Google Inbox app aims to help users make sense of email

Google hopes to transform the way people access and use their Gmail accounts with the launch of its new Inbox app, which is currently available on an invite-only basis.

The offering seeks to simplify the way people use their email and make it easier for them to sift through the huge number of electronic missives they receive each day.

The search giant has already started sending out invitations to a select group of users to try the app, who are also invited to pass it on to their contacts too.

Google has also offered those interested in testing it to email the company at inbox@google.com to request an invite as soon as the next batch becomes available.

It does this by bundling together emails of a similar type (for instance, bank statements or online order confirmations), so the contents can be reviewed more quickly.

Users can also stipulate what type of emails they'd like to see grouped together in this way, and Inbox will take its cue from this to ensure any future messages receive the same treatment.

The look and feel of the app shares some similarities with social networks services such as Twitter and Google+ with information presented to users in the form of a news or activity stream, rather than a traditional email inbox.

It has also been designed to ensure important information contained in emails is easier to find by extracting the key details and bringing them to the fore of the app, rather than the entire email.

In a blog post, announcing the launch of Inbox, Google flagged flight itineraries, event information and work documents as key types of information the service would flag to users.

"Inbox will even display useful information from the web that wasn't in the original email, such as the real-time status of your flights and package deliveries," wrote Sundar Pichai, SVP of Android, Chrome & Apps at Google.

Users are also encouraged to use the app to set reminders for themselves, which will appear in their streams as the time to deliver on them approaches.

This feature will be complimented by the inclusion of something called Assists, whereby Google will supply users with access to information from the web to help them complete the tasks they need to do.

"If you write a reminder to call the hardware store, Inbox will supply the store's phone number and tell you if it's open," the post continued.

"If you make a restaurant reservation online, Inbox adds a map to you confirmation email. Book a flight online, and Inbox gives a link to check-in."