We recently reported how Google is making its continued efforts to bring better support for big-screen devices such as tablets and foldable phones. It added drag-and-drop improvements and full mouse support to a bunch of Google Workspace apps. Now, Google has added improved tablet support to the Google Search app.
The latest Google app beta version 13.46 introduces a navigation rail to the left of the homepage. This will enable you to view more content in the Google Discover feed and search results. The Google Search app navigation rail is beneficial for users using Samsung Galaxy or other brands' tablets. Unfortunately, the navigation rail does not include Material You MD3 redesign.
The icons on the Google Search navigation rail—Discover, Search, and Collections—do not use a pill-shaped indicator yet. The current tab that you are on is highlighted with blue color instead of gray. The three icons are placed in the position where you would usually place your thumb and are not at the top, bottom, or even centered.
The advantage of this new Google Search navigation rail is that it gives you access to primary destinations within reach on large-screen devices such as tablets. Overall, further tweaks and optimizations are required, such as Material You icons. As noted by 9To5Google, the Google Weather app recently got updated with similar tweaks. It previously only supported working in portrait mode.
Going by the rumors, Google is speculated to launch the Pixel tablet in 2023, and it will be the prime competition for Samsung. The company is also expected to announce a ‘Pro’ model of the Pixel tablet to go up against the Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra. So, all these optimizations and adjustments for tablets will help.
