Chromebook Google Tasks widget makes its first appearance, lets you quickly manage To-Do lists

After the seamless integration of the Calendar widget on the ChromeOS shelf, Google is rolling out its next big thing: the Google Tasks widget. Big props to @C2 Productions on X for spotlighting this via the Canary channel. For those unaware, ChromeOS Canary where cool new features are unveiled for a bit of a test drive a good while before they even consider being rolled out to all users, so this will likely not be available for some time.

@michaelperrigo @GabrielBrangers @jojothetechie @chromeunboxed @NexusBen
FIRST LOOK: Glanceable Widgets Found by @robby_payne has finally made an appearance in Canary!
It isn't a widget but a Google Tasks Integration with the formerly added Calendar Widget in the Shelf!
{1/3} pic.twitter.com/gWRIi6Xkj7

— C2 Productions (@cr_c2cv) August 13, 2023

Here’s how it works

Even though it’s been named a “widget”, think of it as an extension to the Calendar widget you’re already familiar with (see above). Instead of hunting through your Calendar for tasks, you can now see them standing out separately, right above it if you’re on Canary, that is. This lets you smoothly shuffle between lists and proudly check off completed tasks and feel some sense of accomplishment to combat the procrastination you’re probably accustomed to if you’re anything like me.

Unfortunately, it seems there’s currently no way to add new items directly from the new UI, but hey, one step at a time, right? As I said, this isn’t widely available yet, so the chances Google adds this feature down the line before release is, in my opinion, fairly likely.

Despite this, the Material You design is already in place for the new addition, and it looks fantastic. Items checked off occupy the bottom of a list, where as items left undone are firmly planted at the top. The date is marked below the title, and if there’s a description, I imagine you can see it by clicking the task body since a text lines icon appears to the right of the aforementioned date!

I’ve got to be completely honest and say that the fact that only a handful of tasks appear, and that you’re forced to “See all” by opening the web app as shown in C2’s post makes me think this will be useful to some and useless to others. It’s clearly meant to be “glanceable”, and nothing more, but dang, that’s just extremely limited in its worth.

Is the Chromebook shelf getting too crowded?

If you’ve watched the Chromebook interface evolve over the years, you’re probably one of two people. You’re either thinking – “Wow, this is great!”, or “The Chromebook shelf is way too crowded now, this is ridiculous!” I used to be a part of the second camp, but now, I’m firmly in the first.

Google is doing a bang-up job keeping things neat and user-friendly, and seems to be thinking carefully about implementation before jumping the gun. Yes, there’s a new “Show all desks” button to the left of your first pinned shelf item (still in testing as well), but packing the tasks into the Calendar seems thoughtful and saves space all at the same time!

Honestly, I’m really excited to keep getting more and more of my digital Bullet Journal apps baked right into my operating system of choice. Being able to wake up, check my calendar events, and now my tasks, (though I wish I could add both right from here. Are you listening, Google?) is a breath of fresh air for someone who lives his day-to-day in web app windows.

Next, I hope that Google Keep is next in line for a widget integration. If I could read my notes (which is the third piece of my digital journal trifecta), and dare I say, even add new notes right from my Chromebook’s shelf, I’d be in heaven.