Google’s Inbox by Gmail application may not be the revolution to email that some people were expecting, but it serves a great purpose for helping people get things done without having to be bogged down by the constraints of traditional email, whatever those constraints may be. As one would have it, Inbox got a recent update today which is going to help people get things done just a little bit faster if they use it as their email app of choice, which is something every Inbox user should probably be rejoicing about as time saved can be transformed into spending that time on other things.
In the latest update to Inbox Google is finally adding in homescreen shortcuts, making it even simpler to send out new emails using Inbox or to manage reminders, with new shortcuts for composing an email or setting a new reminder. Sidestepping the action of having to physically tap the Inbox app icon to open the app before hitting the compose or reminder buttons is not exactly shaving minutes off of people’s experiences, but it is making things just a little quicker and there’s nothing wrong with that. After the update, users will see a 1 x 1 shortcut for each of the two actions when they long press on the homescreen and tap the add widget then add shortcut option.
While there weren’t any other notable features in this update it seems, the shortcuts join recently added features like the new Trip Bundles, as well as custom signature support so you can send off your emails through Inbox the same way you’d sign off through any other email client. If you haven’t given Inbox a try yet, it works great in pairing with a Lollipop running device, and it looks good too. It also no longer requires users to have an invite to use the app, as anyone can simply download and install it from the Play Store and sign in as normal. While the update to version 1.9 of Inbox may not yet be live on the Play Store, you can grab the apk from here if you wish to get a jump start instead of waiting.