The Android version of Google's productivity apps - Docs, Sheets, and Slides - are receiving a handy
visual refresh
. Instead of accessing
formatting options
through a toolbar, the apps now feature a
persistent sidebar
dedicated to those controls.
9to5Google has reported that, this new sidebar aims to streamline formatting on
Android tablets
. Rather than cramming all the options into a horizontal toolbar, the vertical sidebar provides better spacing and organization. It also remains fixed on the screen as you scroll and edit, putting formatting choices right at your fingertips.
To access the sidebar, tap the "Format" button on the far right of the toolbar. This opens up a panel on the right side with various formatting categories like text styling, line spacing, page layout, etc. The toolbar itself still contains basic controls like undo/redo and the viewing mode toggles.
According to Google, switching to a persistent sidebar cuts down the number of taps needed to access formatting settings. This makes it easier to style text, insert tables or images, and arrange page elements. Essentially, you spend less time navigating menus and more time actually formatting.
The sidebar is rolling out to all Android tablet users over the coming weeks. It's another way Google is optimizing its productivity apps for larger screens, bringing the tablet interface closer to the desktop web experience.
Speaking of the web versions, Google Slides on the desktop is also gaining a useful new power. Users can now set an image as the background simply by dragging and dropping a photo onto the slide borders. The image will scale to fill the entire slide automatically.
Between the new sidebar and background images, Google is clearly trying to improve the visual design capabilities of Docs and Slides. Expect more features like these as the company pushes its productivity suite onto more platforms. Faster formatting makes it easier to create professional, polished documents on the go.
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