Google recently roped in a feature from Inbox and baked it on Gmail called the Smart Reply. This feature – available on both Android, iOS, and web – scans your emails as they are coming in and then serves you pre-formulated responses for those moments you’re feeling too lazy to type out a response.
For instance, you might get an email inviting you to an event. The Smart Reply feature will give you options like ‘I’ll be there,’ ‘Thanks, I’ll give you a response soon,’ or ‘Sorry, I can’t make it.’
For some, at first they might have appeared useful, but as time goes by, and you keep getting emails requiring well-thought-out responses. These Smart Replies hardly seem appropriate or satisfying, and you might as well disable them altogether.
How to turn off Smart Replies in Gmail
Launch the Gmail app. Tap on the three lines running horizontally down on the upper right-hand corner of your screen. Tap on Settings.
Next, select the email account you want to turn off the Smart Reply feature; if you have signed into two or more, Gmail accounts on the Gmail app.
Go to General > Smart Reply. And on the Show suggested replies when available unmark the checkbox next to it.
If you have multiple Gmail accounts logged in on the Gmail app, you can repeat the steps above for all the accounts to remove the Smart Reply.
If you are disabling the Smart Reply feature based on the argument that for them to work, Google must scan through your email. Well, guess what, Google has been doing so long before the feature arrived, and will continue when you disable the feature.
Google has been scanning your emails for years, sometimes for good reasons like locking out spam, phishing attacks, and viruses. There are also allegations it has been doing so to better serve you targeted ads.