bottom bar Archives

AppWizard

May 21, 2025

Here’s an early look at the Material 3 Expressive changes headed to Google Photos (APK teardown)

Google Photos is undergoing a visual transformation to align with the Material 3 Expressive design language. The latest update (version 7.30) allows users to manually enable the new interface, which features a streamlined homepage with the app's logo in the top left corner and a refreshed loading animation. The update also introduces revamped Memories cards. However, the floating bottom bar and rounded image previews hinted at in an earlier survey are not yet present, but may be introduced before the full rollout of the updated homepage, possibly alongside Android 16 QPR1 later this year.

AppWizard

April 1, 2025

Google updates Play Books with Dynamic Color

In February 2024, Play Books adopted the Material You redesign, introducing Dynamic Color theming, which enhances its user interface by moving away from a static blue accent color. The new design features Dynamic Color across various elements such as the bottom bar, background, and current tab indicator, while maintaining unchanged reading options. The Library tab showcases the best implementation of the new design, despite some padding issues in other areas. Other Google applications, including Google, Play Store, Google Maps, and Google TV, have not yet adopted the Dynamic Color feature.

AppWizard

December 2, 2024

YouTube TV for Android picks up a controversial design change from the main YouTube app

YouTube TV is introducing a mini-player feature in its Android app, inspired by the main YouTube app's design. The mini-player, available in version 8.47.0, will be located at the bottom of the screen and includes controls for play, pause, rewind, fast-forward in 15-second increments, and pinch-to-zoom functionality. This development follows user backlash against a similar mini-player in the main YouTube app, which was later reverted to a stationary design due to glitches. YouTube TV aims to provide a smoother experience with this new feature.

AppWizard

December 2, 2024

YouTube TV for Android gets resizable PiP-style miniplayer

YouTube TV on Android devices has introduced a revamped miniplayer that now operates as a picture-in-picture window. The previous miniplayer was anchored to the bottom bar and displayed the program name with a progress bar. The new design features play/pause controls, 15-second rewind and skip buttons, and a close option. Users can expand the view with a tap and utilize pinch-to-zoom functionality. This update is part of version 8.47.0 of YouTube TV for Android and aims to enhance usability and align the miniplayer experience across YouTube applications.

Winsage

November 22, 2024

Turn on Windows 11’s hidden OCR feature in Photos app. It’s really good.

Microsoft has added Optical Character Recognition (OCR) capabilities to the Photos app, allowing users to extract text from images. This feature is off by default but can be activated through registry modifications. Users need to open the Registry Editor, load a specific hive, and create a .reg file with designated content to enable OCR. Once activated, a "Scan text" icon appears in the Photos app, enabling users to identify and copy text from images. The OCR feature shows high accuracy, even recognizing stylized text. Additionally, Microsoft has introduced other enhancements to the Photos app, including a Zoom slider and improved launch times, while also integrating Microsoft Designer for creative effects.

AppWizard

November 6, 2024

One UI 7 (Android 15) support now live for Samsung Parental Controls

Google is updating its Google Keep app with a new design that replaces the bottom navigation bar with a Floating Action Button (FAB) located in the bottom right corner. The FAB uses pill-shaped buttons for tasks, allowing users to create new notes, lists, drawings, or photos, but the option to create audio notes has been removed. This redesign aims to create a cleaner and more modern interface, reducing clutter and helping users focus on their content. The update is being rolled out to Android users with Google Keep version 5.24.432.x, but availability for other platforms is not specified.

BetaBeacon

November 1, 2024

Top 25 best offline mobile games to play in 2024

The Room: Old Sins is a creepy puzzler with mind-boggling puzzle tasks and a haunting atmosphere.

Winsage

October 23, 2024

Microsoft starts testing image upscaling and OCR in Windows 11’s Photos app on Copilot+ PCs

Microsoft has unveiled Windows 11 version 24H2, introducing AI-driven features for Copilot+ PCs. Windows Insiders can now use the Super Resolution image upscaling feature in the Photos app, allowing images to be upscaled by up to eight times their original size using AI and Neural Processing Units in Snapdragon-powered devices. The updated Photos app also includes Optical Character Recognition (OCR) support for extracting text from images in over 160 languages. Other enhancements include single-click support in the Gallery for opening images, automatic resizing of large images in the Viewer, improved synchronization of the zoom slider, and bug fixes for the Image Creator and Restyle features. These updates are available in version 2024.11100.17007.0 and newer for users enrolled in the Windows Insider program.

AppWizard

October 10, 2024

Google app’s bottom bar is getting a more modern look

Google has reintroduced the Material 3 design to its app, specifically transforming the bottom navigation bar to include a pill-shaped indicator for the active tab. This update is part of the app's beta version 15.40 and may not be universally accessible. Users may need to force-stop the app to see the update. Additionally, Google is testing a verification feature for search results that allows verified companies to display a blue checkmark, inspired by the BIMI system used in Gmail.

AppWizard

September 1, 2024

The Google app on Android is testing a few different browser bottom bar layouts

Google is refining its mobile app with updates that include a redesign of the built-in browser. Three new bottom bar layouts have been identified: one with icons for adding favorites and sharing content, another with a central "insights" icon for additional webpage information, and a third that rearranges these icons. A "double-decker" design featuring a search bar is also being explored. Additionally, the app's home page is being revamped with an icon-based carousel UI, replacing text-based input options. These updates aim to enhance user experience and streamline interactions with web content.