Need Classic Google Search? New “Web” Filter Brings Back the Blue Links!
Google will soon be rolling out its all-new AI-powered search experience for everyone and with it how you experience search will never be the same again. But still, with so many layers on top of the search results, many of us still want to use the old, classic blue link from Google.
Well, Google has heard our prayers and introduced a new “Web” filter that will make it possible.
When Google was founded over 25 years ago, the company’s search engine was a relatively simple concept. By crawling the web, Google could bring back relevant websites to help you find what you need. It’s why “Google” is not just the company’s name, but also a verb. Over time, though, the original vision has changed.
In 2024, Google Search is made up of many layers on top of just plain links. Some of your searches will bring you shopping results, while others will open up the knowledge panel and some may have featured snippets.
And now, with AI taking over, AI overviews will be added to the mix soon.
Google says that AI Overviews, like Knowledge Panels and Featured Snippets, is a new feature of Search. This means that it’s not something you can simply turn off.
AI overviews will appear on many searches, especially if you ask a question. That means pushing traditional web links down the page, sometimes entirely out of view.
This might just be the reason why Google has confirmed that it will be adding a new “Web” filter to its search page. This new filter will work like the images, videos, and various other Search Filters, but the goal will be to show only links to the web.
It is not exactly clear when this new web filter will be rolling out to Google Search, but it sounds like it will be available alongside the rollout of AI Overviews.