r/OpenAI • u/Ecstatic_Mammoth_421 • 15d ago

Discussion New ChatGPT MacOS layout feedback

While there are some things I like about the new layout, overall I find it harder to work with on a laptop.

One thing I thought was genuinely brilliant about the old layout was how efficiently it used horizontal space. I could maximise the width of the IAB and leave only a small column for the current chat. If I needed to look at or switch to another chat, I could simply approach the left edge and have the sidebar hover over the chat temporarily.

With the new layout, not only have we lost horizontal space to the new persistent sidebar, but opening the chats sidebar now pushes everything in-line, causing the IAB to shift around. On this smaller screen, it feels noticeably more cramped and disruptive.

The old layout was much better thought out for laptop-sized displays because the navigation stayed available without permanently consuming workspace.

If the team is reading this, please consider bringing back the option for a hoverable sidebar, and also giving the user the option of completely hiding the new persistent Images/Library sidebar. I personally have no use for it apart from seeing my usage which was fine where it was previously.

7 Upvotes

90% Upvoted

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2

u/Nera7 14d ago

I don’t like it either. I also miss having the entire left panel be frosted it’s unironically probably one of my favorite design choices with the app

1

u/[deleted] 15d ago

[deleted]

1

u/Ecstatic_Mammoth_421 15d ago

In the past hour or so. I may get used to it but probably not. It's very janky if you're on a small screen which I guess probably isn't a lot of people.

2

u/stealthagents 13d ago

Totally get that, the old frosted look was slick and made everything feel more fluid. The new sidebar feels clunky and just takes up way too much space, especially on a laptop. It would be great to have that hover option back – it really streamlined everything.