Google finally takes Gmail out of beta

Google adopts a different definition of 'beta' to its rivals

Google has dropped the beta label from its Google Apps products, including Gmail, Calendar, Docs and Talk.

"We get asked all the time why Google keeps its products in beta for so long. And Gmail, five years after launch, is consistently a subject of this questioning, even of jokes," said Gmail product director Keith Coleman in a blog post. "The end result is that today, beta is a thing of the past."

The search firm has long argued that the beta status is kept on its applications for so long to reflect the amount of testing that needs to be performed.

However, Google is dropping the beta name for Google Apps because it needs the products to appeal to business customers.

"Since the beginning of the year, we've focused on making it as easy as possible for large enterprises to switch to Google," said Google Apps senior product manager Rajen Sheth in another blog post.

"Offline access, BlackBerry and Microsoft Outlook support, and enterprise contact management were the dynamite that cleared the road to Apps. Today we're paving the road. We're taking the beta label off Gmail, Google Calendar, Docs and Talk to remove any doubt that Apps is a mature product suite."