Last year, google started rolling out a major update to gmail with a lot of changes. Gone is the red rectangular compose button, for example; it has since been replaced by a white button with rounded edges. the design is a bit bolder and more modern, with new icons and tabs. but here’s the thing: not everyone loves it.
People are always hesitant to embrace change, especially with our technology. With the websites we use every day, like Gmail, Twitter, and Facebook, even the slightest change can be annoying.
Important updates are often rolled out slowly. companies may allow you to make major design changes, giving you the ability to switch between old and new. for gmail, that was once an option: by navigating and clicking the settings gear on the right hand side of gmail, users used to be able to press a button that would revert them to the “classic” option of gmail Unfortunately, that time is long gone: now all gmail users must use the updated version of the email platform.
However, there are a few options to make the new gmail look like the classic version. here’s how.
navigate to and click the settings gear at the top right of gmail. once the dropdown menu is open, click display density. A window will appear with three options, labeled choose a view: default, comfortable and compact.
default is, well, the default option. everything is a bit more spread out, but the most noticeable change is the attachment icons that appear below the corresponding emails. For example, if someone sent you a Google Sheets document attached to an email, you will be able to access that document without opening the email; just click on the icon. conveniently removes those attached buttons.
but if you’re looking for the closest option to classic gmail, it’s compact. compact squeezes everything together, creating neat, packed lines of emails. to be closer to o.g. gmail, after selecting compact, we recommend hiding the side panel with the google app icons. To do this, look for the right arrow in the bottom right corner of Gmail. (when you hover over it, it will say hide side panel). when you click this arrow, it will collapse the side panel out of view.
Sadly, you can never go back to the full classic gmail. but this is as good as it gets. this version will probably be around for a while, but will most likely change again eventually. maybe you’ll like the next change a little better?
In an update posted on the google blog on april 1st (definitely not an april joke), google outlined some additional changes to gmail. so nothing huge was tweaked (at least visually), but some quality of life features were added. One useful change in particular is the ability to schedule emails, which is available when you’re composing an email. you may not be happy with the email system images, but there are some good changes too.
technology will always change. sometimes we just have to get used to it.
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