Google intros new Android branding, but is it necessary?

Google has updated its own applications for Android with a splash screen that adds a tweaks to remind users who built the app, the operating system, and the ecosystem that it hooks into.

Having updated Googles’ own applications, you’ll now be presented with a white screen, an oversized logo, and the word “Google” plastered across the screen. But why?

Adding a splash screen to the loading process of an app only increases the time taken to get into the app itself – something previously Android design guidelines discouraged in order to load the app as quickly as possible.

However, Google has now taken a defensive position on app branding to counter the bundled Microsoft apps that now come with some Android phones that directly compete with Googles’ offerings. Here’s what Google say in their Material Design guidelines:

Branded launch screens are a good way to portray a brand while the app is loading. Take advantage of the loading time to display your logo or other elements that improve brand recognition. Avoid using text on this screen except your logo and, if applicable, a tagline.

So whilst technically completely unnecessary, Google feels it needs to protect its brand against its competitors on its own platform by introducing this loading screen into their own apps. Is the average user naive enough to not be able to distinguish between cloud services providers? Perhaps they are, and perhaps that’s why Google feels the need to hinder the app experience with these ugly splash screens.

Let us know your thoughts in the comments below. Did you even notice the change?

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