Everything You Need to Know About Gmail's Latest Update

Gmail had a little work done lately, and it's looking good.

The latest version of the web's favorite email client comes with a host of new features, ready to help you reach Inbox Zero. But with new updates rolling out every month or so, it's hard to keep track of the latest tools. Just when you think you know it all, one little change can completely impact your whole experience.

Mashable's writer Taylor Casti has rounded up the latest features so you can reclaim your title as Gmail Master. Here's the definitive guide to the latest updates.

1. Download Attachments to Google Drive

A major change, new Gmail revamped its attachment UI. Instead of downloading attachments to your desktop's Downloads folder — and honestly, who knows what you've lost in that mess — you now have the option to save everything straight to Google Drive. You can even send the download to a specific folder within Drive.

Image: Google

You can also preview multiple attachments easily within Gmail, read whole documents, or even search for a specific word or phrase within a convenient popup window.

Image: Google

2. A Little Less Conversation, a Little More Action

Another change to the Gmail interface is the new action buttons feature. These buttons appear in your Inbox to the right of email subjects. They scan the contents of your emails for pertinent information, such as dates or flight information, so you can complete tasks, for example, reviewing your Seamless orders, booking reservations or checking flights without having to even open the email.

Image: Google

Google stresses that the action buttons do not inherently share personal information and will only link with services that you've already connected to your Gmail account.

3. Nothing Like a Handwritten Note

Although Google products support a wide range of languages, if you're constantly switching between different alphabets, the keyboard can be a pain. Now you can write out characters in your own hand using your mouse or trackpad, to be converted into text using Google's new input tools.

Image: Google

With over 20 languages currently available in Google Docs and 50 languages in Gmail, your message is sure to translate.

4. A New Home for Your Apps

All your Google applications got a new home in the upper right-hand corner of your inbox. Simply click the apps icon to easily access your Drive, Calendar, Google+, Contacts and Groups. From here, you can also access your Google+ profile, any other Gmail accounts you're logged into (by clicking on your picture icon) or just your Google+ notifications, by clicking on the bell.

Image: Google

5. Updated iPad Look

For iPad users, the latest Gmail for iOS app just got a major overhaul, giving you more room for serious multitasking. Holding your iPad in landscape mode gives you a new navigation bar on the left-hand side, where you can switch between the new inbox categories (or your other Gmail accounts) with one tap.

Portrait mode has also changed, giving you a closer look at each individual message by isolating it on the page in it's own full-screen view. That also means more room to compose new messages. You can download the latest version of the iOS app now from the App Store.

6. A Sleeker Login

While not the most dramatic of changes, Google has started rolling out a new design for its login page, putting the login form front and center and eliminating everything else on the page.

Image: Google

The new login page is similar to the mobile login page and emphasizes how many tools a user gets with a single login.