Material 3: new Google Ecosystem
Wednesday, January 31, 2024
Written by Isaac Castillo
Material Design, Google’s design system, has been a tool that has driven the creation of creative experiences in the Google ecosystem. Since its introduction in 2014, it has influenced the way we design and experience digital interfaces. Now, with the launch of Material 3, Google is taking its design system to a new level, reforming its ecosystem and promising greater comfort, adaptability, and customization.
What is Material 3?
Material 3 is the latest version of Google’s design system. Unlike previous versions, Material 3 is focused on customization and functionality, allowing developers and designers to create adaptable applications following usability standards.
Similar to what Apple is doing, Google is now betting on a design language for all its products, backed by open-source code. It enables developers to use the guidelines and components of Material 3 to build applications that look and feel good on a variety of devices and screen sizes.
Material Web
Recently, Google has ventured into web component design. Material Web is Google’s component library for building applications that work on any web framework. This means you can use Material 3 to build web applications with a look and feel that follows Google’s design language, regardless of the framework you are using, as native components can be implemented using React, Angular, or even natively.
With Material Web, developers can leverage the predefined components of Material 3 to accelerate the development of their applications. This reduces the amount of code developers need to write and maintains visual consistency across all applications.
The Google Ecosystem
The Google ecosystem has been evolving since the emergence of more products from the internet giant. Google Pixel and Pixel Watch, as well as Google’s close relationship with tech brands, have led Google to opt for a unique design language for its entire ecosystem.
As Google seeks to unify its ecosystem, the Android operating system plays a crucial role. Material 3, designed to follow Google’s design guidelines, seamlessly integrates into the operating system, providing aesthetic coherence and functionality across various platforms.
An Open Ecosystem
There is no doubt that Google is now opting for a more open and friendly ecosystem. Speaking from the development perspective, Google is betting more than ever on providing tools to developers. Extensive documentation and design resources, such as the Figma kit, make designing products for the Google ecosystem quite efficient.
You can learn more about Material 3 at Material 3 and Material Design. The future of the Google ecosystem is promising, with Material 3 leading the way in design and functionality.