Gmail’s big merger with Google Chat and Meet starts rolling out today

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  Gmail with tons of extra controls. There are now sections for "Mail," "Chat," "Rooms," and "Meet." [credit: Tahin Rahman ]

Last month, Google announced a major revamp of Gmail that would see it merge with two of Google's newer communication apps, Google Meet and Google Chat. Both apps are upstarts taking on established competitors in areas Google has neglected for a long time. Meet is Google's Zoom video conferencing competitor, and Google Chat is the company's Slack competitor. Today, Google announced the merger is starting to roll out to GSuite customers.

On the desktop interface, the new version of Gmail keeps all of the Gmail commands and features about where you would expect them, it just adds a million other controls to the sides and top of the email app. The sidebar now has sections for people and chat rooms from Google Chat, along with meetings you have scheduled in Google Meet. Gmail's message area gets a split-screen interface that can now do things like show a Google Chat chatroom or even open a Google Doc right inside Gmail.

On mobile, the Gmail app gets a new tab bar at the bottom of the app, letting you switch between Mail, Chat, Rooms, and Meet.

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