One of the nicest looking home screens of all-time (in my humble opinion) was also found on the first phone to launch with a 4.3-inch display. That was the HTC HD2 which was released in 2009, powered by the Windows Mobile 6.5 operating system. The 4.3-inch screen was so big for the times that I remember one analyst saying that smartphone displays had reached their peak at 4.3-inches because no one would be able to hold a larger screen.
By 2011, Samsung flushed that comment down the toilet with the release of the Samsung Galaxy Note and its 5.3-inch display creating the new Phablet phone category. For those too young to remember the Phablet years, the word is a portmanteau of phone and tablet. As Android screens got bigger and bigger, it became more and more difficult to use certain apps one-handed due to the placement of the app's elements on a large screen. One of those apps is Google Messages.
One-handed Google Messages users had to do digital calisthenics
Unless you have hands the size of Shaq's feet (NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O'Neal wears a size 22 shoe), holding your phone with one hand and doing the digital calisthenics necessary to tap the hamburger menu in the upper right corner seems like quite a feet feat. Google probably didn't like the optics of Android users trying so hard to reach that menu while using their phone with one hand, leaving themselves open to getting dislocated fingertips and tearing their fingernail ligaments.
The new UI for Google Messages is better for one-handed use. | Image credit-Android Authority
So, Google appears ready to replace the hamburger menu on Google Messages with a new context menu that allows a Google Messages user to access any important feature of the app from anywhere in the chat. Right now, long-pressing on a message places important buttons, including the delete button, in the heading bar at the very top of the display, requiring quite a stretch for the user to reach it.
The context menu is dynamic and the options will change depending on the message selected
Long-pressing on an open chat shows Reactions; tapping the hamburger icon immediately afterward gives the user access to a menu with options that include Reply, Share, Forward, and View Details. Tapping any of these could require a long stretch. Google might be about to stop having your fingers do the walking. Android Authority discovered signs in Google Messages v20251020 beta that Google will swap the hamburger menu for a context menu. Reactions will remain directly above the chat, but after activating the context menu by long-pressing on a chat, it will appear right underneath that particular chat. Options include:
Reply
Forward
Copy
Star
Delete
Select more
Info
These above options are not set in stone because the context menu can change depending on the content in the chat you're viewing. For example, long-press on a chat you've just sent, and an Edit option will be included. This makes plenty of sense since editing something you've just written would be a typical reason for opening a message so soon after sending it. When long-pressing on an image, the Save option will surface.
Placing these options right under the chat allows the Google Messages user to select one of the options without having to stretch his fingers as far as they can go.
How to install Google Messages on your Androd phone
The new UI will also make it more obvious which chats have been selected. When multiple messages have been chosen, a check mark will appear on the messages selected. Tap a check mark filled circle to deselect it or tap an empty circle to select a message.
What do you think about the context menu?
I like it! No more stretching.
0%
I don't like it. I'm resistant to change.
0%
If you use third-party messaging apps from your carrier or phone manufacturer instead of Google Messages, you can install the latter from the Google Play Store by tapping on this link. The new UI has yet to appear on my Pixel 6 Pro running Android 16 QPR2 Beta 3.1.
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Alan, an ardent smartphone enthusiast and a veteran writer at PhoneArena since 2009, has witnessed and chronicled the transformative years of mobile technology. Owning iconic phones from the original iPhone to the iPhone 15 Pro Max, he has seen smartphones evolve into a global phenomenon. Beyond smartphones, Alan has covered the emergence of tablets, smartwatches, and smart speakers.
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