Google announces iPad-friendly Gmail update

The iPad is on course for an April launch in the UK

Google has announced an enhanced version of Gmail designed specifically for the newly launched Apple iPad.

Google engineering manager Alex Nicolaou said in a blog post that Google's work to optimise Gmail for touchscreen devices began when the first iPhone and Android handsets came onto the market.

The new version will take advantage of the iPad's large touch-screen and tablet form factor to include "an experimental two-pane user interface" featuring conversations down the left hand side and messages in the right column.

"All the features of the Gmail web app that you're used to, such as offline access and aggressive caching to reduce latency, are present in the iPad version," Nicolaou explained.

"Tablet devices are still very new, so expect changes as we continue to optimise for this new format."

The iPad was launched to great fanfare in the US on Saturday, and a UK release is expected by the end of the month.

Although, like the iPhone, it is being marketed primarily as a consumer device, the iPad's enterprise credentials have been given a boost by the launch of two new Citrix apps.

The latest research seems to indicate that Apple could be on to yet another winner with the iPad. A survey from price comparison site Kelkoo UK last week found that 40 per cent of consumers are ready to ditch their laptops for a tablet PC.