Google Instant adds predictive search enhancement

by Steven Mostyn - Sep 9 2010, 04:58

In a move to increase user convenience – and keep market rivals Microsoft Bing and Yahoo Search at bay – Google has unveiled Google Instant, a new search enhancement that applies predictive techniques to present users with possible results before they finish inputting their specific search terms.

“We are pushing the limits of our technology and infrastructure to help you get better search results, faster,” outlines the California-based search titan. “ Our key tactical insight was that people type slowly, but read quickly, typically taking 300 milliseconds between keystrokes, but only 30 milliseconds to glance at another part of the page. This means that you can scan a results page while you type.”

So, by using the predictive powers of Google Instant, users should be able to locate their desired search result before even finishing their query input and without having to physically select ‘search’ or press the ‘enter’ key.

“Another shift is that seeing results as you type helps you formulate a better search on the fly until the results match exactly what you want,” adds Google. “In time, we may wonder how search ever worked in any other way.”

Keen to reinforce the worth of its latest feature, Google claims, prior to Instant, a typical searcher would require more than nine seconds to complete a search term entry. By utilising Instant, users should now save between 2-5 seconds per search. And, if everyone uses Instant globally, up to 3.5 billion seconds of time could be saved every day – which equates to 11 hours saved every second.

Don’t see it on your Google page yet? Google Instant is initially being rolled out to users in the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Russia who are equipped with the following browsers: Google Chrome (versions 5 and 6), Mozilla Firefox (version 3), Apple Safari (version 5), and Microsoft Internet Explorer (version 8).

According to Google, more language versions of Instant are to be added over the coming months – as is a mobile version of the tool.

Around the Web