One-handed operation should be less painful
With everything your smartphone can do, it’s easy to skip basic voice calls, and the Google Phone app is rarely in the limelight. Although Google is constantly updating it, we don’t often hear about major new features or substantial visual changes, probably because it already works so well and doesn’t require much maintenance. But right now we see a change that catches our attention, as a recent beta version of the app changes the user interface when you are on a call.
For a while now, the Phone app has placed in-call action buttons in two rows of three. These commands allow you to access the keypad, mute yourself, add participants to the call, record interactions, put the call on hold, and more. Sometimes you may have to scroll two pages horizontally to see all the available options.
Old in-call UI
With version 90.0.475844574 of the Phone app in public beta, Google’s call screen has just one row of four buttons, including an overflow that reveals additional call options one row down. above, when pressed. The new layout places the buttons closer together than the old UI and lays them out on a card-like background that contrasts with the rest of the screen.
New in-call UI
On larger phones, you might notice the buttons are now grouped closer to the bottom, making them easier to reach with either thumb. Also, the extra call options in the top row (when used) are right-aligned, making the app easier to use with one hand (well, for most people, in any event). Hopefully Google also includes a toggle to change the alignment for left-handed convenience.
The new UI is currently in beta and appears to be a Server-side A/B testing. When it’s available to the masses is anyone’s guess, but we’ll let you know when it finally rolls out.
Thanks: Sat