place before visiting. Google Maps, as well as Search, is now letting healthcare providers identify which insurance they accept.
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With the Pixel 2, the Pixel Launcher was revamped to place the search field at the bottom of your screen. Four years later, the Google app looks to be readying something similar with a bottom Search bar redesign.
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Google started showing 3D animals in Search last year but has since expanded to a whole host of AR objects covering space, science, and athletes. The latest expansion sees Google Search add 3D monuments.
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With a new initiative, Google is working to “expand the information about food banks and pantries in Google Search and Maps” heading into the holidays and as challenges are “compounded by the COVID-19 crisis.”
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In July of last year, we spotted development of an “Assistant Chat Head” that never ended up launching. Google is now working on a more useful “Search bubble” chat head that provides quick access to text and voice lookup.
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Since August, Google has been using a “page experience” metric to determine how websites appear in mobile Search. Page experience ranking is now coming to the desktop version of Google Search from February 2022.
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In preparation for Diwali, the Indian festival of lights, Google Search has crafted a lamp-lighting easter egg.
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Announced in August as an added privacy measure, Google is now rolling out the ability for parents/legal guardians to request the removal of images of their child (minors under 18) from Google Search.
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After previewing bigger changes in September, Google Search is now getting a nifty little notification feature that will help you “learn a new word every day.”
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Following the bigger Android and iOS redesign in January, Google Search will soon adopt continuous scrolling on the mobile web.
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Accelerated Mobile Pages launched five years ago as Google’s plan to speed up the web on smartphones and tablets. It has wide adoption, but a bug in Google Search today sees Safari users in iOS 15 no longer being served the AMP version of sites.
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In addition to new features for Maps, Nest Thermostats, and Flights, Google is going to surface more information about making sustainable choices in Search, Shopping, and Finance. This includes a dedicated Google Search results page for “climate change” and research on traffic light inefficiencies.
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As of today, Google Search is no longer officially supporting Internet Explorer 11, marking the beginning of the end for Microsoft’s now-ancient browser.
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Outside of improving the browser’s technical underpinnings, Google has been working to make Chrome easier to use with features like Tab Groups and copy link to highlight. Chrome is now experimenting with a “Journeys” feature and Search side panel.
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In addition to the big MUM upgrade that lets you ask questions about a photo, Google Lens is getting more prominent on iOS and in desktop Chrome.
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At Google Search On 2021, the company launched a redesign of the search results page that includes more images, suggested searches, and “Things to know” about a topic.
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Earlier this year, Google Search started showing “About this result” to give people more context about a website before they click. At Search On 2021, the company announced three new sections that will appear in the panel.
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Google has been under fire for its dominance in online search for years, and currently, the tech giant is facing down a case in the EU over its actions. This week, however, the company is leaning on the idea that its customers want to use Google Search over alternatives, with the evidence used to support that being that the most popular search term on Bing is apparently “Google.”
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Google is continuing to add more settings to the Search app on Android with a new preference to control “Personal results.”
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In May of last year, Google officially rolled out a night mode for the Search apps on Android and iOS. Google.com on desktop web is now officially getting its dark theme.
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