Posted by Brian McCullough
Lots of us have begun using Gmail in conjunction with with our work email systems (if for no other reason than Gmail makes a swell spam mail filter). Still more of us have switched all our personal email needs over to Gmail… for the space, the ease of use, the threaded conversations, the “coolness factor” or what-have-you.
This week, Google has launched some new features for Gmail. What does this mean for the average Joe or Jo-Ann?
Actually… not much. The changes aren’t that major, and since Google is doing a limited roll out, some of you might not even be able to see the changes yet. Apparently, you have to select the new changes by clicking on your topline menu (see the picture below).
But the incremental changes hint at a major Gmail overhaul coming soon. And hey, while limited, this update has some cool features, including:
- Increased loading speed. If true, this is the best feature. With all that Ajax, Gmail can sometimes take 20 seconds to do something simple like… well… open an email. They’ve added some sort of message pre-load to cut down on wait times.
- Some small cosmetic changes to the overall look and feel.
- Better message filtering options.
- What looks to be a completely overhauled contacts management system.
- The ability to load pictures directly from Picasa.
Thanks to Google Blogoscoped for the screenshots.
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