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Google, the search company, remembers to add a search bar to one of its apps (APK teardown)
- Google is prepping a new search bar for the Devices tab in the Google Home app to help users quickly find connected devices.
- The company is also readying Material You theming support for the app.
- These features are not live in the current stable release but could roll out very soon.
The Devices tab in Google Home can get pretty crowded if you have a full-fledged smart home setup with multiple smart speakers, cameras, and other connected appliances. This makes managing devices a bit of a hassle, especially if you haven’t labeled and organized them properly. Thankfully, Google has finally thought of an innovative solution that should greatly simplify the process.
The Google Home app currently doesn’t offer any way for you to quickly look up specific devices. However, that could change with a future update. We’ve spotted evidence of an upcoming search bar for the Devices tab in version 3.23.1.3 of the Google Home app that will make sifting through your extensive device list much easier. The search bar will appear at the top of the Devices tab with a prompt stating, “Search devices here.”
Google is also prepping Material You wallpaper-based theming support for the app, as shown in the above screenshots. In the current stable release, the app uses a white or gray background, depending on your default system theme, and a light blue color for accents and buttons. Once this feature rolls out, the app will pick colors from your current wallpaper for the background, accents, and other UI elements.
Although these changes are not live in the latest Google Home update, they seem ready for rollout. We’ll update this post as soon as the new search bar and Material You theming are widely available.