Google has re-imagined the Google+ interface for the iPhone with its latest mobile app update.
Announced yesterday in an official blog post by Google senior VP Vic Gundotra, the revised app is said to add “sense and soul” to the Google+ mobile experience.
“To be clear, we're not interested in a mobile or social experience that's just smaller. We're embracing the sensor-rich smartphone (with its touchable screen and high-density display), and transforming Google+ into something more intimate, and more expressive,” says Gundotra.
Gundotra adds that the new iPhone app is an important step in the evolution towards a “simpler, more beautiful Google”.
The new interface focuses heavily on images, and creating an immersive experience. The stream, which features all recent posts from contacts, has also been given an aesthetic makeover with the addition of gradients, overlays and multiple visual elements.
All posts in the stream are now image-focused, with text overlays in order to save space. Gundotra also says Google has added “crisper fonts, larger profile pictures and a friendlier homescreen”.
Other updates include faster scrolling/swiping, as well as greater emphasis on the +1 button, which gets more prominent placement at the top of posts. A “Nearby” feature also lets users see updates from contacts close to their current locations.
Gundotra says the Android update will be coming in the next few weeks, promising some new features. Google has not indicated if it will be releasing an updated version of its app for the iPad.
The Google+ Web experience also recently received a significant makeover, with a stronger emphasis on imagery - with many aspects being said to imitate Facebook's updated Timeline design.
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