First Look: ChromeOS quick settings Material You redesign appears, looks just as we predicted

Material You – Google’s gorgeous, personal design language – is getting a ton of attention at the company now that the foundation for a full makeover across its apps and services has been laid. From Nearby Share, the Chrome browser’s New Tab Page, the Play Store, ChromeOS, and even most recently, Google Collections, Google is on a warpath to replace its old, antiquated design decisions.

Last year, I created a very unique mock-up that pulled together the ChromeOS UI and mixed it with the Android 12 preview where Material You was first introduced on handsets. My goal was to envision what Chromebooks would look like with a new coat of paint while following “MY” UX standards. The result can be seen in this video.

Since that mock-up, we’ve seen a number of changes in ChromeOS that reflect the course I laid out. From the notification revamp to the Productivity Launcher and now to the Dynamic color changes in the overall UI (which appeared just this month!), my industry analyst long play finally began paying off. I’m proud of that!

Today, thanks to Futur3Sn0w on Twitter ( Thanks for the heads up, C2 Productions!), we now have the first look at one of the last pieces of the puzzle which will bring my prediction to life. As you can see below, my mock-up is side-by-side with the new Quick Settings drawer complete with a Material You redesign!

Do you notice anything about this very early (and rough) dogfood preview? That’s right – the tiles replace quick settings circles, the sliders and buttons are thicker and accented, and so on. Admittedly, Google seems to be fitting more tiles on the menu than I designed for, and I’m also pleased to see the settings cogwheel, power menu, and more shift to the bottom of the UI.

Obviously, this is still in its earliest stages of development, and as with many of the other components discussed here today which have now been released, we’re likely looking at six months to a one-year cycle before we can use it on ChromeOS stable. Still, I’m so stoked to see that this is finally coming to fruition, and Chromebooks are almost completely different devices both visually and functionally than they were when I first started using them and even last year.

Again, this first look is brought to you Futur3Sn0w and C2 Productions, and we’re proud to report on it. Kudos for all of the tinkering and poking around you two continue to do!