Google has released a new version of its Calendar app for Android devices.
The new Calendar app has been designed to be "a helpful assistant, so you can spend less time managing your day, and more time enjoying it," says Google.
Google seems to be applying the same sort of logic to the humble calendar that it did to email recently with Inbox - that it should be a lot smarter and, well, Google Now-like.
As such, the new Calendar app for Android devices will hook into the Gmail app and pull out relevant schedule information automtically. Or, "automagically" to use Google's nauseating phraseology.
Flight reservations, concert tickets, hotel bookings - all of these will automatically appear in the new Calendar app based on the automated emails you get for them. Even better, if those events change for any reason (such as a delayed flight), the calendar entry will change accordingly.
The new Calendar app will also provide suggestions when you start typing people, places, or activities into an entry. It learns from previous entries too, so frequent calendar entries will soon need only the first few letters entering for a whole entry to be created.
No longer will your calendar schedule be a dull grid of boxes and dry information. Google has introduced rich images into proceedings.
The new schedule view now includes photos and maps of the places you're scheduled to visit, and everyday placeholder illustrations for everyday entries like drinks or yoga (Google's suggestion, not ours). It makes the calendar process a far more pleasant experience.
Then there's the simple fact that this Calendar makeover brings Google's Material Design into play, making it sit better with the impending (for Nexus owners at least) Android 5.0 Lollipop update. It all looks very bold and exquisitely animated.
Google's new Calendar app will work with all devices on Android 4.1 or above, and is rolling out over the coming weeks. Google also confirmed that an iPhone version is in the works.
Read More: Android 5.0 Lollipop - What's new?
