Google Messages is currently experimenting with a new technique to flag unread messages in the inbox. It will show a blue dot to the right of the timestamp of an unread message if it is present. A tipster noticed the change in the app’s most recent beta version — v10.6.240 — and reported it to the developers.
In the Android and iOS versions of Gmail, unread messages are frequently represented as little dots or notification badges, respectively. The purpose of this function is to bring the user’s attention to the unread messages by highlighting them. As of the right moment, Google Messages displays unread messages in strong text, which might be difficult to see for some users.
According to Android Police, the blue dot will be shaped similarly to the notification badge and will show to the right of a message when it is received.. It is not wholly novel to represent unread messages with dots, since it is used by a variety of apps, including WhatsApp. Also included is the ability for users to mark a message as unread so that they will be prompted to go back over the message again.
Previously, it was rumoured that Google Messages was developing a nudges feature similar to the one that was released for Gmail in 2018. The nudges function prompts users to follow up on emails that the system believes are relevant to them. It has been reported by Android Central that new strings discovered in the most recent beta version for the Google Messages application indicate that the programme would soon display “messages you might have neglected to reply to” at the top of the inbox.
As well as that, it will display “messages that you may need to follow up on.” Google also introduced new capabilities for its messaging app, including the automatic deletion of one-time passwords (OTPs) and the categorization of conversations. Google Messages now allows users to have their one-time passwords (OTPs) automatically deleted 24 hours after they have been received.
The Gmail app for iOS, on the other hand, will be receiving a new widget that will have the same functionality as the Android version. Google released a snapshot of the inbox, which includes three recent emails that include the sender and the subject line. According to Google, the new widget will display the senders and topics of the user’s most recent emails on the user’s home screen when the widget is activated. Google has stated that the new widget will be available in the coming weeks, according to their website.
The change comes after Gmail for iOS dropped a previous version of the widget that had not been well embraced by the user community. The Google Meet and Google Sheets applications are also receiving upgrades from Google. In addition, Picture-in-Picture capability will be added to Google Meet for iOS, which will make multitasking more convenient for iOS users.
