navigation buttons

Navigation is back from Android's awkward teen years on a Googlebook near you

The triangle, circle, and square are back. On every Googlebook keyboard, F1, F2, and F3 now map to the old Android navigation icons that first appeared on Lollipop, back, home, and app switcher. It's a direct rip from phones circa 2014, before gestures took over, and it's charming and weird in equal measure. Those keys still exist as an alternative on Android 17, so someone at Google clearly has a long memory and a soft spot for skeuomorphic buttons. The Quick Insert and Google logo keys aren't new, they've been around on some Chromebooks for a couple of years, but this triple-press tribute to the past feels like a deliberate wink. It's a tiny detail that says navigation is finally past its awkward teen years.