Another Android version, another Navigation Bar redesign. According to a report from Android Police, Google may be looking at redesigning the Home, Back and Recent buttons for the final launch of Android N. It is unclear at this stage if this redesigned nav bar will be exclusive to Nexus Devices or available to all OEMs, or if it will even make it to the final version.
Looking at the comparison above as you can see a big difference is the inclusion of the four ‘Google’ colours on the top, bottom, left and right of the home button. When long pressed the colours on the new home button will now animate in some fashion. I wonder if this could also indicate 4 directional swipe options on the home key? Unlikely but interesting to consider.
All of the buttons have also become full colour (well full white) now rather than just outlines. That could help with visibility/ accessibility for people with vision impairment, or someone in the design department could have just felt it looked better.
Now this is the internet, so prepare yourself for all manner of overreactions to what is at best a design option currently under consideration. Considering a long press on the home button does have expanded functionality I for one don’t mind Google looking for a way to highlight this.
How do you like this design concept? Let us know in the comments.
If the home button became a little joystick to move the cursor around when the keyboard was active. I would welcome that.