Google has today announced a major rebranding to its enterprise-focused set of apps including Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Meet. The company is moving away from the ‘GSuite’ name to a rather generic ‘Google Workspace’ branding.
With Google Workspace, Google is deeply integrating its products to work better together, thereby creating a unified experience. To achieve this, the company is now rolling out Gmail’s integration with Chats, Docs, and Rooms for all paid customers. The integration was first announced at the Google Cloud Next ’20: OnAir event.
Thanks to the tight integration, you can preview linked files in Docs, Sheets, and Slides without having to open a new tab. This will be convenient for many users and will save time spent on opening multiple tabs.
Gmail’s integration with other Google services is not restricted to Workspace. Google says it will bring this new experience to consumers in the coming months. The company already offers Google Meet on Gmail for consumers.
Speaking of Google Meet on Gmail, the company is planning to bring picture-in-picture support for Google Meet to Docs, Sheets, and Slides in the coming months. Meet picture-in-picture is also available in Gmail and Chat.
The company is also improving the guest access feature alongside this rebranding. In the coming weeks, users will be able to collaborate with guests on documents in Chat rooms. This way, users can easily work together with people outside their organization while keeping everyone involved in the loop. Moreover, Google Workspace will show a ‘smart chip’ consisting of contact details and suggested actions when someone outside your organization mentions you in a document.
As far as the pricing of Google Workspace is concerned, there are minor changes. The company is adding a new Business Plus plan that costs $18 per user (Rs.1260 per month). This new plan brings enhanced security and management controls, including Vault and advanced endpoint management.
Lastly, Google is refreshing the logo of Gmail, Drive, Calendar, Meet, Docs, Sheets, and Slides. The icons are more colorful and will roll out in the coming weeks. With all these new changes, Google is all set to be a compelling option to attract users from competing services like Microsoft Office.
