Chrome, Gmail iOS apps optimised for iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus
Larger displays put to good use with updated apps, which can fit more text onscreen at once
Google has continued to upgrade its iOS apps to better support the recently launched iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus, releasing updates for both the Chrome and Gmail apps with redesigned layouts to make better use of the larger screens compared to last year’s iPhone 5s.
Whereas apps were previously designed for the iPhone 5’s 1,136×640 resolution, 4in display, the iPhone 6 has a larger 1,334×750 resolution, 4.7in screen that has more room – once apps are coded to support the extra pixels, rather than simply scale up to fill the extra space. It’s even more pronounced on the 5.5in iPhone 6 Plus, which has a 1,920×1,080 resolution display. Google has finally begun fixing this issue, starting with Chrome and Gmail.
With the Gmail app, iPhone 6 users should be able to see up to eight emails per page, up from 6 on the iPhone 5S. iPhone 6 Plus owners can squeeze nine emails onto one screen, saving you the need to scroll to read your inbox. Unfortunately, Google has yet to add other regularly-requested features like a unified inbox, or a way to reply to emails using the new actionable notifications feature added with iOS 8.
Chrome, meanwhile, now defaults to a wider, zoomed out view on both new phones, fitting in more images and text, and reducing font size compared to previous iPhones. Google has also added the ability to open Google Drive documents within the browser window, instead of forcing you into the dedicated app.
Both the updated Chrome and Gmail apps are available from the iOS app store now. They will still work with older iPhones, but only iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus owners will see the visual changes.
It’s unclear when Google will be updating the rest of its apps to support the higher resolution screens, with Google+, Google Drive, Google Play Music and others yet to be updated.