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Google+ gets even more visual. Check out the updated features!

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Google+ popped out a new update today and I love it!

Bold text from from Sara McKinley at Googleย [screen shots added by me]

“We spend lots of time listening to your feedback, and today we're launching some profile and page updates that you've been asking for. These include:

– A new tab for your Local reviews. In addition to your photos, +1's and YouTube videos, there's now a place for all your Local reviews. Highlight your favorite restaurants, or hide the tab completely via settings — it's completely up to you.

g reviews

– An easier way to edit your info. The ‘About' tab now consists of separate cards (like Story, Places, and Links) — each with its own prominent edit link. As always: you can share specific fields with specific circles, or keep them just for you.

2  Peg Fitzpatrick   Google

– Bigger cover photos, with a better aspect ratio. Cover photos are much larger than before (up to 2120px by 1192px), and they display in 16×9 when fully expanded. This way more images can be used as cover photos, and thereโ€™s more room for your selection to shine.

cover profile

I love what they've done with the profile avatar and adding a new top banner for profiles. They've cropped the avatars to a circle. This is what you see at the top in a fixed positive when you are looking at someone's Google+ personal wall. The avatar resizes to a smaller version.

2  Peg Fitzpatrick   Google header

They've also added a wonderful hover card for the people that have circled you or that you've circled that's visible from your profile. Make sure that you check your own hover card to see what data is showing, it might need some tweaking to get just the right text in preview.

Everything's rolling out gradually, so check back soon if you don't see it yet. Once itโ€™s live (atย plus.google.com/me).

Wow, Google+. Color me really excited! What do you think of the new features?

ย Featured image courtesy ofย ย kowitzย via Creative Commons.

Article by Peg Fitzpatrick

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5 Comments

  1. Anything thatโ€™s bigger and more visual, I like. However I have a couple of concerns:
    ย 
    1) It does eat up a lot of prime real estate at the top of the screen now, so any content below is diminished or more hidden.
    ย 
    2) More opportunity for more visual means if itโ€™s not handled well, there will now be more ugly visuals too. So things could get a little โ€œnoisyโ€ unless they are treated with care.

    1. @PaulBiedermannย I agree on both of those points.ย 
      ย 
      I don’t think that content will get hidden as people will automatically scroll down. I’m interested to see what brands use the space to do.

  2. This rocks! If loving Google + is wrong…. I don’t wannabe right! I love the Bigger Cover Photo! I need to play the with the Bold Text & the About Tab. Thanks Peg.

    1. @jaredeasleyย So funny! The blue bold text in the About section are the links. It’s really a fantastic update and I’m still tweaking my profile to get it just right.

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