Google Updates iPad Search Experience

Google today announced that it is rolling out several enhancements to the google.com search experience on the iPad and other tablets, simplifying page layouts and increasing the size of objects on the page to make for more prominent touch targets.

The search button located below the search box provides quick access to specific types of results like Images, Videos, Places, Shopping and more. Just tap to open the search menu and select an option to see results in one category.

For image results, we focused on improvements that enhance the viewing experience such as enlarged image previews, continuous scroll, and faster loading of image thumbnails.

Google has deployed enhancements and new features for the iPad on a frequent basis since the device's introduction, but of course is now also putting a priority on tablets running its own Android operating system. The new search features will be making their way to both platforms across 36 languages in the coming days.

Top Rated Comments

(View all)

KamuiVII

111 months ago

the new code in the url says

p&sclient=tablet-gws&tbo=d&site

where as on a computer it says

p&sclient=psy&site

just another way of google tracking us

Rating: 5 Votes

nagromme

111 months ago

This looks nicebut PLEASE fix Google image search on iPhones! The UI doesnt quite fit the screen, so you sometimes end up swiping to nudge it up or down. And those scroll-swipes are registered as clicks, taking you to one of the images! Ugh.

Rating: 3 Votes

HLW

110 months ago

Google tablet search is garbage.

Yes, it's useless now. I assume they tested it only on very low resolution screens or something, there is so much wasted space on an iPad screen.

I've had to switch to another search engine, for the first time in about a decade!

Rating: 2 Votes

Spanky Deluxe

111 months ago

I'm not such a fan of this redesign. It only displays a few results on the screen now, there's a hell of a lot of wasted space.

Rating: 2 Votes

number9

111 months ago

But without going more off-topic, I like this development, with Google reaching out to competitors like iPad. Although I don't doubt this is a rather "timely" refresh for Google's attempt to push Android tablets this fall. And who am I to blame them for trying to compete, if it benefits others too. :)

Google doesn't really care what operating system your tablet, PC, or smart phone runs. All they care about is that you use their services and generate ad revenue. Android isn't about selling mobile phones for Google, they give it away and/or pay the carriers and phone manufacturers to use the OS to generate more people using their services. All of this leads to $$$$$$ from ads.

Google will support things like this for iOS as long as it is a relevant player in the mobile operating system market.

Rating: 2 Votes

Mac Heretic

110 months ago

The post above is quite revealing. The new Google search makes an effort to put manipulated picks ahead anything else. That is the way Google planned it and that's the way they implemented it.

As a result, it simultaneously made itself useless in tablets.

I made a mental jump and switched to Bing. It is easy, a true iPad experience. Open your Google, search for a Bing (or Yahoo), jump to the page and iPad will ask, if you want to set it as a default.

I was surprised, that there were still good alternatives to Google. I'm actually happy that they went for something like this before it would have been too late. The same stategy - "search ads experience", is more and more probable in desktops, I'm afraid.

Rating: 1 Votes

2 Owls

111 months ago

The new google on iPad is s*** I'm going with Yahoo from now on :mad:

Google tablet search is garbage.

Rating: 1 Votes

de3an

111 months ago

This new interface doesn't work for me. It looks like it was designed for the iPhone, and so, doesn't take advantage of the iPad's larger screen.

When initially loading the Google home page, the iPad keyboard will not stay activated in landscape mode (my preferred mode). In order to type in a search term you must first rotate the iPad to portrait mode. After the first search, the Google page is altered enough to allow the keyboard to function in landscape mode again, but this is quite awkward and annoying.

Rating: 1 Votes

cozmot

111 months ago

Any website can track what device you're posting on, very easily... The only reason it displays that URL is because it already knows and needs to display the correct website

I agree, we're being tracked everywhere. But if someone cares that much, subscribe to a personal VPN or use an anonymous browsing site.

Rating: 1 Votes

cozmot

111 months ago

Nice. Google keeps making incremental changes, but they're always good ones. I'm waiting for the Chrome browser for iOS.

Rating: 0 Votes

[ Read All Comments ]