Rita El Khoury / Android Authority
TL;DR
- Google Maps is testing a Materials 3 Expressive-style redesign on Put on OS 5.
- The brand new UI options bigger icons and an improved format.
- The adjustments have solely been rolled out to pick customers thus far.
Google Maps is getting a recent look on smartwatches, and it’s not ready for Put on OS 6 to do it. The app is now testing a redesigned interface with some customers on Put on OS 5, introducing a bolder, extra trendy format according to Google’s Material 3 Expressive design.
Screenshots and video shared with us by Telegram consumer Hardik present a number of UI adjustments. Captured on a Galaxy Watch 4 operating Maps model 25.23.01.766241648.W, the brand new look options bigger icons and format selections that higher swimsuit small round screens. Steadily used actions like “Residence,” “Work,” and “Recents” now seem as colourful modules, whereas navigation modes are offered as compact capsules with clearer icons.
Right here’s a video of the wearable in use with the brand new design parts:
It’s a noticeable departure from the outdated UI, which leaned closely on minimalist icons and black menus. The place earlier variations usually buried choices in stacked lists, the up to date format brings every thing to the floor with larger contact targets, echoing related adjustments seen not too long ago in redesigned Wear OS versions of Gmail and Maintain.
Take a look at these screenshots of the brand new UI:
Whereas the Maps redesign doesn’t embrace the total theming discovered within the Wear OS 6 developer preview, it nonetheless displays Google’s broader push towards consistency and accessibility throughout its smartwatch apps.
Examine the pictures above to how the interface at the moment appears for many Put on OS Google Maps customers, as proven beneath:
Google hasn’t formally acknowledged the rollout, and never all customers are seeing the brand new format but throughout this testing part. Nevertheless, with extra core apps beginning to observe swimsuit, it’s one other signal that Google is laying the groundwork for a extra unified visible expertise.
