New Google Messages homescreen adds camera shortcut [U]

Abner Li | Nov 21 2023 - 5:04 pm PT

In the past month, Messages for Android rolled out a new homescreen that removed the top search field, and Google is now adding a camera shortcut to the app bar.

Update 11/21: Google has widely rolled out the new Messages camera shortcut that adds some complexity to the homescreen. It will be interesting to see whether people adopt this new capture workflow.

Original 10/20: To the left of the magnifying glass is a camera icon, which uses the same design that appears throughout the app. It very simply opens your phone’s default app to quickly take a picture. After snapping, you get the “Select conversation” UI, with Google not yet fully launching the fullscreen “Select recipients” revamp.

This camera shortcut has only appeared for a handful of Google Messages users in the past day. Some people might find it particularly useful. The app bar still remains clean with three buttons, but any more additions would probably push it.

It joins other features that Google Messages is testing, like animated emoji, a big voice recorder redesign, and Google Account integration for the web client. The homescreen revamp that removed the navigation drawer was the biggest change.