Google is restoring the Contacts tab to the Phone by Google app after removing it in last year's Material 3 Expressive redesign.
The tab was cut from the bottom navigation bar during the 2025 overhaul, forcing users to access contacts through a separate path. Its return signals that the redesign's simplification went too far for real-world use.
The full article details how the tab is being reintroduced and what the updated bottom bar layout looks like. Worth reading if you track how Google iterates on its own app design decisions after user pushback.
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