Emojis and GIFs Will Be Easier to Use on Android
There’s a lot to like about the Gboard interface. Beyond the keyboard, this little utility packs so much functionality that there’s an entire customizable toolbar on top of the keyboard to help you navigate. And that type of maximalist interface carries over to the emoji keyboard… or at least it used to. Now, Google is finally doing something about it.
Google has begun rolling out a new beta redesign of the Emoji menu that makes it easier to use, with a more categorized layout. Gone is the old “All” screen that showed all your recently used emoji, personalized Emoji Kitchen stickers, and GIFs in one long, confusing list. And with a little sign-up, you can try out this new approach right now.
How to Try the New Emoji Layout
Google’s new Gboard layout is currently in beta testing, which any Android user can sign up for (there’s no beta for the iOS version of the app, unfortunately). Simply follow this Gboard beta link and click “Become a tester.” Once you’ve signed up, open the Play Store on your Android phone and head over to the Gboard app. You’ll now have access to beta updates. Update the app, and once you’ve installed it, you’ll be good to go. You’ll have the new emoji layout and all the new features that Gboard is testing.
How to use the new emoji layout
Now, instead of opening the All screen, tapping the Emoji button in Gboard directly opens a new Emoji tab, which is just one of many. You can easily switch to other tabs like GIFs and Stickers by tapping on them. To return to the keyboard, you can use the Back icon or the ABC button on the tab bar.
This is what the tabs look like.
The Emoji tab, which is the default tab, combines both your regular emoji and Emoji Kitchen . You can select two emoji to see Emoji Kitchen’s automatic suggestions at the top. Tap the arrow icon to see more suggestions.
Next, you will see the GIF tab. This tab shows suggested GIFs by default, but you can click on the clock icon to view recently used GIFs. You can also use the search bar to find any GIF.
The next tab is dedicated to stickers. Here you can explore sticker packs, view the stickers you have installed, and access recently used stickers.
The last two tabs are reserved for Kaomoji and the Bitmoji app.
The Kaomoji tab shows you a list of text-based, simplified emoji that you can use as an alternative to stickers or emoji. The Bitmoji tab, meanwhile, will only work if you have the Bitmoji app installed and have customized your Bitmoji avatar.