Google’s Gmail settings interface is nothing short of a frustrating list of options. While there are headings and some semblance of organization, it’s still a wildly ineffective setup. Thankfully, Google has updated the Gmail settings interface. Unfortunately, the update currently only supports iOS and iPadOS devices.
This doesn’t make much sense as Google quite literally owns the Android operating system. However, the updated settings/preferences interface is very much within the iOS style. This feature was deliberately created to be an iOS exclusive. In the future, we hope to see a similar change in the way Gmail’s settings look on Android devices, but it will likely be a little different to what the updated iOS interface looks like.
Let’s talk about the redesign because it’s absolutely brilliant. Basically, the redesign means that Gmail looks more integrated into the iOS ecosystem. To this end, Google has eliminated the distinction between general and account settings. Instead, you now have app-specific distinctions like settings for Chat and Meet appearing under the new Apps in Gmail header.
Settings pertaining to your inbox, notifications, new email compositions and replies, and general settings now all have their own sections within the preferences interface. Google has also eliminated the impression of an endless list with new boxes with which each section is displayed. This breaks up the preferences interface into more defined sections that suit the iOS ecosystem perfectly.
Those of us who use iOS are incredibly excited by this new redesign. The rest of us are hopeful that Google will give Android users a similar treatment. We’ve seen some significant interface updates to the general Android ecosystem in newer versions of the OS. It would be great to see Google’s apps follow a similar trend and become a little more integrated into the Android OS.
While Google has yet to give Android users a more modern settings interface, the company has rolled out a brand-new, more integrated view to the Gmail utility itself.
