Google Search Is Getting A Lite Version; India Launch Expected Soon

Going Lite is the new goal for a lot of companies who want to capture emerging markets like India, Indonesia, Philippines and Latin America. Facebook Lite, Facebook Messenger Lite, LinkedIn Lite and Skype Lite are a few examples of this phenomenon, launched specifically for India.

Now, Google is joining this bandwagon to launch a Lite version of its popular Search app. Still in an experimental phase, the Search app is expected to deliver the same experience as on its full-featured sibling.

Since it is the Lite version, it will allow a seamless search experience even in poor internet connectivity by using minimal data. In addition, it will also allow searching for news, images, weather and nearby locations through quick accessible widgets in the app.

The app has been made available to testers in Indonesia, but the APK file can be picked up from this location. The app is targeted especially at emerging markets where internet penetration is still improving, says Android Police.

How Will The App Work?

As soon as you open up the app, it requests language selection. Currently, it is available in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada and Bahasa Indonesia. Once you select any one of these languages, you are directed to the search page.

Unlike other apps, the search bar in this app is at the bottom, so that it is easily accessible. When you search for something, the app immediately provides Google search results and suggests even more options to simplify your search.

It also keeps a tab of previous searches you have made. The search page loading time will be very quick. However, everything after that would depend on the actual website or page you’re trying to load. It will have lesser preloaded data and minimum of images to quicken the data load times.

Other than search, you can pick weather, news, images, top sites, nearby location feature, translate and see offline pages as well. There is a personalize option as well which allows you to customize the app home screen and pick what the background loads.

For data usage, Google has built-in an internal browser that loads up the data quickly. You can turn on or turn off this feature as you like, because the internal browser may not support all the features.

Given the features, this app seems to be a good deal for older smartphones and ones with poor internet connectivity. The app could load fairly well even at 2G and 3G speeds.

While the testing continues in Indonesia, Google is expected to make an announcement very soon in India.