Google Search Homepage Gets Revamp With Google Plus, Gmail And YouTube Added To Highlights
Google is to revamp its search homepage. Soon, many of the tech giant's in-house services, such as YouTube, Maps and Gmail, will be available from a drop down menu.
The update, which has been mooted since last year, is currently being tested on a small number of users, with a full roll-out expected, according to Google, "in the coming weeks".
Other services in the new highlights bar include Google's social network, Google+, Google Images, Google Documents and Google News.
A second menu is available if you toggle over "more", revealing services that include Calendar, Books, Translate, Shopping, Reader and Photos.
"If you compare the original google home page to today's version, you will see that a makeover every so often can certainly be refreshing," a Google spokesperson told the BBC.
Also speaking to the BBC, technology analyst Chris Green said Google are "trying to deal with how to service all the different Google properties without making the page cluttered, because Google is always very keen to hang onto the plain minimalist front page that they have always had."
The move comes amid controversy, with the search giant accused of pushing users to its secondary services via the search facility.
In December, Google launched an advertising campaign in the States for Google+ that included a raft of celebrity appearances... and even the muppets.
Google's new menu bar:
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First Posted: 03/01/12 15:49 GMT Updated: 03/01/12 21:19 GMT