Dotbiz Blog: Google Changes Typeface of Logo To Make It Easier to Read Across Multiple Devices and Platforms

If you use Google for search, you probably notice that on September 1, 2015 the company launched a new logo. Why? According to the Google blog the popular search engine was once a destination reached from a desktop PC, while today people use Google products Google was one destination that you reached from one device: a desktop PC. These days, people access Google products from many different platforms,apps and devices including mobile phones, TVs, watches, automobile dashboards, and desktops.

So, the previous familiar logo with a serif font gives way to a simpler custom typeface that is sans-serif and thicker making it easier to read even on the smallest screens. The new logo tells you that you’re using Google, but also shows you how Google is working for you. For example, new elements like a colorful Google mic help you identify and interact with Google whether you’re talking, tapping or typing. And, the little blue “g” icon and replacing it with a four-color “G” that matches the logo and is used in places where the full name will not fit.

The new branding replaces the last Google logo, which the company has used since September 2013. The new san-serif logo is Google’s sixth logo since the company launched in 1998. Most of the updates have been subtle. In October 1998, Google change the color of the “G” from green to blue and added an exclamation point at the end. Google removed the exclamation point the following May.

Not everyone likes the new logo. My first reaction to seeing the old logo morph into the one was ugh, but I brushed it off because Google has artfully played with its search engine art in many different ways. I thought it was like a change for the day.

I actually prefer the old serif font, which lacks the utter simplicity of the new one. However, I do understand that serif type doesn't shrink down as well as san serif fonts. In instances when the type is used for a logo that needs to scale from really large to tiny, the new logo is better for that purpose.

Of note, there has been an on-going argument among those who take note of such things as to whether serif fonts are more legible than san serif. But such arguments always have to take into account the actual shape of the letter and the spacing between letters. With a logo that is just a font without other graphics parts are interplay the uniqueness, familiarity and memorability all