Last month I posted about the new Gmail experience going GA (General Availability) for G Suite users with the option for Admins to move their users to the new experience or to keep the classic look for a bit longer. That GA event has now happened and Admins can have the option for users to move to the new experience now or later.
In the blog post Google made about it today, Admins basically have three options available to users ranging from opting-in now on the new experience to delaying it until September.
Here is an outline of the three available options that Google has offered on the move to the new Gmail experience:
- Allow my users access to the new Gmail UI and features after August 21, 2018. Your users will stay on the legacy Gmail experience for four weeks. On August 21st, 2018, they’ll start seeing the option to try the new Gmail. If they don’t choose to opt in by September 18th, 2018, we’ll automatically migrate them to the new experience starting on that date (note that this migration may take a few days). They’ll continue to have the option to opt out of the new experience until October 16th, 2018. Soon after that date, they’ll be automatically transitioned to the new Gmail and lose the ability to opt out. [NOTE: This is the default setting if your organization did not participate in the EAP.]
- Allow my users access to the new Gmail UI and features. Your users can opt in to the new Gmail at any time. If they don’t choose to opt in by September 18th, 2018, we’ll automatically migrate them to the new experience starting on that date (note that this migration may take a few days). They’ll continue to have the option to opt out of the new experience until October 16th, 2018. Soon after that date, they’ll be automatically transitioned to the new Gmail and lose the ability to opt out. [NOTE: This is the default setting if your organization participated in the EAP.]
- Default my users to the new Gmail UI and features. Your users will be transitioned to the new Gmail as soon as you select and save this setting, but they’ll have the ability to opt out until October 16th, 2018. Soon after that date, they’ll be automatically transitioned to the new Gmail and lose the ability to opt out.
Clearly the drop dead date on the Classic Gmail experience is October 16th of this year. At that point everyone gets the new experience like it or not.
For public users of Gmail, these are pretty much the same rules that will impact you. You will have until October 16th on the classic look but you will get moved over in September and the option to opt-out will be gone in October.
