Google is reportedly working on making its iOS apps feel more native to the platform.
The search engine giant has received a great deal of criticism from consumers in recent years for developing apps that feel like Android ports, rather than standalone iOS apps. Consumers argue that some of Google’s apps don’t respect the common iOS look and feel, and use interface commands and controls that aren’t natural to the platform.
However, Google has now confirmed that it’s working on improving its iOS apps to better suit the platform. “Our iOS components were slowly drifting further and further from Apple platform fundamentals because those fundaments were also evolving year over year,” the company said in a blog post on the subject.
Earlier in the year, Google began a “deep evaluation of what it means to build a hallmark Google experience on Apple platforms,” and will now adopt ‘light branded touches’ rather than trying to recreate its own user interface on Apple. As a result, components will now receive ‘more attention and focus’.
Alongside changing the look and feel of apps on Apple, Google has adopted a number of new iOS capabilities, including adding widgets for major services and allows users to set Chrome and Gmail as default clients. Google is also experimenting with picture-in-picture for YouTube Premium customers after years of requests from videowatchers.
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