Google wants to make sure your mobile search efforts are more rewarding, faster and easier, and it is using a new carousel-style design to make it happen. On Friday, Feb. 20, the search titan announced that its latest tweak to its mobile search result delivery aims to make sifting through search results less time consuming.
When doing a mobile device search, users will now get what Google is calling a "carousel" of all relevant links, whether they be videos, articles or photos. All a user needs to do is tap whatever link they're interested in. The carousel organizes results together by online source.
If you want to search a particular website, you'll see links to all the site's most recent videos and articles. For example, Google noted, a search for Knicks will deliver content from the Knicks' website and news from ESPN and the Bleacher Report.
Search on keywords, such as Xbox, and you'll get news from Xbox.com, noted one report on the search engine revamp.
"Now, if you search on Google on your mobile, you'll see the freshest, most relevant content from within a single website grouped together in one easy-to-scan place," wrote Ardan Arac, Google product manager, on the Google blog. Arac pointed out how users may find it especially useful this Sunday night.
"Finally, whether you're watching the Academy Awards live on ABC this Sunday or prefer to catch up after the ceremony, we've got you covered. Search for the Oscars in the Google app and you'll find everything you need, from acceptance speeches to behind-the-scenes moments, to go into your Monday morning meetings prepared to gossip," Arac wrote.
The Google mobile app tweak comes at a time when users are increasingly using mobile devices, specifically smartphones, to find data, images and video on the fly.
One industry watcher, however, noted that the mobile search tweak doesn't come without some negative aspect.
"This type of feature can be seen as a double-edged sword," said Dan Olds, an analyst with Gabriel Consulting Group. "Google can argue that it's making searches more efficient and saving users time. But some would argue that it's just another way for Google, on behalf of some advertiser or other, to guide users to particular content and away from other, assumedly non-sponsored, content."
It could leave a user wondering if they're getting the best search results or what Google constitutes as the best results for a user.
