Major operating system updates are a great opportunity for us to rethink our apps. That’s exactly what happened when Google released the Ice Cream Sandwich operating system. Today, we’re excited to unveil the completely redesigned Evernote 4.0 for Android. It’s more than just a new look, it’s the most powerful Evernote for Android, ever.

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The All-New Look of Evernote for Android

Whether it’s a completely makeover or a simple touch-up, every single screen of the app have been redesigned to be easier to use, faster and more intuitive.

The new Home Screen
The new home screen is completely different from anything we’ve done before. The screen combines note creation options with buttons that take you directly into notebooks, tags and places (more on that later).

What makes the new home screen great, is how easy it is to use and how fast you can jump to it—swipe right or tap the elephant and you’re back.

Improved note and notebook list
The app’s note and notebooks lists got a major upgrade in this update. We redesigned the look of the note list to make it easier to browse content and to find what you’re looking for. For the notebook list, we brought together your personal notebooks and the ones that others have shared with you into a single view.

Action Bars
The latest update includes new contextual Action Bars that runs along the bottom of several screens. The bar shows options that relate to the screen that you’re on. For example, if you’re viewing a note, the Action Bar allows you to edit, share, tag, and perform other note-related actions. On the note list, tapping the Action Bar can launch a new note, search through notes, and change the sort order. Look for the Action Bar whenever you want to do more on the screen that you’re in.

Easy reading

We believe that the best interfaces are the ones that appear when you need them and become invisible when you don’t. That thinking led to our new note view. When reading a note, as you start scrolling, all navigation slides away, giving you a full-screen reading view. Then, when you need to edit, share or return to the note list, just tap the screen.

Swipe navigation

Horizontal swiping is now a major way to navigate through the app. When you’re viewing Notebooks, Tags, and Places, horizontal swiping moves you from one category to the next. If you’re in the home screen, a swipe to the left jumps you into the note list. Swipe back any time and you return to the home screen.

Places!

If you have “location services” enabled on your device, then Evernote assigns a place to each note you make. The new Places screen displays notes by creation location. Tap the map icon in the Action Bar to see your notes on a map.

New Settings

One of the other very visible interface features is the appearance of your username in the top left corner of the home screen. Tapping the username, shows your remaining monthly allowance and gives you access to additional settings.

Next to the username is a profile icon. This icon shows your account type: it’s a simple profile icon for Free users, and shiny crest if you’re Premium. In addition, at a glance, the icon shows you if you’re nearing your monthly allowance limit.

Much more…

As always, the visible things are only part of the story. There are lots of enhancements and fixes that will make your experience of using Evernote the best it’s ever been. Also, be sure to tap on the feature discovery lightbulb to see what’s new in this update and to get other useful tips.