Your time is precious, and should not be spent answering emails. Gmail understands this, and has now brought its game changing Smart Reply service to Inbox on the Web. The popular service, which was previously available only on mobile, learns about your writing habits and typical responses and suggests up to three responses for each of your incoming emails. Once you pick your favorite, Smart Reply automatically starts your response, and you can either send it as is or make tweaks as you see fit. It may only save you a few seconds per email, but when your inbox is out of control, those seconds really add up.
The smart service has proven wildly popular on mobile, Google says, with 10 percent of all replies from smartphones already making use of the feature. As such, the tech giant says, “We’re excited to bring this same convenience to the Web. It’s particularly helpful when you’re jamming through lots of emails on your laptop.”
It should be noted that Smart Reply is not yet available on the main Gmail page, but rather on the desktop version of Inbox by Gmail (which is not, in fact, the same thing). Inbox differs from its more traditional partner by automatically sorting through your mail for you — so in a way, it’s smart already. It’s also got a distinctly different look and feel from the original Gmail, which lends itself to the Smart Reply aesthetic and functionality.
Of course, if you’re not particularly keen on changing the whole layout of your inbox just to get Google to start a few responses on your behalf, you may want to wait a while longer (and hope that Smart Reply ultimately makes its way to the Gmail proper). It’s unclear as to just how long you’d be holding out, though — the Silicon Valley firm has given no indication as to if or when the feature will be further extended.
But if you’re willing to shake things up a bit, go for Inbox, and then go for Smart Reply. You’d be surprised how well Google knows you.
