Gmail action buttons keep email addicts safe in their inbox

For a lot of people their e-mail inboxes a nice, safe, and comfy place to be. The web interface for Gmail is very familiar to a lot of people and Google has been working hard recently with some new and interesting features to make your e-mail box even more useful. Google has announced several new features this week, including one that will allow you to take action on certain types of e-mails from directly within your inbox.

Google has added some new quick action buttons to Gmail designed to help users take care of their digital needs quickly and easily. The quick action buttons will appear for certain types of messages that arrive in your inbox allowing you to take action without having to bother opening the e-mail. One example is if a friend sent you an invite to a party at a restaurant.

You would be able to RSVP that you will attend, won't attend, or may attend using a small action button will appear in upper right-hand corner of the e-mail window. The action buttons will also allow you to rate the restaurant you ate at for lunch using the link in your inbox. Another type of e-mail that will get these easy-to-use action buttons are flight confirmation e-mails.

If you open an e-mail containing a flight confirmation, details about the flight will appear right at the top. Details include things like departure time, whether or not the flight is on time, the terminal, and the gate number. Granted airlines are notorious for changing the details of the last minute, so you'll still have to check with your airport.

It's very nice though to have all the information on your flight right at the top without having to do a lot of scrolling. Google says that these the quick actions will roll out over the next few weeks and that it is working on adding additional actions in the future. Developers can also add actions to their e-mails, which opens interesting possibilities. I can see this being combined with the Google wallet integration with Gmail where a user can be sent an e-mail with a price quote for product or service and the user could pay directly from their inbox streamlining the process for the buyer and seller.

SOURCE: Gmail