Google stops Instant Search feature that shows search results as you type

Google has discontinued its Instant Search feature. With this, the search engine offered the user search results as he or she was typing them. Google allegedly did this to streamline the search experience across multiple types of devices.

A Google spokesperson told Search Engine Land that the company is making the decision because of the high number of users conducting searches via smartphones or tablets. The search giant removed the Instant Search feature to make the search experience faster and on as many screen sizes and types of devices as possible. According to the spokesperson, more than half of the searches are done on a mobile device.

Google already showed results for the first possible search with Instant Search via the predictive function. The company introduced the feature in 2010. Now the website simply displays a list of possible searches while the user is typing. The user has to click on this himself and will not see any results.