Google Play Store for Android, Chrome OS might soon have 'squircle' shaped icons

You might soon see ‘squircle’ shaped app icons on the Google Play Store. As noted on the latest Android Developers Blog, new apps icons for the Google Play Store will feature rounded corners and straight sides at the top and bottom.Google in the blog post mentioned that the new app icons will remain 512 x 512 in size, however, transparent backgrounds will no longer be ‘accepted.’ Instead, rounded corners and drop shadows will be applied to the icons. To ensure consistency, the corner radius will maintain 20 per cent of the icon size, the company said.Notably, the changes will be applied in the Google Play Store for Android and Chrome OS only. Users will not see changes on apps listed in Google Play Store on other form factors including Android TV, Wear OS and Android Auto.Google notes that starting next month developers can begin uploading their new icons to the Google Play console and the company will tell developers if their ‘submission’ is compliant with the new specifications.[caption id="attachment_6273061" align="alignnone" width="1144"] Google Play Store for Android will soon feature round shaped app icons.[/caption]Developers won’t be able to upload icons in the Play Console that doesn’t meet new specifications from 1 May. The original icons will be switched to the new “legacy mode” on 24 June, Google said.“These updates will help us all provide a more unified and consistent look and feel for Google Play, allowing us to better showcase your apps and games and provide a higher quality user experience,” Google mentioned in its blog post.In related news, Google released its latest Android OS, Android Q’s first beta version for all Pixel devices last week. The new Android OS is said to focus on users’ security and privacy. Android Q will give users control over location and support multi-resume, which will allow two apps to function simultaneously. As per reports, Google might release six beta versions of Android Q before its final build’s release that is said to roll out in the third quarter this year.