Google’s keyboard app for Android is Gboard, and it has been the staple of messaging and typing on millions if not billions of devices out there. Now Android Police found out the app is being redesigned, and beta testers already got to see where the changes are.
The major improvement visually is a revamped toolbar, allowing you to finally customize it with more than four options, and the voice search button can finally be removed.
The current circle with an arrow simply hides or reveals four customizable features. The button will change to include four squares, and the three-dot menu is going away, freeing room for one more shortcut. The micro-menu of features is also redesigned, leaving room for more customizations to arrive in the future. Instead of six circles taking up all the place, we will have rectangles.
Google is also working on a new Privacy menu within Gboard’s settings. It is mostly features from the Advanced menu, but is now under a new tab, making it easier to navigate and control the privacy features of the keyboard app. The Beta program is open for everyone through Google Play, and the new version is 12.6.06.491625702.
