Google is testing a new version of Inbox that may include Assistant integration

By Christian de Looper Published November 29, 2016

Image used with permission by copyright holder

In an attempt to turn our email inbox into a to-do list, a new user interface may be on its way to Google Inbox. According to a report from AndroidPolice, Google is looking to replace the search drop-down menu that has appeared in Inbox since its launch. What will it replace the drop-down menu with? A new Assistant-like user interface.

The new user interface seems to split search up into three categories: contacts, businesses, and refinements. The contacts and businesses categories will show you those you regularly interact with, while refinements highlights things that you may want to search for, like Photos, Attachments, and so on.

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The categories are side-scrolling, and according to the report, there are six options in each category, although more could certainly be added.

Perhaps more interesting is the fact that the new feature could be the first indication of Google Assistant in Google Inbox. AndroidPolice recently tore down the latest update of Google Inbox, unearthing hints that Assistant will be integrated into Inbox, to help you organize your emails and tasks, and keep those tasks at hand for when you need them. Assistant, Google’s replacement to Google Now, is largely expected to be integrated deeply within all of Google’s apps and services on Android. The new assistant was shown off at Google I/O, however it has yet to be released, and doesn’t really show up in the latest version of Android, Android 7.0 Nougat. It’s now expected that Assistant will feature in Android 7.1, which will be released alongside the new Nexus phones.

It’s important to note that the new user interface doesn’t appear in any live version of Inbox just yet, so it’s possible that the latest tips about Inbox are only server-side updates. We’ll let you know when a new version of Inbox is released to consumers with Google Assistant.

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Christian de Looper

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Christian de Looper is a long-time freelance writer who has covered every facet of the consumer tech and electric vehicle…

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