Google added a “Notes” feature to Search a while back as part of Labs that allowed you to leave yourself little reactions or thoughts about websites and articles, almost like digital sticky notes. That feature appears to be getting some upgrades that could be turning Notes into a full-fledged conversation starter.The folks over at Android Authority (namely Android code expert, Assemble Debug) uncovered a hidden “Comments” setting buried within Notes. The setting isn’t active, so you won’t see it on your end. That said, they found a pretty obvious “Comments coming soon” notice tucked away as well, that pretty much solidifies what the intent is.
Image credit: Android Authority / AsembleDebug
If this goes live, Notes could become its own little conversation hub right inside your search results. Think about being able to discuss a news story or a blog post directly within that search. It’s kind of like a streamlined, focused version of Reddit built right into the web. Of course, we don’t have all the details on what Google’s vision is, but this has the potential to get interesting.Keep in mind that, way back when Notes launched, Google mentioned they were looking for ways to let website owners see how people were reacting to their content. Comments would be an obvious and powerful way to do that – imagine getting reader feedback immediately, instead of waiting for it to filter back in other ways.
This comment feature isn’t here yet, and there’s no telling when it might actually launch, as it was found hidden in the code. However, this discovery has us wondering what are the possibilities that Google is dreaming up here with this feature. If it plays out the way it appears, Google could be changing how we interact with what we find online. I just hope that if rolled out, the feature sticks around for a while and doesn’t get scrapped along with all the notes and comments from our family and friends.