New Gmail Is Live, Here’s Some Early Response

Gmail has a new look, and it’s live for everyone who wants to make the change.

In the coming days, Google will switch everyone over to the new Gmail, but those of us anxious to see the new look can switch right now. Just hard refresh the page and look for the “Switch to the new look” link at the bottom right-hand side of the screen.

Here is what’s new about the Gmail redesign:

• Conversation view has been redesigned to be more streamlined.  Profile pictures of contacts now show up in the view, and it had been stripped down in order to make it more user-friendly.
• Google says that Gmail now has a better search function.  There’s a new advanced search panel in the search box that is supposed to make it easier to find what you’re looking for.
• Google has rolled out new HD themes, provided by iStockphoto.
• New “elastic density” automatically changes the spacing between elements based on the size of the display you’re currently using to view Gmail.  You can still change the density manually if you’d like.
• The left-side navigation panel keeps labels and contacts there at all times, and there are more customization features.

From what I’ve noticed, the interface has been cleaned up a little as well, hiding certain functions until they are necessary to be displayed. All in all, the new Gmail looks cleaner (possibly simplistic to some) and more compact – considering you set the density levels to suit your needs.

Twitter gives us a look into some of the early feedback, which seems to be split:

In other Gmail news, it looks like iPhone users might be getting a native Gmail app – to the cries of “Finally!”

What do you think about Gmail’s redesign? Let us know in the comments.