In February 2024, Play Books finally embraced the Material You redesign, marking a significant evolution in its user interface with the introduction of Dynamic Color theming. This update brings a fresh aesthetic to the app, moving away from its previous reliance on a static blue accent color paired with dark or white backgrounds.
Enhanced Visual Experience
The new design incorporates Dynamic Color across various elements, including the bottom bar, background, and current tab indicator. This thematic consistency extends to the search field and top bars, creating a more cohesive visual experience for users.
While the reading experience remains unchanged with options for white, sepia, or black pages, the display options and scrolling backgrounds have received a thoughtful refresh. This update is particularly noticeable in the Library tab, which showcases the best implementation of the new design, although some padding issues persist in other areas.
Overall, this straightforward update is a welcome change for an app that has not frequently introduced new features. The Dynamic Color consistency is particularly appreciated, especially as users begin to explore Play Books version 2025.3.7.2.
Future Developments
As Play Books moves forward, several other Google applications remain yet to adopt the Dynamic Color feature. Notable among them are:
- Google: While it’s uncertain if the Search results page will receive a thematic overhaul, the bottom bar and Discover sections are key areas that could benefit from this update.
- Play Store
- Google Maps: This app seems to be sticking with its recently introduced teal palette.
- Google TV: As a former member of the Play family, its future with Dynamic Color remains uncertain, especially since Play Games still retains the Google Material Theme.
As the landscape of Google applications continues to evolve, the integration of Dynamic Color in Play Books sets a precedent for future updates across the platform.
