After Stadia, Podcasts and One VPN, Google is preparing to clean up Google Keep, its note-taking software. The app should not be completely removed, but Google Tasks should regain some of its functions.
Launched in 2013, Google Keep has never been a very popular service.
Very rarely updated, the note-taking application, which is based on a post-it system, is a very lightweight alternative to Evernote, OneNote, Apple Notes or Samsung Notes, which have been enriched over the years. It is, for example, impossible to put an image in the middle of the text in Google Keep, or to bold/italicize a sentence. The purpose of the app is to make lists, take notes quickly, or set reminders.
Will Google Keep soon be abandoned by Google, like many services? The latest version of Google Keep contains a bit of unreassuring code, which indicates that reminders will disappear from the application.
The start of the dismantling of Google Keep?
For several months, Google has been banking heavily on Google Tasks, its new organization tool. Google Assistant commands now create reminders in Tasks, instead of Calendar. The company’s ultimate objective seems to be to reduce its number of services, although it has developed the bad habit of spreading everything thin.
In the Google Keep code, AssembleDebug, an application specialist from the Californian company, found evidence that Google is preparing to transfer reminders from Google Keep to Google Tasks. Very soon, Google Keep should only be used for quick notes.
This first migration raises questions about Google’s future plans. The company is not blind and knows full well that Google Keep is being abandoned, which makes it uncompetitive on Android and iOS.
The transfer of reminders to Google Tasks could be followed by the launch of a new note-taking application, which could put an end to the Keep adventure. It’s hard to imagine Google turning a blind eye to the emergence of generative AI, which allows Samsung to summarize notes or arrange them automatically. According to rumors, Apple Notes could gain a similar function without iOS 18, with the added bonus of summarizing voice conversations.
At the end of 2023, Google had already removed its old list system, particularly for shopping, by integrating all its old data collected into Google Keep. The application was not entitled to any other new features.
Google I/O, scheduled for May 14, could tell us more about Google’s plans for note-taking. Loyal Google Keep users can already consider a transition, while the future of the service seems under threat.
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